1 
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 Ex Libris 
 C. K. OGDEN
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 OP 
 
 ENGLISH PHILOLOGY. 
 
 BY 
 
 CHARLES RICHARDSON, ESQ. 
 
 CONSISTING OP 
 
 I. A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF DR. JOHNSON S DICTIONARY. 
 
 Ridebis, deinde indignaberis, deinde ridebis, si legeiis, quod, nisi Icgeris, nou jiotes credere. 
 
 Plinii Episl. 
 
 II. REMARKS ON MR. DUGALD STEWART's ESSAY " ON THE TENDENCY OF SOME 
 
 LATE PHILOLOGICAL SPECULATIONS." 
 
 Verba obstrepunt. Bacon, !Vov. Org;. 
 
 TO WHICH IS NOW ADDED, 
 
 AN ADVERTISEMENT; CONTAINING EXTRACTS FROM THE ENGLISH LEXICON, PUBLISHING 
 IN THE ENCVCLOPyEDIA METROPOLITAN A, AND FROM THE ENGLISH DICTIONARY OF 
 DR. JOHNSON. 
 
 O mihi tarn longse mancat pars ultima vito, 
 
 Spiritus et quantum sat erit ! ''"•£■. Eclog. iv. 
 
 LONDON .—PRINTED 1815. 
 
 REPUBLISHED BY J. MAWMAN, LUDGATE-STREET. 
 
 1826.
 
 PRINTED EY A. APPLEGATH, STAMFORD-STREET.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 ADVEnriSEMENT. Pagp 
 
 1. Letter the First. The Plan of Dr. Johnson's Dictionary 1 
 
 2. Analysis of the Grammatical Principles of the Diversions of Purley 21 
 
 .3. A Critical Examination of Dr. Johnson's Dictionary 37 
 
 4. Letter the Second. Mr. Todd, the Editor of Johnson's Dictionary 233 
 
 .5. Letter the Third. Mr. Dugald Stewart, "On the Tendency of some late 
 
 Philological Speculations" 251
 
 ERRATA. 
 
 p. 28, 1. 6, dele the hyphen after Golden. 
 
 33, note, .... for aeacuvci read ajjfiaivet. 
 
 40, 1. 26, 27, ■ . dele " the past participle to be." 
 
 41, comma after aXweti'. 
 
 dele comma after marore. 
 
 48, 1. 24, ... . read To straggle. 
 
 64, 1. 6, .... read But. 
 
 71, 1. 14, .... for us read as. 
 
 74, 1. 15, .... for us read as. 
 
 75, 1. 6 from the bottom, read writes. 
 81, for Hides read Henshawe. 
 
 134, 1. 26, .... reatl a parer. 
 
 183, 1. 18, .... read pigrescere. 
 
 213, 1. 8, . . . . . . read sensations or ideas. 
 
 269, 1. 4 from the bottom, read ingemui. 
 
 283, 1. 1 1, .... dele late, and the comma after emeritus.
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 January, 1826. 
 
 The following pages were first published in the year 1815. About 
 four years ago all the copies that remained unsold came (through 
 circumstances of no concern to any but the parties to the transaction) 
 into the possession of the author ; and have continued in his possession 
 to the present moment. During the whole of that period he has 
 been laboriously employed in the study of the English language ; 
 and in so doing, he has had occasion to pass through a considerable 
 portion of the Dictionary of Dr. Johnson, word by word, and line by 
 line ; and in reissuing his criticism upon that work, he deems it but 
 justice to himself to declare, that he is now confirmed (if confirmation 
 were possible) in the correctness of the views he has therein taken, 
 and in the soundness of the judgment he has passed. 
 
 One Milbourne, a clergyman, it is well known to those who are at 
 all acquainted with the history of English literature, published a severe 
 criticism upon Dryden's translation of Virgil, and accompanied such
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 criticism -with his own version of some part of the Pastorals and 
 Georgics ; that, as he himself proposed, his verses might be compared 
 with those which he censured. For this he Avas called the fairest of 
 critics. The memory of hhn, his criticism, and his version, is preserved 
 in the Life of the immortal bard, whose rival and chastiser he had at 
 once proclaimed himself. The example of this Milbonrne is followed, 
 without any apprehension of his fate. 
 
 EXTRACTS 
 
 FROM THE ENGLISH LEXICON 
 
 PUBLISHING IN THE 
 
 ENCYCLOPAEDIA METROPOLITANA, 
 
 ARRI'V'E, ~) It. arrivare ; Fr. ariver, com- 
 Arri'val, Vnionly derived from the unused 
 Arri'vancb. J Lat. adripare, that is ad ripam 
 appellere, to come to a bank, or shore, venire 
 alia riva. But probably the It. arrivare, the Fr. 
 ariver, the English arrive, have the same origin 
 as the Latin, dcrivo, -are, the It. derivnre, the Fr. 
 deriver, the English derive, viz. from the Latin 
 rivus, the Greek piw, to flow. Arrive and derive 
 may then be considered as much in opposition 
 as ascend and descend. 
 
 Exsequebalur inde quce solennis derivatio esset. 
 Liv. 1. V. c. 15. 
 
 Then went he on still, and showed what was 
 the solemn and right manner of deriving the 
 water. Holland's Transl. 
 
 Arrive will then mean to flow to, to sail to ; 
 and more generally to come to, to reach, to attain. 
 
 )ie ferjie jcr ))at lie hadde cmperoiir y be 
 Mill gret ost lie wende here to Jiis londe, 
 Aboute Soiijibiimto he a ri/iitih ich viiderstonde, 
 J)o kyng Giiyder vnder^^et, fat heo a riiiede Jiere, 
 Hyiii Jioiijte lonj mid ys ost er he at hem were. 
 
 Ji. Gloucester, p. 62. 
 
 Whan he had regned foiire yere, one ryiicd vpon his right, 
 A diike of Danmark, Kebriht he hight. 
 
 n. Brunne, p. 10. 
 
 FROM THE ENGLISH DICTIONARY 
 OF DR. JOHNSON. 
 
 ARRI'VAL, n. s. [from arrive.'] The act of 
 coming to any place; and, figuratively, the 
 attainment of any purpose. 
 
 How are we changed, since wc first saw the queen ? 
 She, like the sun, does still the same appear. 
 Bright as she was at her arrival here. Tl'alkr. 
 
 The unravelling is the arrival of Ulysses upon his own 
 island. Broome. View of Epick Poetrtt. 
 
 Arri'vance, n. s. [from arrive.] Company 
 coming : not in use. 
 
 Every minute is expectancy 
 
 Of more arrivam-e. Shakspeare, 
 
 To Arri've, I', n. {arriver, Fr. to come on 
 shore.] 
 
 1. To come to any place by water. 
 
 At length arrivinf^ on the banks of Nile, 
 Wearied with length of ways, and worn with toil, 
 She laid her down. Drijden, 
 
 2. To reach any place by travelling. 
 
 AVhen we were arrived upon the verge of his estate, we 
 stopped at a little inn, to rest ourselves and our horses. 
 
 Sidnei/. 
 
 3. To reach any point. 
 
 The bounds of all body vie have no difficulty to arrive 
 at; but when the mind is there, it finds nothing to hinder 
 its progress. Locke.
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 3 
 
 ENCYCLOPEDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 Jj'ise nine schippes gan ride Jier wylil wynd )i:ini driue, 
 bei ne wist to what side, ne what haiieti in to riue. 
 
 11. Bru/tncy p. 149. 
 
 The fift sorow Jjer after com, whan William conqueroure, 
 J>at aryued on y\s lond, Harald he slouh in stoure. 
 
 Id. p. 8. 
 
 O waie of life to hem that go or ride 
 Hauen after tempest surest up to riue 
 On nie haue mercie for thy ioyes fine. 
 
 Chaucer. Balade of our Ladie, fol. 330. c. 1 . 
 
 Tho saw I eke all the ariunile 
 That Eneas had made in Italic 
 And with king Latin his treate. 
 
 Id. Fame, booki. fol. 277. c. 2. 
 
 But after that, as it be shulde. 
 Fro thens he goth toward Italye 
 By ship, and there his arriuayte 
 Hath take, and shope hym for to ride. 
 
 bower. Con. A. book iv. 
 
 And forth he goth, as nought ne were 
 To Troie, and was the firste there, 
 AVhiche londeth, and toke arriuaile. 
 
 Id. lb. 
 
 The first [opinion] is that of Aristotle, drawn from the 
 increment and gestation of this animal (the deer) that is, 
 its sudden arrwance into growth and maturity, and the 
 ^mall time of its remainder in the womb. 
 
 Brown. Vulvar Errors, 
 
 ■ Who shall spread his aerie flight 
 
 Upborn with indefntigable wings 
 Over the vast abrupt, ere he arrive 
 The happy ile. 
 
 Milton. Paradise Lost, book ii, 
 
 ^neas upon like misfortune, having fled his conntrey, 
 yet aspiring by the fatall direction of tlie destinies to 
 greater affaires, came first into Macedonie, and after into 
 Sicilie, seeking an abiding place; and sailing with a fleet 
 from Sicilie, arrived at length, and landed in the countrey 
 of Lau-rentuni. Holland's L,ivy. 
 
 When we act prudently, we have no reason to be dis- 
 heartened ; because, having good intentions, and using 
 fit means, and having done our best, as no deserved blame, 
 so no considerable damage can arrive to us. 
 
 Barrow, Serino?is. 
 
 It is a wonderful thing, and worthy the observation, in 
 flesh-flies, that a fly-maggot, in five days' space after it 
 is hatched, arru'ej at its full growth and perfect magnitude. 
 Rai/. On the Creation, 
 
 Two friends, or brothers, with devout intent. 
 On some far pilgrimage together went. 
 It happen'd so that when the sun was down, 
 TUey just arrived by twilight at a town. 
 
 ljryden*s Fables^ 
 
 Alph. Our wati^hmen, from thetow'rs, with Ipuging oyes 
 flxjiect bis s\yift arnval. 
 
 Id. Spanish Fryar, 
 
 JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY. 
 
 4. To gain any thing, by progressive approach. 
 
 It is the highest wisdom by despising tlie world to arrive 
 at heaven ; they are blessed who converse with God. 
 
 Taylor. 
 
 The virtuous may l<now in speculation, what they could 
 never arrive at by practice, and avoid the snares of the 
 crafty. ^ddisoji, 
 
 5. The thing at which we arrive is always 
 supposed to be good. 
 
 6. To happen ; with to before the person or 
 thing. This sense seems not proper. Dr. John- 
 son says : but our best authors use it. 
 
 Happy ! to whom this glorious death arrives. 
 
 More to be vahied than a thousand lives. Waller. 
 
 In the age of that poet, [yEscliylus,] the Greek language 
 was arrived to its full perfection. 
 
 UrydcH, Pre/, to Trail, and Cressida. 
 
 Whether he that luis these notions of repentance, is 
 ever like to arrive to the truth of repentance. He aloue 
 knows, who knows whether He will give such an cue 
 another heart or no. South, Scrm, vli. 126. 
 
 To Arbi've, v. a. To reach. 
 
 Ere we could arrive the point propos'd. 
 
 Shakspeare, Jul. Cesar* 
 
 Ere lie arrive 
 
 The happy isle. Milton, P. L. ii. 408. 
 
 Liest a worse woe arrive him. 
 
 Milton, Treat, of Civil Power, 
 
 Note. — For some observations upon the consistency of 
 Johnson's Etymology, and Explanation of the veib n. To 
 arrive, and first Example to it. See hereafter, j>. U. 
 
 b2
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ENCYCLOPEDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 Not that any man ever satisfied himself in the principles 
 of infidelity, or was able to arrive to a steady and un- 
 shaken persuasion of tlie truth of them, so as not vehe- 
 mently to doubt and fear tlie contrary. 
 
 Tillotson's Sermons, 
 
 In the epistles of St. Paul, St. Peter, and St. James, we 
 find frequent mention of tlie coming of our Lord, in terms 
 which, like tliosc of the text, may at first seem to imply 
 an expectation in those writers of his speedy arrival. 
 
 Horsley*s Sermotts. 
 
 BO'SOM, V. 
 Bo'soM, n. 
 
 Bo'sOM-FRIEND, 
 
 Bo'sOM-PARTXKB, 
 
 Bo'sOM-INTEREST, 
 
 Bo'sOM-LOVER, 
 
 Bo'sOM-SECEET, 
 
 Bo'soM-virE, 
 
 Bo'sOM-CIlEAT, 
 Bo'sOM-SLAVE, 
 Bo'sOM- BARRIER. 
 
 A. S. bosme ,- Dutch, 
 boesem ; Gcr. busem. 
 
 Junius ; from ySoV', 
 /Do'irKw, I feed, I nourish. 
 Skinner; from the Fr. 
 >poser, for reposer, to rest, 
 to lean upon ; because 
 infants rest and repose 
 upon tlie iosom. Wachter; 
 — Those, whose ears are 
 accustomed to the change 
 of letters, will easily understand that bosin may 
 arise from fcetlim, and this fielhm, from fasseii, 
 fatten, to seize, to embrace. 
 
 In this uncertainty a new attempt to trace the 
 word may be allowed. 
 
 In A. S. we have bvg-an, to bow ; biigsum, 
 biihsum. Hence perhaps bosme. 
 
 In Dutch, booghen, to bow ; boogsaem. Hence 
 perhaps boesem. 
 
 In Ger. beugen, to bow ; beug-sam. .\nd hence 
 perhaps busem. 
 
 In confirmation — it may be remarked, that 
 the Latin sinus and the Greek koXtto-,-, are the 
 bosom, and also a bay or bow. 
 
 Bosom then mav be so called from its form or 
 shape ; b()\\ ing', bending, curving, arching. It 
 is also applied to that within or beneath the 
 bosom ; as the heart, — the feelings or |)assions, 
 the affections, the desires of the heart. To 
 bosom ; to store, to treasure up in the bosom, to 
 seat or fix. deeply. 
 
 The bosom of the deep ; the bending surface of 
 the deep. A bosom friend ; a friend of our affec- 
 tions ; a friend affectionately beloved. And so 
 of the other compounds. 
 
 O scruimt traitour, false of holy Iiewc, 
 Like to the neiider in bimum she nntrewe, 
 God shekle us alle from your acquaintanec '. 
 
 Chaucer. The Mereluiittes Tale, v. DG59. 
 No man sigh eiiere God, no but the oon bifjetua sone, 
 that is in the bosum of the fadir, he hatli tceld out. 
 
 Jf'icttf. Juh/i, eh. i. 
 
 JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY. 
 
 BO'SOM, 71, s. [bojrne, bojom, Sax.] 
 
 1. The embrace of the arms holding any thing" 
 to the l>reust. 
 
 2. The breast; the heart. 
 ■ Our good old friend, 
 
 Lay comforts to your bosom,- and bestow 
 Vour needful counsel to our businesses. 
 
 Shakspeare. 
 
 3. The folds of the dress that cover the breast. 
 
 Put DOW thy hand into thy bosom; and he put his hand 
 into his bosom : and when he took it out, behold his hand 
 was leprous as snow, E.vodus, iv, 6. 
 
 4. Inclosure ; compass; embrace. 
 
 Unto laws thus received by a whole church, they which 
 live within the bosom of that church, must not think it a 
 matter indifferent, either to yield, or not to yield, obe* 
 
 dience. Hooka-. 
 
 5. The breast, as the seat of the passions. 
 
 Anger resteth in the bosoms of fools. 
 
 Ecclcs. vii. 9. 
 
 From jealousy's tormenting strife 
 
 For ever be thy bosom freed. Prior. 
 
 Unfortunate Tallard ! O, who can name 
 The pangs of rage, of sorrow, and of shame ; 
 That with mix'd tumult in thy basom swell'd,. 
 When tirst thou saw'st thy bravest troops repell'd ! 
 
 ^^ddison. 
 
 Here acting bosoms wear a visage gay, 
 
 And stifled groans frequent the ball and play. 
 
 6. The breast, as the seat of tenderness. 
 
 Their soul was poured out into their mothers' bosom. 
 
 Lamentations, ii. 12. 
 
 No further seek his merits to disclose, 
 
 Or draw his frailties from their dread abode ; 
 
 There they alike in tiemlding hope repose, 
 
 The bosom of his father and his God. Gray. 
 
 7. The breast, as the receptacle of secrets. 
 
 If I covered my transgression as Adam, by hiding my 
 iniquity in my bosom. Job, xxxi. 33. 
 
 8. Any receptacle close or secret ; as, the 
 iosom of the earth; the bosotu of the deep.
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ENCYCLOPEDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 No man hath sene God at any time. The onely begotten 
 Sonne whiche is in the bosonie of tlie lather, lie hath de- 
 clared him. JiiOle, 1551. 
 
 My fits are lykc the feuer ectick fits, 
 
 Which one day quakes within and b'lrnes without, 
 The next day heate within the bousoms sits. 
 
 And shiuiring colde the body goes about. 
 
 Gascoigne, The Passion of a Loner. 
 
 Thou wilt the wylie braine, that aught is bent 
 To fowle suspect and spot of fell distrust, 
 
 Purswade that here sometliing of him was ment. 
 And jealous coales unto his bosome thrust. 
 
 Tttrbervile, To the Jinyling Route, S^'C, 
 
 Reg. I am doubtful, that you have been conjunct 
 And hosom'tl with her, as far as we call hers. 
 
 Shakspcare. Lear, act v. sc. 1. 
 
 . Boso7ne vp my counsell. 
 
 you'l finde it wholesome. 
 
 /(/. Ki7ig Henry VIII. fol. 206. 
 
 — If you can pace your wisdome 
 
 In that good path that 1 would wish it go, 
 And you shal haue your bosotne ou tliis wretch, 
 Grace of the Duke, reuenges to your heart 
 And general honor. 
 
 Id. Measure for Measure, fol. 78. 
 
 BlAN. I shall, in best of love, 
 
 . Regard the bosom-partner of my lord. 
 
 Ford. Lovers Sacrifice, act i. sc. 1. 
 
 Now with your swords their traytors bosoms lance. 
 And with their blood wash out that ancient stain. 
 And make our earth drunk with the English gore. 
 Which hath of ours oft surfeited before. 
 
 DraijtoH. Battle of Agiyicourt. 
 
 King. No more that Thane of Cawdor shall deceiue 
 
 Our bosome-interest : goe pronounce his present death. 
 And with his former title greet Macbeth. 
 
 Shakspeare. Macbeth, fol. 132. 
 
 There must be needs a like proportion 
 Of lyniaments, of manners, and of spirit ; 
 Which makes me thinkc that this Anthonio 
 Being the bosome-loncr of my lord, 
 Must needs be like my lord. 
 
 Id. Merchant of Venice, fol. 176. 
 
 The fourth privilege of friendship is that which is here 
 specified in the text, a communication of secrets. A 
 bosom -secret and a bosom-friend -dre usually put together. 
 South. Sermons, vol. ii. p. 63. 
 
 As long as they do what they have no great temptation 
 to allure them from doing ; or omit that sin to which 
 they are imder no strong Mass ; they foolishly imagine 
 that inclination and binss to another sin will be excuse 
 enough for their darling, and bosom-mtc. 
 
 Hoadiy, 0/ .-icceptunce. Sermon 7 . 
 
 JOHNSONS DICTIONARY. 
 
 9. The tender affections 5 kindness; favour. 
 
 Whose age has charms ia it, whose title more, 
 To pluck the common bosoms oa his side. 
 
 Shakspeare, 
 
 To whom the great Creator thus reply'd : 
 O Son, in whom my soul hath cliiet delight; 
 Son of my Oosum, Son who art alone 
 My word, my wisdom, and effectual might. 
 
 Milton, P. L, 
 
 10. Inclination; desire. Not used. 
 
 If you can pace your wisdom 
 
 In that good path that 1 could wish it go, 
 You shall have your bosom on this wretch. 
 
 Shakspeare, 
 
 Bosom, in Composition, implies intimacy ; con- 
 fidence ; fondness. 
 
 No more that thane of Cawdor shall deceive 
 
 Our busom- interest ; go, pronounce his death. 
 
 Shakspeare^ 
 
 This Antonio, 
 
 Being the bosom-lover of my lord. 
 Must needs he like my lord. 
 
 /f/. 
 
 Those domestick traitors, bosom-thieves. 
 
 Whom custom hath call'd wives ; the readiest helps 
 
 To betray the heady husbands, rob the easy. 
 
 B. Jonson. 
 
 He sent for his bosom-friends ^ with whom he most con- 
 fidently consulted, and shewed the paper to them ; the 
 contents whereof he could not conceive. Clarendon, 
 
 The fourth privilege of friendsliip is tliat which is here 
 specified in the text, a communication of secrets. A 
 biisom-secrtt and a bosom-friend, are usually put togetlier. 
 
 South, Serm. ii. p. 64, 
 
 She who was a bosom-friend of her royal mistress, he- 
 calls an insolent women, the worst ol her sex. 
 
 yiddiso7t^ 
 
 ToBo'soM, V. a. [from the noun.] 
 
 1, To inclose in the bosom. 
 
 Bosom up my counsel ; 
 
 Vou'U tind it wholesome. Shakspeare, 
 
 I do not think my sister so to seek. 
 Or so unprincipled in virtue's book, 
 And the sweet peace that goodness bosoms ever. 
 
 Miltoji, Com, 
 
 2. To conceal in privacy. 
 
 The groves, the fountains, and the flowVs, 
 That open now tlieir choicest bosom d smells, 
 Rcserv'd for night, and kept for thee in store. 
 
 Milton, P. Z.
 
 6 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ENCYCLOP.^DIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 I do not tliink my sister so to seek, 
 Or so unprincipled in Virtue's book, 
 And tlie sweet peace thatjfooduess bosotns ever, 
 As that the sinelewant of lii^lit and noise 
 Could stir the constant mood of her calm thoughts. 
 J\IiUo7i. Cumus, 1. 368. 
 
 And such a gift, a vengeance so design'd 
 As siiits the council of a God to find ; 
 A pleasing bosom-cheat, a specious ill, 
 Which felt the curse, yet covets still to feel. 
 
 Parnell. The Rise of Woman. 
 Let eastern tyrants, from the light of heaven 
 Seclude their bosom-slaves, meanly possess'd 
 Of a mere lifeless, violated form. 
 
 Thomson. Sprijtg-. 
 
 Fain would I sing (much yet unsung remains) 
 AVhat sweet delirinni o'er his bosom stole, 
 
 When the great shepherd of the Mantuan plains 
 His deep majestick melody 'gau roll. 
 
 Beattie. The Minstrel, hook ii. 
 
 There is a certain pleasure in givingvent to one's grief; 
 especially when we pour out our sorrow in the bosom of a 
 friend, who will approve, or, at least, pardon our tears. 
 Mtlmoth. riuiy. Ltittr 16. book viii. 
 
 Are there (still more amazing!) who resist 
 The rising thought ? who smother, in its birth, 
 The glorious truth? who struggle to be brutes? 
 Who through this bosom- barrier burst their way, 
 And, with revers'd ambition, strive to sink? 
 
 Young: The Corn-plaint, Night 5. 
 
 CA'TECHISE, r. 
 Ca'techisation, 
 Ca'techiser, n. 
 Ca'techising, n. 
 Ca'techism, n. 
 Ca'techist, 
 Ca'teciiistical, 
 Ca'techistically, 
 Cateche'tical, 
 Cateche'tick, adj. 
 
 Kajijxi^u), sono, insono, 
 from Kina and '/x"') echo, 
 soiius repercussus, from 
 gytc, frango. Lennep. 
 Catechumen, part. pass. 
 
 j To Lolechise, primarily, 
 
 I is to sound ; {sc. into 
 
 the ears of those whom 
 
 we w ish to teach ; i. e. 
 
 to teach or instruct 
 
 It is then ap- 
 
 Catechu'.men 
 orally, to give oral instruction.) 
 plied thus, 
 
 1 . To teach that, which requires to be repeated 
 again and again, to those who require to be 
 taught again and again, to the very echo ; to 
 have their instruction sounded and resounded 
 into their ears. 
 
 2. To teach the first elements or rudiments of 
 any art or science, and particularly of the Chris- 
 tian religion. 
 
 3. To catechise, is, consequentially, to question, 
 (as children usually are, when taught the Cate- 
 chism of their religion,) to e.xamine. 
 
 JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY. 
 
 Towers and battlements it sees, 
 Bosomed high in tufted trees, 
 Where perhaps some beauty lies. 
 The cynosure of neighbouring eyes. 
 
 Milton, VAl. 
 
 To happy convents, bosom'd deep in vines, 
 Where slumber abbots, purple as their wines. 
 
 Pope. 
 
 Note. — See in the Critical Examination, p. 57, Bow, 
 Bough, Bay, Buxom ; which latter word was anciently 
 written by Verstegan, Buhsome, Bonghsome, Bowsome, and 
 is no other than Bosomj differently written and applied. 
 
 CATECHE'TICAL, adj. [from /^aT^xtf^.] 
 Consisting of questions and answers. 
 
 Socrates iotroduced a catechetical method of arguing;'; 
 lie would ask his adversary question upon question, till 
 he convinced him out of his own mouth, that his opinions 
 were wrong. Addison. Spectator. 
 
 C.^teche'tically, adf. [from catechetical.'] -In 
 the way of question and answer. 
 Cateche'tick, adj. Cateclietical. 
 
 He communicated his Practical Catechism, which for 
 his private use he had drawn up out of those materials 
 which he had made use of in the caieeketick institution of 
 the youth of his parish. Fell, Life of Hammond. J 1. 
 
 To Ca'techise, V. a. [Gr. KUTijxiw.'] 
 1. To instruct by asking questions, and cor- 
 recting the answers. 
 
 I will catechise the world for liim ; that is, make ques- 
 tions, and hid them answer. Shahspeare, Othello. 
 
 KaT7)x«w is derived from ^X"> 'in'' signifieth originally 
 and properly catechisins^, or such a kind of teaching 
 wherein the principles of religion, or of any art or science, 
 are often inculcated, and by sounding and resounding beat 
 into the ears of cliildreu or novices ; but yet it is taken in 
 Holy Scripture in a larger sense, not only for cnttchising 
 of children, but instructing men of riper years in the doe- 
 trine of salvation. Featltg, Dippers Dipt, p. 36.
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 > 
 
 ENCYCLOPAEDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 That cliildren should be carefully catechised, and con- 
 firmed by the bishops, or in their absence by such as were 
 employed in the visitation of churches. 
 SpotsWQOfU History of the Church of Scotland, Anno 1616. 
 
 In 1550 lie [Jewell"] was admitted to the reading of the 
 sentences, and during the reign of King Edward 6. became 
 a zealous promoter of reformation and a preacher and 
 catechiser at Sunningwell near to Arlington in Berks. 
 
 Wood, Athence Oxon. vol. i. fol, 169. 
 
 In prohibiting that none should commune alone, in 
 making the people whole commoners, or in suffering them 
 to commune under both kinds in the catechisation of youug 
 chaplains in the rudiments of our faith, in having the 
 Common Prayer in English, in setting forth the homilies, 
 and many other things, which I think very good and godly, 
 if they be used .is is aforesaid. 
 
 Eurnet. Records. Oglethorp's Submission, <§'c. of his 
 Faith. 
 
 Festus Hommius, amongst other things complain'd that 
 through the negligence of the remonstrants, it came that 
 catechising was so much decay'd ; which words of his, 
 it is thought, will be an occasion of some cholcr, though 
 for the present they pass'd uncontroll'd. 
 
 Hale. Letters, p. 4. 
 
 Tliis book ! is a catechism to fight, 
 
 And will be bought of every lord and knight. 
 
 That can but read. 
 
 Ben Jonson, Verses on Drayton s Muse. 
 
 To which [profession of faith] none (of years and 
 knowledge) was ever admitted, who had not been suffi- 
 ciently instructed by the catechist in every part of this 
 foundation, (which to that end the catechist received 
 from the Bishop with his short exposition of it,) and 
 being soinstmcted made open confession of it, and more- 
 over, by vow obliged himself there, to superstruct all 
 Christian practice upon it. 
 
 Hammond. Of Fundamentals, ch. ii. 
 
 We will therefore suppose a man of an ordinary stamp, 
 not to have inculcated into him any principles of religion, 
 or explicite or catec/iistirni doctrine of a God, but to be 
 of such a temper only, (whether by nature or education 
 'tis all one,) as to deem some things fit and right to be 
 done, and others untit and unjust, 
 H. More. Appendix to A7Uidote agai7ist Atheism, ch. ix. 
 
 The question is, what is the signatum, the invisible and 
 celestiall thing, which answers thereunto. In our cateche- 
 <icoK explications of this mystery, it is wont to be affirmed 
 to be the bloud of Christ; namely, that as water washeth 
 away the filth from the body, so the bloud of Christ 
 clenseth us from the gilt and pollution of sin. 
 
 Mede. Works. Discourse 17. 
 
 To whom [Dr. Potter] among other fruits of his studies 
 he c<immunicated his practical catechism, which for his 
 private use he had drawn up out of those materials which 
 he had made use of in the catechelicA institution of the 
 youth of his parish. 
 
 Hammond. Life, \o\. i. (ol. 5. 
 
 JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY. 
 
 Had those three thousand souls being catechised hy our 
 modern casuists, we had seen a wide ditference. 
 
 Decay of Piety. 
 
 2. To question ; to interrogate ; to examine j 
 to try by interroa;atories. 
 
 AVhy then I suck my teeth, and catechise 
 My piked man of countries. 
 
 Shakspeare, K. John. 
 
 Catechise gross ignorance ; purge Italy of luxury and riot. 
 Burton, Anat. of Mel., To the Reader, p. 59. 
 
 There flies about a strange report. 
 
 Of some express arriv'd at court ; 
 
 I'm stopp'd by all the fools £ meet. 
 
 And catechisd in every street. Swifts 
 
 Ca'techiser, n. s. [from To catechise.'\ One 
 who catechises. 
 
 He that is a reader, preacher, or catechiser. 
 
 Con. and Can. Feci. § 56. 
 
 This is an admirable way of teaching, wherein the 
 catechised will at length find deliglit, and bv which the 
 catechiser, if he once get the skill of it, will draw out of 
 ignorant and silly souls even the dark and deep points of 
 religion. Herbert, Country Parson, ch. 21. 
 
 Hark you, good Maria, 
 
 Have you got a good catechiser here ? 
 
 Beaum. and Flet., Tamer tamed. 
 
 Ca'techising, n. s. [from the verb.] Inter- 
 rogation ; examination. 
 
 You must hear long-winded exercises, singings, and 
 catechisings, which you are not given to. 
 
 B. Jonson, Epicesne. 
 
 Ca'techisj:, n. s. [from KaT);;^/f(y.] A form 
 of instruction by means of questions and answers, 
 concerning' religion. 
 
 Ways of teaching there have been sundry alw.ays usual 
 in God's church ; for the first introduction of youth to 
 the knowledge of God, the Jews, even till this day, have 
 their catechisms. Hooker. 
 
 He had no catechism but the creation, needed no study 
 but reflection, and read no book but the volume of the 
 world. South. 
 
 Ca'techist, n. s. [(cnTj/x'^T?}?.] One whose 
 charge is to instruct by questions, or to question 
 the uninstructed concerning religion. 
 
 None of years and knowledge was admitted, who had 
 not been instructed by the catechist in this foutidation, 
 which the catechist received from the bishop. 
 
 Hammond, Fundam, 
 
 Catechi'stical, adj. [from caterliist.'] In- 
 structing by question and answer.
 
 s 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ENCYCLOPEDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 It was decreed that in erery parish there should be two 
 sermons even- Sunday, of which that in the afternoon was 
 to be calcihelicall. Hale. Letters, p. 4. 
 
 It is want of catechising, which has been the true cause 
 of those numerous sects, schisms, and wild opinions, 
 which have so disturbed tlic peace and bid fair to destroy 
 -the religion of the nation. 
 
 South, Sermon 1. vol. v. 
 
 It is true, that the word KaTTjxcii' from whence our 
 word cattekism dotli come, is used in Scripture to .signitie 
 teaching in general : but it hath since by ecclesiastical 
 writers been appropriated to that particular way of in- 
 struction, which hath been long in use in the Christian 
 church, and is commonly called catec/iising. 
 
 Tillotson. Se7i»on 52. 
 
 He does the same thing in sacraments as he does in 
 preaching : in both he declares the guilty person to be out 
 of the way to heaven, to be obnoxious to the Divine 
 anffer, to be a debtor of repentance; and refusinc; to 
 baptise an evil catechumen or to communicate an ill-living 
 Christian, does but say the same. 
 
 Tatjlor. Rule of Coiisciejice, book iii. ch. iv. 
 
 Dr. Worthingtoa has made a catechism, which has all 
 its answers in the precise words of the .Scripture, a thing 
 of good example, and such a sound form of words as no 
 Christian can except against, as not fit for his child to 
 learn. Locke, 0/ £ducatiun, sec. 159. 
 
 The principles of Christianity, briefly and catechisticatly 
 taught them, is enough to save their souls. 
 
 South, Sermon 5. vol. vii. 
 
 He laboured therefore, particularly, in this province, 
 and did not content himself barely to hear the youth re- 
 peat the words of our excellent catechism, but he ex- 
 pounded it to them after a plain and familiar manner, 
 whereby he did not only sow the good seeds of the word 
 in young and tender minds, but also enlightened those of 
 riper years, whom he encouraged and exhorted to be pre- 
 sent at bis catechetical performances, and who were too 
 much ashamed of their ignorance to overcome it by any 
 other methods. Bishop Bull, Life, p. 49. 
 
 Pierce my vein, 
 
 Take of the crimson stream meand'ring there, 
 And catechise it well ; apply thy glass. 
 Search it. and prove now if it be not blood 
 Congenial with thine own : and, if it be, 
 ■What edge of subtlety canst thnu suppose 
 Keen enough, wise and skilful as thou art, 
 To cut the link of brotherhood, by which 
 One common Maker bound me to the kind ? 
 
 Cowper. The Task, book iii. 
 
 JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY. 
 
 S. Cyril — was the authour of those catechistical seTmoM 
 or institutions which are mentioned by S. Jerome. 
 
 Bp, Cosin, Cation of Scripture, §. 58. 
 
 All these ari^ short pieces ; some of them are in the 
 catechistical method. 
 
 Burke, Abr. of Eng. Hist,, ii. 2. 
 
 C.4TBCHi'sTic.\LLY, orfw. [froiii culechistical.'] 
 In a catechistical manner. 
 
 The principles of Christianity, briefly and catechisticallif 
 taught them, is enough to save their souls. 
 
 South, 5erMi.vii. 100. 
 
 Catechu'men, n. s. [old Fr. catechumtne, from 
 the Gr. KaT);x''"f'""0 
 
 1. One who is yet in the first rudiments of 
 Christianity ; the lowest order of Christians in 
 the primitive church. 
 
 The prayers of the church did not begin in St. Austin's 
 time, till the catechumens were dismissed. 
 
 Stillingfleet. 
 
 2. Generally, one who is in the first rudiments 
 of any jjrofession. 
 
 The same language is still held to the catechutnens in 
 Jacobitism. Bolingbroke to Wi/ndham. 
 
 C.\techume'xic.\i,, adj, [from catechumen.'] 
 Belonging to the catechumens. Diet, 
 
 Catechu'menist, n.s. The same as catechu- 
 men. 
 
 Hence their forenamed authors assume, that the chil- 
 dren of the faithful! dying without baplisme, may be 
 thoueht to receive the baptisme of the spirit, as'well as 
 those catechumenists spoken of, &c. 
 
 J3p. Morton, Cath. jlppeute, p. 248. 
 
 Note. — ^Tlie Example from Featley is supplied by Dr. 
 .Tohnson's Lexicographical Executor ; and might have en- 
 abled him to introduce a correct Etymology and sensible 
 Explanation instead of the silly one, which he has permitted 
 to remain : but — non in aniino !
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ENCYCLOPEDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 CLERGY, 
 
 Cle'rcyablb, 
 
 Cle'kgial, 
 
 Cle'bgical, 
 
 Cle'rgify, 
 
 Cle'roy-likb, 
 
 Cle'rgy-covetousness, 
 
 Cle'rgy-doomes, 
 
 Clk'rCY- FEMES, 
 
 Ci.e'rcy-knave, 
 
 Cle'rgy-man, 
 
 Cle'rgy-party, 
 
 Cle'rcy-pbide, 
 
 Cle'rgy'-rkgister, 
 
 Clb'bgy-residence. 
 
 Clergy ; so called 
 from the manner 
 in which Matthias 
 " became number- 
 ed with the eleven 
 Apostles." Ka( 
 
 K\tji}0^ eirl MajOraif, 
 And thei ghauen 
 luttis to hem, and 
 the lotte felde on 
 Mathi. Acts, ch. i. 
 V. 26. — MijR' a'9 
 
 KK.rjpuiv. Neque nt dominantes in clevis. — Neithir 
 as having Lordschip in the clergie. Wiclif, 
 1 Peter, ch. v. v. 3. 
 
 Lat. ckricus ; Fr. clerge ; It. clero ; Sp. cleri- 
 cia ; from the Gr. xXypov, a fragment, from 
 KXaavifrangere : — A fragment of any thing; sc. 
 cast into the urn or vessel ; and hence, a lot. 
 
 For the application of the word, see particu- 
 larly the examples from Hooker and Gibbon. 
 
 Clergijable is quite technical in its application. 
 See Blackstone, book iv. ch. xxviii. 
 
 & if he had had men, as he wend, of renoun, 
 Jiei suld haf venged hem of suilk a chrgioun. 
 
 Ji. Ilrioote, p. 131. 
 
 Conscience to cleregic. and to fc kyng saide. 
 
 Piers FlouliiJHin. Vision, p. 8. 
 
 Among tliise children was a witlcwc's sone 
 Alitcl clergion, sevene yere of age. 
 
 Chaucer. 7'hc Prioresses Tale, v. 13433. 
 
 But, dame, here as we riden by the way. 
 Us necdetli not to speken but of game. 
 And let auctoritees in Goddes name 
 To preching, and to scole eke of clergie. 
 
 III. The Freres Prologue, V. ()859. 
 
 This is the cause (beleue me now my Lorde) 
 Tliat realms do rewe, from higli [ncjsperity. 
 That clergie quayles, and hath snial reuerence. 
 
 Oascoigne. The Steele Glas. 
 
 Whan we be ther as we shuln exercise 
 Our elvish craft, we semen wonder wise. 
 Our termcs ben so clergial and queint. 
 Chaucer. The Chanoties Yemannes 2'ate, v. I(ifi20. 
 
 Ac ich can nouht constrye canon, ne clcrgyalliche reden. 
 Piers Ptouhman, Vision, p. Ill, 
 
 JOHNSON' S DICTION.\RY. 
 
 CLE'RGICAL, adj. [from clergy. Chaucer has 
 clergial for learned.'\ Relating to the clergy. 
 
 Constantine might have done more justly to have pun- 
 islied those clcrgical faults wliicli he could not conceal, 
 tlian to leave them unpunished that they might remain 
 concealed. Jllilton, ^-Jniinad. Rem.Def. 
 
 C/.e'rgy, n. s. \_clerge, Fr. clems, Lat. kX 7/109, 
 Gr.] The body of men set apart by due ordi- 
 nation for the service of God. 
 
 We hold that God's clergy are a state which hath been, 
 and will be as long as there is a church upon earth, 
 necessary, by the plain word of God liimsclf; a state 
 wliereunto the rest of God's people must be subject, .as 
 touching things that appertain to their soul's health. 
 
 Hooker. 
 
 The convocation give a greater sum. 
 Than ever, at one time, tlie clrrgij yet 
 Did to liis predecessors part withal. 
 
 Shakspeare, 
 
 Cle'rgyable, adj. [from clergij^ The term 
 applied to felonies within benelit of clergy; 
 which are called clergyable offences, clergyable 
 felonies. Chambers, and Blackstone. 
 
 Cle'rcyman, 7i. s. \_clergy and man.'] A man 
 in holy orders ; a man set apart for ministration 
 of holy things ; not a laiek. 
 
 How 1 have sped among tlie chrgt/men. 
 The sums 1 have collected shall express. 
 
 Shakspeare. 
 
 It seems to be in the power of a reasimable clergyman 
 to make the most ignorant man comprelieud his duty. 
 
 Swift.
 
 10 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ENCYCLOPJiDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 And Saint Paul himselfe diuiJing the body of the church 
 of Christ into two moieties, nanieth tlie one part IStilnas, 
 ■winch is as much as to say, the order of the laitie, the oppo- 
 site part whereunto we in like sort term the order of God's 
 clergie, and the spiritual power which he hath giuen them, 
 the power of their order, so farre as the same consisteth in 
 the bare execution of holy things, called properly the affairs 
 of God. 
 
 Hooker. Ecclesiastical Polity, hoo\ v. sec. 77. 
 
 Constantine might have done more justly to have puuish'd 
 those ctergical faults which he could not conceal, than to 
 leave them unpunish'd, that they might remain conceal'd. 
 Milton. Animntlversions upon the Remonstrants Defence, 
 
 And how our leisure fitted loue. 
 
 And let it fit (quoth she) 
 To such as lust for loue: sir clarke. 
 
 You ekrgijie not me. 
 Warner. Albion's England, book vi. ch. xxxi. 
 
 happy and thrise happy realme 
 Of ours, and other lands, 
 
 ■\Vheare, touching deathe by clergie-tloomes. 
 The pollicie^vithstands. 
 
 /(/. Jb. book ix. ch. li. 
 
 1 made me smug, and with a tax 
 Did intermix a toye. 
 
 And tould how fine and faire a life 
 
 Oure clergie-femes enjoy. Jd, lb. 
 
 But lastly both were taken : both 
 
 Did fault in one small ill, 
 Yeat rope-law had the youth, the friar 
 
 Liu*d clergie-knaued still. 
 
 Id. lb. book vii.cb. xxxvii. 
 
 All ecclesiastical persons or clergy-men may be con- 
 sidered in a three-fold relation : first, to God ; secondly, to 
 the people ; thirdly, one to another. 
 
 In respect to God, all are ministers, of v/hat degree soever 
 they be ; because they do what they do by commission from 
 him, either more or less immediate ; in respect of the people 
 all are bishops, that is, inspectors or overseers, as having 
 charge to look unto them. But lastly, compared one to 
 another, he whom we usually call bishop is only overseer of 
 the rest. Mede. Works. Discourse 5. book i. 
 
 I haue had hardy knights for warres. 
 
 And lielpfull friends in peace, 
 Yeat helpless friends, and hartles knights, 
 
 This clear gie-pride to ceace. 
 Warner. Albion's England, book v. ch. xxiii. 
 
 But give me leave to say, that, while so many orphans and 
 widows of clergymen are destitute even of food and raiment, 
 the eyes of the sons of the clergy should chiefly be turned 
 on these objects, and the greatest share of their charity should 
 flow in this channel. Alterbury. Sermon 6. vol. ii. 
 
 To whom was added Mr. William Marsham, a worthy 
 gentleman and a member of parliament, placed there by 
 Cromwel, upon information that he had divers relations of 
 considerable interest in the clergy-party. 
 
 Ludlow, Memoirs, vol. ii. p. ,39. 
 
 JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY.
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 ENCYCLOPAEDIA METROPOLITANA. JOHNSONS DICTIONARY. 
 
 'Tis but a kind of clergy-cmiefousness in me, to desire so 
 many ; if I stand gaping after pliualities, one of 'em is in 
 danger to be made a sinecure. 
 
 Dnjden. The Kind Keeper, act i, sc. 1. 
 
 The progress of the ecclesiastical authority gave birth to 
 the memorable distinction of the laity and of the clergy, 
 ■which had been unknown to the Greeks and Romans. The 
 former of these appellations comprehended the body of the 
 Christian people ; the latter, according to the signification of 
 the word, was appropriated to the chosen portion, that had 
 been set apart for the service of religion. 
 
 Gibbon. Roman Etnjnre, ch. xv. 
 
 I had no farther intercourse with Mr. Pitt or Mr. Grenville 
 on the business of the clergy-residence. 
 
 Anecdotes of the Life of Bishop Watson. 
 
 n 
 
 CONTE'MN, V. 
 
 Contf/mner, 
 
 Conte'mning, 
 
 Conte'mpt, n. 
 
 Conte'mptful, 
 
 Conte'mptible, 
 
 Conte'mptibleness, 
 
 Conte'mptibly, 
 
 Contempt ibi'lity, 
 
 Conte'mptuous, 
 
 Conte'mptuously, 
 
 Conte'mptuousness. - 
 
 Lat. contemnere ; con, 
 aiul temn-ere, from the 
 Gr. lefiv-itv, secure, ab- 
 scindere, quia quod as- 
 pernamur, hoc amputa- 
 'i mus a<y!/eabscindirnus. 
 Perottus. Ami ^'ossius, 
 in V. Sperno, which he 
 derives from aTreip-cii', 
 spargere, to scatter, to 
 toss away, observes, — 
 Ita propri'e siierni dice- 
 
 tur ; quod per viam spargitur, ut temni, quod ah- 
 scinditur ; of similar consequential application 
 is the word Abject. 
 
 To throw or toss aside ; sc. as of no value ; 
 to abject, to spurn, to disdain, to despise, to 
 neglect. 
 
 For these are the rules wherein we must exercise our self, 
 that we may be confirmed in the faith, in y*^ feare of God, in 
 holines, tinally in contempte of the world and loue of the 
 heauenly life. 
 
 Calttine. Four GodUe Sermons, serm. 3. 
 
 Therfore if ghe han worldli domes, ordeyne ghe tho con- 
 temptible men that ben in the chirche to deme. 
 
 Wiclif. 1 Corynthians, ch. vi. 
 
 When Saint Paule also biddeth the Corinthians, that 
 rather than they should sew afore Painim iudges they should 
 appoint for iudges of their own, euen such as were contemp- 
 tible in the church : he ment not y' an vnknown copaoy 
 should appoint vuknowe iudges. 
 
 Sir Thomas More. Worhes, fol. 827. 
 
 Upon your information to us thereof, we shal so aid and 
 assist you in the execution of justice and punishment of al 
 such contemptuous offenders, as the same shall be example 
 to others. 
 
 Strype. Memorials. The Lord Protector to the Justices of 
 Peace, Sfc. 
 
 To CONTE'MN, v. a. Icontemno, Lat.] To 
 despise ; to scorn ; to slight ; to disregard ; to 
 neglect ; to defy. 
 
 Yet better thus, and known to be contemned, 
 That still co»/ewi««/ and flattered. 
 
 Shakspeare, K. Lear, 
 Eve, thy contempt of life and pleasure seems 
 To argue in thee something more suiilime 
 And excellent than wliat thy mind contemns. 
 
 Milton, P. L. 
 Pygmalion then the Tyrian sceptre swayed ; 
 One v;\\o contemn\t divine and liumanlaws 
 Then strife ensued. Dryden, Virg. jEneid. 
 
 Conte'mner, 11. s. [old Fr. couteinneur.'\ One 
 who contemns ; a despiser ; a scorner. 
 
 A terrible exampletoall cwj/crnHprjandderiders of religion 
 and godlynesse. Woolton's Chr. Man. (1576,) k. iij. 
 
 Commonly they come home common contemners of mar- 
 riage, and ready persuaders of all others to tlie same. 
 
 Aschanis Schoolmaster. 
 That contemner of the world must still know, he hath not 
 yet taken out the Baptist's copy, not made such use of 
 the doctrine of the rod, as is expected from liim. 
 
 Hammond's Works, iv. 492. 
 St. Hierom, — a great clerk, and singular contemner of 
 secular superfluities. 
 
 Hales, Serm. at tJie close of his Rem. p. 31. 
 He counsels him to persecute innovators of worship, not 
 only as contemners of the Gods, but disturbers of the slate. 
 
 South. 
 
 Conte'mpt, n.s. [^contempt, old Fr. contemptus, 
 Lat.] 
 
 1. The act of despising others ; slight regard; 
 scorn. 
 
 It was neither in contempt nor pride that I did not bow. 
 
 Esther, xiii. 12. 
 The shame of being miserable. 
 Exposes men to scorn and hm contempt. 
 Even from their nearest friends. Denham, 
 
 c 2
 
 12 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ENCYCLOPiKDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 And is not the abbot now worthy to be corrected, which 
 al this notwithstanding, haih caused tiie monk coittemptuomlff 
 stil to continue his lecture? Had not I been worthy correc- 
 tion, if I had cojitcmptnoushj disobeyed your letter lately 
 addressed unto me, having the equivalency of a inhibition ? 
 Strype, Memorials, Shachston. Bishop of Salisbury to 
 Cromwel. 
 
 A visage sterne, and milde ; where both didgrowe. 
 
 Vice to confcmiie, in vertue to rejoyce : 
 Amid greate stormes, whom grace assured so, 
 
 To liue vprigiit, and smile al fortunes choyce. 
 
 Surrey. On the Death of Sir T. W. 
 
 He was I heard say a seditious man, a contemner of com- 
 mon prayer, I wold there were no mo in England : wel he 
 is gone. 1 wolde he had lefte none behind him. 
 
 Latimer. Sci'enth Sermon before King' Edward. 
 
 Yet his highness is advertised and informed, that diners 
 of his subjects be not only to al these moie slow and negli- 
 gent, but rather contemp?iers and despisers of such good and 
 godlv acts and deeds. 
 
 Strype. Memorials. A Proclamation for the absteinyng 
 from Flesh iu the Lent tyme. 
 
 Crucifie unto you the unclean affections, the incendiary 
 lusts of your hearts, which the heathens have performed for 
 the poor empty rewards of fame : prefer not riches nor 
 honours before nie, which is no more than many philosophers 
 have done for those vulgar changeable Gods which tliem- 
 selves ha\e contemned. Chillingworth. Sermon 4. 
 
 True fame is ever likened to our shade, 
 He soonest misseth her, that most [haste] hath made 
 To overtake her ; whoso takes his wing, 
 Regardlesse of her, she'll be following : 
 Her true proprietie she thus discovers, 
 *' Loves her conttmners ^ and contemns her lovers." 
 Broivne. Britannia's Pastorals, book ii. song 2. 
 
 Security is the bane of good successe ; it is nocontemning 
 of a foyled enemy ; the shame of a former disgrace and mis- 
 carriage, whets his valor and sharpens it to revenge : no power 
 is so dreadfuU, as that which is recollected from an over- 
 throw. 
 
 Hall. Cont. Ahab and B€nhadad,vo\.'i. p. 1211. 
 
 Men so the world shall love, religion hate, 
 
 That all true zeal shall in mniempt be brought, 
 
 The spiriluall lights' eclipse shall giow so great, 
 That lyes the truth, truth shall a lie be thought, 
 
 Stirling. Uooms-day. The second f/oure. 
 
 And should we hear a continued oration, upon such a sub- 
 ject as the stage treats on. in such words as we hear some 
 sermons ; 1 am confident, it would not only be far more 
 tedious, but nauseous and eontemptfuL 
 
 Feltham, Resolve 20. 
 
 A Nazarite in place abominable, 
 A'aunting my strength in honour totlieir Dagon .' 
 Besides, how vile, contemptible^ ridiculous ; 
 Whit act more execrably unclean, prophane } 
 
 MtUon. Samson Agonistcs, \. 1361. 
 
 JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY. 
 
 There is no action in the beliaviour of one man towards 
 another, of which human nature is more impatient than of 
 coutt-'mpt ; it being an under\aluing of a man, upon a belief 
 of his utter uselessness and inability, and a spiter'ul endeavour 
 to engage the rest of the world in the same slight esteem of 
 him. South. 
 
 His friend smil'd scornful, and with proud contempt 
 Rejects as idle what his fellow dreamt. Dri/den, Fab. 
 
 Nothing, says Longinus, can be great. 
 
 The contempt of which is great. ^tldisoju 
 
 2. The state of being despised ; vileness. 
 
 The place was like to come uq\q contempt. 
 
 ■2Mic. iii. 18. 
 
 3. Offences in law of various kinds. 
 
 Misprisions which are merely positive, are generally deno- 
 minated contempts. Blackslone. 
 
 Conte'mptible, adj. [old Fr. contemptible.'] 
 
 1. Worthy of contempt ; deserving scorn. 
 
 No man truly knows himself, buf he groweth daily more 
 contemptible in his own eyes. 
 
 Taylor, Guide to Devotion, 
 
 From no one vice exempt, 
 
 And most contemptible to shun contempt. Pope, Episl. 
 
 2. Despised J scorned; neglected. 
 
 There is not so contemptible a plant or animal that does 
 not confound the most enlarged wnderstandiug. Locke. 
 
 3. Scornful ; apt to despise ; contemptuous ; 
 This is no proper use. 
 
 If she should make tender of her love, 'tis very possible 
 he'll scoru it ; for the man hath a contemptible spini. 
 
 akakspcare. 
 
 Coxte'.mtibleness, n. s. [from contemptible.'] 
 The state of being contemptible ; the state of 
 being despised ; meanness ; vileness ; baseness ; 
 cheapness. 
 
 Having by our present miseries learned so much of the 
 contemptibteness of it, [the world.] 
 
 Hammond^s Works, iv. 491. 
 
 Who, by a steddy practice of virtue, comes to discern the 
 contcmpliblencss of baits wherewith he allures us. 
 
 Decay of Piety, 
 
 Con'te'mptibly, ndv. [from contemptible.'] 
 Meanly ; in a manner deserving contempt. 
 
 At their first coming, they are generally entertained by 
 Pleasure and Dalliance, and have all the content that possi- 
 ble may be given, so loog as their money lasts; but when 
 their means fail, they are contetnptibly tliiust out at a back 
 door headlong, and there lelt to Shame, Rcpro.ich, Despair. 
 Burton, Anat. of Mel. p. 117.
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 13 
 
 ENCYCLOPEDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 The contemptibility and vanity of this effeminate argu- 
 ment detains vs longer, then for the quality thereof were 
 fitting, did not so much niischiefe issue of it. 
 
 Speed. Edward II. book ix. ch. xi. 
 
 Zacharie telleth Boniface, that it is according to the old 
 canons, that Bishops should not be placed in such smal 
 cities, but in more ample and large cities, bycause the coii- 
 temptiblenesse of the place, dothe oftentimes bring contempt 
 to the person, and a byshop ought to be esteemed and reue- 
 renced. Whilgift. Defence, fol. 443. 
 
 Detesting the rude spoils, done by the armed throng. 
 The mad tumultuous world cuntrmptiblij forsook 
 And to his quiet cell by Crowland him betook. 
 
 liratjton. PuUj-olhiun, song 24. 
 
 . All these at thy command 
 
 To come and play before Ihee, know'st thou not 
 Their language and thir wayes, they also know, 
 And reason not cantemptihty . 
 
 MiltuH. Paradise Lost, book viii. 1. 394. 
 
 Not as our English, he stood and prayed thus with him- 
 self, but as the words will likewise bear it, he stood by him- 
 self thus; this posture signifying a proud coHteinptuaus 
 behaviour, whilst the publican stood crouching humbly, 
 tremblingly behind. 
 
 HaTnmond. Works, Sermon 8. vol. iv. 
 
 And thou, the queen of isles Great Britain why do ye 
 Your grandsire's goodlike name (with a neglectful ear) 
 In so reproachful terms and ignominy hear. 
 By every one of late contemptuouiUj disgrac'd. 
 
 Drayton. Pofy-otbion, song 10. 
 
 On the contrary we find them extreamly cautious of 
 giving any offence in such matters, which temper they learnt 
 of their lord and master, who complyed with many things, 
 that others might not take advantage by his omission of them, 
 to slight and contemn them. 
 
 Stillingjleet. Sermon 1. vol.ii. 
 
 I am ridiculously enough accused to be a contemner of 
 universities, that is, in other words an enemy of learning, 
 without the foundation of which I am sure no man can 
 pretend to be a poet. 
 
 Dryden, Dedication of the .Assignation, 
 
 After my fancy had run over the most obvious and com- 
 mon calamities which men of mean fortunes are liable to, it 
 descended to these little insults and contempts, which, Iho' 
 they may seem to dwindle into nothing, when a man offers to 
 describe them, are perhaps in themselves more cutting and 
 insupportable tlian the former. Spectator, No. 150. 
 
 But since in his late Socinian creed he says, I would have 
 answered him if I could, That the interest of Christianity 
 may not suffer by my silence, nor the contemptiblcness of his 
 treatise afford him matter of triumph amongst those who lay 
 any weight on such boasting, 'tis Kt it should be shewn what 
 an arguer he is, and how well he deserves for his performance 
 to be dubb'd by himself irrefragable. 
 
 Locke. Worts. ^ second vindication tf the Reasonableness 
 of Christianity, 
 
 JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY. 
 
 ■ Know'st thou not 
 
 Their language, and their ways ? They also know, 
 And reason not contemptibly. Milton, P. L, 
 
 If he be serious, it will affect him with detestatioa and 
 horrour to see a serious thing so contemptibly treated. 
 
 Scott, Christian Life, ii. ill. 
 
 Conte'mptuous, adj. [from contempt.'] Scorn- 
 ful ; apt to despise ; using words or actions of 
 contempt ; insolent. 
 
 To neglect God all our lives, and know that we neglect 
 him ; to offend God voluntarily, and know that we offend 
 him, casting our hopes on the peace which we trust to make 
 at parting, is no other thanarebelliouspresumption, and even 
 a contemptuous laughing to scorn and deriding of God, his 
 laws and precepts. Ralegh, Hist, of the World. 
 
 Some much averse I found, and wond'ious harsh, 
 Contemptuous, proud, set on revenge and spite. 
 
 Milton, S. A. 
 
 Rome, the proudest part of the heathen world, entertained 
 the most contemptuous opinion of the Jews. Aiterbunj. 
 
 Conte'mptuously, adv. [from contemptuous.'] 
 With scorn 5 with despite ; scornfully ; despite- 
 fuUy. 
 
 I throw my name against the bruising stone, 
 Trampling contemptuously on thy diadem. 
 
 Shah^pcare, 
 
 The apostles and most eminent Christians were poor, and 
 used contemptuously. Bp. Taylor, Holy Living. 
 
 If he governs tyrannically in youth, he will be treated con- 
 temptuously in age ; and the baser his euemies, the more in- 
 tolerable the affront. L'Estrangc. 
 
 A wise man would not speak contemptuottsly of a prince, 
 though out of his dominions. TiUotson. 
 
 Conte'mptiiousness, n. s. [from contemptuous.'] 
 Disposition to contempt ; insolence. Diet.
 
 14 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ENCYCLOP.EDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 For I hope you do not lliink, how contemptibly soever you 
 speak of the venerable mob, as you are pleased to dignifie 
 them, that the bulk of mankind, or in your phrase, the rabble 
 are not concerned in religion, or ought to understand it in 
 order to their salvation. 
 
 Locke. Works. A Vindication, ^c. 
 If the Devil should have a mind to tempt, by suggesting 
 of thoughts, he would tempt a proud man, by tilling his raiud 
 with foolish and vain conceits of lumselfe, and contemptuous 
 thoughts of other men. 
 
 Sharp. Works. Sermon 5. vol. iii. 
 
 But this remonstrance is properly addressed to those that 
 are without, to the contemners of the Christian law. 
 
 Hurd. Works. Sermon 5. vol. vi. 
 I follow trembling ; for tiie clifi's are high. 
 And hov'ring round them watchful harpies fly. 
 To snatch the poet's wreath with envious claws. 
 And hiss contempt for merited applause. 
 
 Wilhie. l^he Epigoniad , book i. 
 Cicero intreats his friend "not to confine himself to the 
 strict laws of history, but to give a greater latitude to his 
 encomiums than Lucceius might possibly think his actions 
 could claim." And never did vauity, it must be acknowledged, 
 utter or conceive a more ridiculous and contemptible w ish. 
 ^lelmoth. Cicero, to Lucius Lucceius^ note 7. 
 Next, when the mother abbess came. 
 
 With an authoritative look. 
 The feather'd libertine to blame 
 Contemptuously his tail he shook. 
 
 Cowper. Ver-Vert, can. 4. 
 
 CONTE'JNIPLATE, v. " 
 • Coxtempl.i'tion, 
 Conte'mplatist, 
 Conte'mpl.^tive. 
 
 Conte'mplatively, 
 
 Contejipla'tor, 
 
 Coxte'mplating. 
 
 Fr. contempler ; Sp. 
 contemplar ; It. con- 
 iemphire ; Lat. con- 
 ytemplare ; con, and 
 iemplum, which Jo- 
 seph Scaliger thinks, 
 is from TeHci'o?, (from 
 
 rrefiv-eiv, secure, abscindere,) q. a place cut off, 
 separated, set apart ; and thus 
 
 Consecated — Deo alicui vel heroi ; and as 
 these places were so chosen that the structure 
 raised iJpon them might be seen, viewed, olj- 
 served from all sides ; — hence, to contemplate, is 
 
 To view, to behold, to observe, to consider, 
 mark, gaze upon, sc. as an object of attention ; 
 — to muse, to meditate upon, think of, reflect 
 upon, study. 
 
 Fieres go to scole 
 
 And lern logA'k and lawe. d,nfie\^ contemplation. 
 
 Piers Plouhman. Vision, p. 406. 
 My mindeis rapte in contemplation. 
 
 Wherein my dazeled ejes onely beholde. 
 The blacke houre of my constellation, 
 
 ^Vhich framed me so lucklesse on the molde. 
 
 Gascoigne. Hearbss. 
 
 JOHNSOiVS DICTIONARY. 
 
 To CONTE'MPLATE, v. a. Icmitemphr, 
 Latin. This seems to have been once accented 
 on the first syllable.] To consider with con- 
 tinued attention ; to study ; to meditate. 
 
 There is not much difficulty in confining the mind to con- 
 template what we have a great desire to know. Watts. 
 
 To Coxte'mplate, v. n. To muse } te think 
 studiously with long attention. 
 
 So many hours must I take my rest. 
 So many hours must I contemplate. 
 
 Shakspeare, Hen. VI, 
 
 Sapor had an heaven of glass, which he trod upon, contem- 
 plating over the same as if he had been Jupiter. 
 
 Peacham. 
 
 How can I consider what belongs to myself, when I have 
 been so long contemplating on you. 
 
 Drt/den, Juv. Preface. 
 
 Conte'mplatiox, n.s. [from contemplate.^ 
 1. Meditation ; studious thought on any sub- 
 ject ; continued attention. 
 
 How now, what serious cojttemplation are you in 1 
 
 . Shakspeare. 
 
 Contemplation is keeping the idea, which is brouglit into 
 the mind, for some rime actually in view. Locke.
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 15 
 
 ENCYCLOPAEDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 But the Psalmes and conteplatife meditacions, on which 
 your highnesse, in the lieu and place of vayne courtely pas- 
 times and gaming, doeth bestow your night and daies studie, 
 and whiche, &c. Udall. Preface, Luke. 
 
 Will puts in practice what the Wit deviseth : 
 Will ever acts, and Wit co?ttemp!ates still ; 
 
 And as from Wit the pow'r of wisdom riseth, 
 All other virtues daughters are of Will. 
 Davits. Immortality of the Soul, The Power of Will, S^c, 
 
 sec. 27. 
 
 But first, and chiefest, with thee bring. 
 Him that yon soars on golden wing, 
 Guiding the fiery-wheeled throne. 
 The cherub Contemplation. 
 
 Milton. Jl Penseroso, 1. 54. 
 
 To it he sung the glorious deeds, of great heroes dead. 
 And his true minde, that practice fniVd, sweet contemplation 
 fed. Chapman. Homer. /Aarf, book ix. fol. 1 20. 
 
 It is not, I suppose, a more bold than profitable labour, 
 after the endeavours of so many contemplative men to teach 
 the art [of meditation; an heavenly businesse, as any be- 
 longeth either to man or Christian, and such as whereby the 
 soul doth unspeakably benefit itselfe. 
 
 Hall. Of Divine Meditation, vol. i. fol. 95. 
 
 Since neither wealth, nor honour, arms nor arts. 
 Kingdom nor empire pleases thee, nor ought 
 By me propos'd in life contemplative. 
 Or active, tended on by glory, or fame. 
 What dost thou in this world ? 
 
 Milton. Paradise Rcgainedy book iv. I. 370. 
 
 My selfe a recluse from the world. 
 And, called vnder ground. 
 Least that the gould, the precious stones, 
 And pleasures here be found, 
 Might happen to corrupt my minde. 
 For blindnes did I pray. 
 And so contemplatively heere 
 I with contentment stay. 
 Warner. Albion s England, book vii.ch. xxxvii. 
 
 Some few others sought after him [God] but as Aristotle 
 saith the Geometer doth, after a right line only, wy fiear^s tb 
 oK-rfioxis, as a contemplator o( truth, but not as the knowledo-e 
 of it is any way useful or conducible to the ordering, or bet- 
 tering of their lives. 
 
 Hammond. Works. Sermon 12. vol.iv. 
 
 It is a scheme and face of heaven. 
 As th' aspects are dispos'd this even, 
 I was contemplating upon 
 When you arriv'd, but now I've done. 
 
 Butler. Hudibras, part ii. can 3. 
 
 Come, see thy friend retir'd without regret, 
 
 Porgeltingcare, or striving to forget; 
 
 In easy contemplation soothing time 
 
 With morals much, and now and then with rhyme. 
 
 Congreve. Letter to Lord Cobham. 
 
 JOHNSONS DICTIONARY. 
 
 2. Holy meditation ; a holy exercise of the 
 soul, eiuployed in attention to sacred things. 
 
 I have breathed a secret vow, 
 
 To live in prayer and contemplation. 
 
 Only attended by Nerissa here. 
 
 Sltakspeare, Merck, of Veiiice. 
 
 3. The faculty of study ; opposed to the 
 power of action. 
 
 There are two functions, contemplation and practice, 
 according to that general division of objects ; some of which 
 entertain our speculation, others employ our actions. 
 
 South. 
 Conte'mplative, adj. [from contemplate.'] 
 1. Given to thought or study; studious; 
 thoughtful. ' 
 
 Fixt and contemplative their looks. 
 Still turnmg over nature's books. 
 
 Denham. 
 
 2. Employed in study ; dedicated to study. 
 
 I am no courtier, nor versed in state affairs : my life hath 
 rather been contemplative than active. Bacon. 
 
 Contemplative men may be without the pleasure of 
 discovering the secrets of state, and men of action are com- 
 monly without the pleasure of tracing the secrets of divine 
 '"^'- Greui's Cosmol. 
 
 3. Having the power of thought or medita- 
 tion. 
 
 So many kinds of creatures might be to exercise the con- 
 templattve faculty of man. Ray on the Creation. 
 
 Conte'mplatively, adv. [from contniiplative.'] 
 Thoughtfully; attentively; with deep attention. 
 
 Huleot. 
 Contempla'tor, n. s. [Latin.] One employed 
 in study; an enquirer after knowledge; a stu- 
 dent. 
 
 In the Persian tongue the word magus imports as much as 
 a contemplator of divine and heavenly science. 
 
 Ralegh, Hist, of the World. 
 
 The Platonick™«<c»j/)/«^ori reject both these descriptions, 
 founded upon parts and colours. Brown, Vulg. Err.
 
 16 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ENCYCLOPEDIA METROPOLITANA. 
 
 A proper and effectual remedy for tliis wandering of 
 thoughts I would be glad to find. He, that shall propose 
 such an one, would do great service to the studious and con- 
 templative part of mankind, and perhaps help unthinking men 
 to become ihiiiking, 
 
 Locke. Works. Of the Conduct of the Understajidiiig , 
 sec. 29. 
 
 It is very possible (to add that upon the bye) that after the 
 light of the moon has (according to what I lately noted) re- 
 presented to our c&«^(Hi/)/rt?yr tlie qualifications of a preacher, 
 it may also put hira in mind of the duty of a hearer. 
 
 Buyle. Occasio?ial Meditations, sec. 4. cli. ii. 
 
 To Contemplation s sober eye 
 
 Such is the race of man : 
 And they that creep, and they that fly, 
 
 Shall end where they began. 
 
 Gray. Ode on the Sjn'ing-. 
 
 Pliny maybe considered iii these letters as writing his own 
 memoirs; every epistle is a kind of historical sketch, wherein 
 we have a view of him in some striking attitude, either of 
 active or contemplative life. 
 
 Melmotk. Pli7iy. Preface, 5. 
 
 JOHNSONS DICTIONARY. 
 
 'Nole. — The Readers of Johnson's Dictionary would never learn from him such facts as these -, 
 viz. That the ech in Catechise, and in Echo, (" repercussive Nymiih" as B. Jonson calls her,) are 
 the same word : That the temn in ConteiMN, and tern in Contemplate, are also the same word ; with 
 the mere loss of an n in the latter form of writing it : And that the Clergy of the Church of Christ 
 derive this their appellation from a mode of election or casting lots, common to the Jewish and 
 Heathen nations. 
 
 To produce such facts as these to a Reader of an English Dictionary is a task of perfect novelty ; 
 to combine with the painfully laborious research into Lexicographical erudition, which the due 
 performance of such a task exacts, the additional, but indispensable toil of wading through the 
 blinding black-letter of the earliest writers in our language, is an enterprise, which it re<|uired 
 some courage to adventure, and some resolution to pursue. It is, however, by such boldness and 
 perseverance alone, that "an effort can be made to establish and to exemplify the just principles of 
 Etymology ; and to mark and preserve that wide, and most important distinction, which the Cory- 
 phaeus of modern Philology has so satisfactorily proved to subsist between the meaning and the 
 application of words." It is " by commencing with authorities, where they can be detected, from 
 the earliest periods of English Composition, and continuing them successively through the different 
 stages, by which it has arriveil at its present copiousness and refinement," that the English Lexicon 
 can " aspire to the pretension of exhibiting to the Reader, a sketch (at least) of some very 
 interesting and instructive portions of a history of his own language."* 
 
 Of the success, (good or ill,) which has hitherto attended my progress, the public, (if they will) 
 may judge. God grant me health and eye-sight to proceed, and, as I have begun, so to the end will 
 I persist : my heart is on the work ; and, should my days be prolonged until 1 arrive at the conclu- 
 sion of it ; I shall feel the proud assurance that I have done much — very much— for the general 
 Advancement of Learning ; and still more for the especial aggrandizeraeot gf the Literature of ojy 
 Country. 
 
 ' See Advertisement to the English Lexicon, p. vi.
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 DEAR LAMBRICK, 
 
 1 HAVE long been in possession of your high 
 opinion of the Diversions of Purley ; and of your very low opinion 
 of the Dictionary of Doctor Johnson. With respect to the former, 
 we are not, I believe, singular in considering that, as a work of 
 Grammar merely, it stands without a rival. The learning and 
 abilities of the author are generally allowed to have been fully equal 
 to his subject ; and even the ardent imagination of Mr. Erskine* 
 presents no exaggerated picture of the laborious diligence with 
 which Mr. Tooke pursued his philological researches. 
 
 This I take to be the general sentiment ; and it was not, surely, 
 a very unreasonable expectation that such a work should be regarded 
 in some degree as an authority ; that it should be pretty commonly 
 read, and studied, and understood. 
 
 * See Tooke's Trial for High Treason, Vol. I. p. 406. 
 
 B
 
 2 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 I do not know what opportunities you may have had, or what 
 disposition you may have felt, to ascertain the fact ; but I can 
 declare for my own part, that I have, in the course of my inquiries, 
 met with ample cause to persuade myself, that if I had asserted a 
 conclusion the very reverse of that which (I confess) I adopted : if I 
 had inferred that because every page of the eiiea nTEPOENTA presents 
 materials for deep reflection, therefore it would not be studied ; 
 that, because the reasoning is direct and perspicuous, the language 
 plain and forceful, the illustrations numerous and pertinent, there- 
 fore the doctrines would be misunderstood ; that because the work 
 absolutely abounds in the most interesting and important discove- 
 ries, it would therefore be neglected : if such had been my infer- 
 ences, I say, I might indeed have been ashamed of my own cynical 
 mordacity, but I should have formed a more accurate estimate of 
 the zeal of this age in the encouragement of curious, original, and 
 profound investigations in metaphysical philosophy. 
 
 I have now before me that stupendous " monument of vanished 
 minds," the last variorum edition of Shakspeare ; and although six 
 and thirty years have passed since the publication of the far-famed 
 Letter to Mr. Dunning, in which the etymology of the English 
 conjunctions was so firmly established as to preclude the necessity 
 of additional proof ; you will scarcely believe it, — but it is an un- 
 questionable truth, — not one single etymology lias crept into the 
 brains of one single annotator or commentator upon our great bard; 
 and modern editions of our older dramatists are still continuing to 
 be published by modern editors, with a blind adherence to their
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 3 
 
 blind precursors. You would think me unconscionable, if I were 
 to require from editors of plays that they should seriously bestow 
 their best faculties upon the ehea nTEPOENTA, with a view to the 
 comprehension of those high metaphysical principles, which may be 
 derived from it ; but, I assure you, I found it necessary to acquire 
 some familiarity with this race of writers, before I could satisfac- 
 torily account to myself for the perversity, with which they refuse 
 to gather the tempting fruits of etymology, which in that work are 
 so profusely scattered before them. — In proceeding through the 
 " Critical Examination," you will find that I have taken sufficient, 
 if not more than sufficient, notice of this incorrigible set : 
 
 Some beams of wit on other souls may fall, 
 Strike through, and make a lucid interval. 
 
 You probably, as well as myself, have fearfully anticipated that 
 editors of plays are not the only persons willing to evince their 
 inability duly to appreciate the masterly production of Home 
 Tooke. You must indeed have felt such an apprehension from the 
 moment of perusing the Advertisement of the Reverend Henry 
 J. Todd ; an advertisement, which may have been composed in the 
 press-room of the printer ; — never certainly amid the records of the 
 Archbishop of Canterbury. 
 
 You would observe from that advertisement, that it is Mr. Todd's 
 intention to present us with the Dictionary of Johnson with numer- 
 ous corrections, and with the addition of many thousand words ; and 
 further that emendations are to be admitted from Home Tooke, and 
 
 B 2
 
 4 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 [risum teneas /) from Mr. Malone. — Madame de Stael, who* is now 
 the Cynosure of the critics, has very oddly — to English ears — com- 
 bined the names of Milton and Young : this we must excuse in a 
 foreigner, and a lady ; but that a learned Englishman should thus 
 jumble a Malone into equal place with a Home Tooke, does really 
 augur so ill of his discernment and good sense, that the impulse to 
 mirth at the oddity of such a classification of emendators was 
 repressed by my apprehensions of some fatal influence from its 
 absurdity. 
 
 Whatever may be Mr. Todd's abilities in explaining the signi- 
 fication of words, I cannot, from the specimen which this adver- 
 tisement pi'esents, consider him as very successful in the expression 
 of his own meaning. " In these labours also" (he informs us) " it 
 may not be omitted, the plan of Dr. Johnson has been respectfully 
 followed ; and if it shall be found that in the construction of the 
 present work the Editor has been at all successful, he must gratefully 
 attribute his success to having built upon so noble a foundation." 
 
 I must confess that I am a little at a loss to collect with clearness 
 any thing from this sentence except great humility of profession. 
 Is this, I ask, to be the Dictionary of Henry J. Todd alone, or of 
 Samuel Johnson, merely with the corrections and additions of Mr. 
 Todd ? The passage which I have just quoted countenances the 
 
 * " Perhaps the grammarians may already reproach me for the use of an improper 
 tense." — Gibbon's Vindication.
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 5 
 
 former supposition ; the preceding part of his advertisement con- 
 firms the latter. If, then, Mr. Todd be merely the Editor, what 
 pretence will he have either to the merit or demerit of the construction 
 of the work ; unless he not only follow the plan of Johnson in his 
 own portion of the performance, but actually in the execution of 
 his editorial office presume to reduce the original Dictionary of 
 Johnson to the scale which that plan supplies ? If he blend, — and 
 probably this is all that he intends, — his own corrections and addi- 
 tions really constructed upon Johnson's plan, (imperfect and super- 
 ficial as it is) with the original Dictionary in an unaltered or in a 
 partially altered state, it may instantly be foreseen that Mr. Todd 
 IS about to present to the world as complete a tissue of discordant 
 materials ; of errors preserved and errors corrected ; of plan violated 
 and plan adhered to, as the most enthusiastic idolater of confusion 
 can covet or desire. 
 
 It is scarcely necessary to apprize you, that all my apprehensions 
 of this incongruous intermixture, originate in the supposition that 
 Mr. Todd really does design to follow strictly the plan, to which 
 Johnson had pledged himself to conform, and that, if I were well 
 satisfied of Mr. Todd's intention to pursue the example, and not 
 the direction, of Johnson, my fears on this head would be dissipated 
 in an instant.— I should look forward with composure, if not with 
 perfect apathy, to the production of one uniform and consistent 
 mass of ignorance and absurdity. 
 
 As I have already intimated my opinion that this plan, of which
 
 b INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 SO grateful mention is made by Mr. Todd, is in itself imperfect and 
 superficial, it is proper that I should claim your attention to some 
 remarks upon it, notwithstanding it was wholly renounced by 
 Johnson in the preparation of the Dictionary. — That it was so 
 renounced, I shall have very little trouble, in the next place, to 
 convince you. 
 
 Every reader of this extraordinary composition must be struck 
 with the deep consciousness, which, it is manifest from the first 
 paragraph to the last, was never absent from the mind of Johnson, 
 of his utter inability to execute a work, undertaken, as he candidly 
 confesses, with no higher expectation than the price of his labour. 
 This consciousness oppressed him at the commencement ; and to 
 the very close still clouded his imagination. It must have haunted 
 him at every step of his progress. Having laid it down as a rule 
 for his guidance in explaining the words, " that their natural and 
 primitive meaning should be first exhibited," he had but this 
 choice : — either to renounce the rule, or abandon the Dictionary. 
 He chose the former. — He little imagined that the " origin of ideas" 
 was the proper starting-post of the grammarian, who is to treat 
 of their signs, and of the lexicographer who is to interpret them.* 
 He had not that rectitude of thought, that well disciplined under- 
 standing ; he kneiv he had not the learning requisite to insure his 
 success. He himself acknowledges, " that he found it too late to 
 
 * On Mr. Tooke's principle of etymology, " that a word has but one meaning, 
 however various its applicatione," I shall have occasion to enlarge hereafter.
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 7 
 
 look for instruments, when the work called for execution ; and that 
 whatever abilities he brought to the task, with those he must finally 
 perform it ; that to deliberate whenever he doubted, to inquire, 
 whenever he was ignorant, would have protracted the work without 
 end, and perhaps without much improvement." 
 
 It will try your ingenuity to discover, in this description of his 
 unceremonious neglect of deliberation and inquiry, any very striking 
 proof of a mind, intent (as Johnson professes his mind to have been) 
 upon accuracy. — To proceed, however, with the plan. 
 
 " When the orthography and pronunciation" (he informs us) 
 " are adjusted, the etymology or derivation is next to be con- 
 sidered, and the words are to be distinguished according to their 
 different classes, whether simple, as Day, Light, or compound, as 
 Daylight ; whether primitive, as, to act, or derivative, as Action, 
 uctionable, active, activity." 
 
 Such, according to Johnson, is the first important object of ety- 
 mology ! ! 
 
 " When this part of the work is performed, it will be necessary 
 to inquire how our primitives are to be deduced from foreign lan- 
 guages, which may be often very successfully performed by the 
 assistance of our own etymologists." 
 
 " When the word is easily deduced from a Saxon original, I shall
 
 8 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 not often inquire further, since we know not the parent of the 
 Saxon dialect ; but when it is borrowed from the French, I shall 
 shew whence the French is apparently derived. Where a Saxon 
 root cannot be found, the defect may be supplied from kindred lan- 
 guages, which will be generally furnished with much liberality by 
 the writers of our glossaries." 
 
 You have now before you all that I find of Johnson's Principles 
 of etymology : a sad abuse of tei-ms, I do not deny. After stating 
 these principles, however, he confidently proceeds : 
 
 " By tracing in this manner every word to its original — " 
 
 In this manner ! In what manner? Have you caught a glimpse 
 of any manner in Avhich a word is to be traced to its original? 
 Do you discern the least allusion to any manner'^ Manner and 
 object are by me equally undistinguishable. And here it is incum- 
 bent upon me to observe, that in this particulai', viz. the etymology, 
 he appears in his Dictionary to have executed all that he has 
 described in his plan ; all that he ever considered it to be the duty 
 of an etymologist to attempt. What then, I ask, has he attempted ? 
 — " Barely to refer us to some words in another language, either 
 the same or similar ;" and never dreaming of the necessity of shew- 
 ing the manner of the derivation, or the meaning of the word in 
 such other language ; or even that it was the province of etymology 
 to fix "the natural and primitive signification of words."
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 9 
 
 An instance occurs to me, (in addition to the number you will 
 find in the Criticism,) which will sufficiently illustrate how imper- 
 fect and superficial is such etymology as Johnson's. 
 
 " Ablution, n. s. [ablutio, Latin) the act of cleansing, 
 " Pollution, n. s. [pollutio, Latin) the act of defiling" 
 
 Whence ablutio, and pollutio, and what their meaning ? The 
 Latin etymologists, to whom the English reader must refer, may 
 perhaps supply an etymology and a meaning for the former, which 
 will account for its application* ; but with respect to the latter, they 
 are themselves divided, and it was not for Johnson to compose the 
 strife. We have learnt, then, notlmig at all by our consultation of 
 Johnson, except that he probably was as ignorant as those who 
 applied to him for information ; and such must be inevitably our 
 fate whenever we resort to a lexicographer whose principle it is to 
 present no better assistance. 
 
 Here, then, I take my stand. — With full confidence of your 
 entire acquiescence, and in perfect fearlessness of opposition from 
 any other quarter, I affirm that this " noble foundation" is itself 
 baseless. 
 
 " In explaining the general and popular language," continues the 
 
 * Verborum explicatio probabatur, id est, qua de causa quaeque essent ita nominata ; 
 quam etymologiam appellabant. Cic. Jcad. Qucest. lib. i. c. 8. 
 
 C
 
 10 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 Plan, " it see7ns necessaiy to sort the several senses of each word, 
 and to exhibit first its natural and primitive signification ; as, " To 
 arrive, to reach the shore in a voyage : he arrived at a safe harbour." 
 
 This indispensable rule, so hesitatingly advanced, it was not 
 possible for Johnson to observe with the help of such etymology, 
 as I have already shewn you that it was his system to employ ; and 
 so crude and indigested, you will not fail to remark, were his prin- 
 ciples of language, that, in the very instance which he produces in 
 illustration of his rule, his explanation and example are completely 
 at variance. 
 
 Shall I, then, proceed with this Plan ? Not, surely, to establish 
 the truth of my assertion, that it is imperfect and superficial, for 
 you must already have condemned me for applying epithets so weak 
 and indescriptive ; but it is necessary that I should proceed in 
 pursuit of that other object which I have in view : 1 mean, an 
 exposition of the strange discrepancies between the Plan aixl per- 
 formance. 
 
 The subsequent rules then are, to exhibit 
 
 2. " The accidental or consequential signification. (*Arrive.) 
 
 3. " The remoter or metaphorical signification. (*Arrive.) 
 
 4. " The poetical sense. (*Wanton,) 
 
 5. " To the poetical sense may succeed the familiar. (*Toast.) 
 
 6. " The familiar may be followed by the burlesque. (*Mellow.)
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 11 
 
 7. " And lastly may be produced the peculiar sense hi which a 
 word is found in any great author. (*Faculties.)" 
 
 Such is Johnson's distribution of the different senses in which 
 words are used ; and our curiosity is very naturally awakened to 
 attend to the instances which he will adduce of such practical usage : 
 exhibiting the satne word in all the variety of significations. But 
 this would have required some little accuracy of discrimination, 
 and Johnson disdained the toil. 
 
 As the word " Arrive" is selected by Johnson himself, for a spe- 
 cimen of the manner in which he intended to proceed, as an inter- 
 preter of the primitive signification of words, and as you are already 
 acquainted with the consistency of his illustration in his Plan, let 
 us refer to this same word in the Dictionary : we shall find, 
 
 " To Arrive, v. n. [arriver, Fr. to come on shore.) 
 
 " 1. To come to ant/ place by water." 
 
 In the first place, he has not performed his promise, " to shew, 
 when a word is borrowed from the French, whence the French is 
 apparently derived." 
 
 In the second place, " To come on shore," and " To come to 
 
 * The various words adduced as instances in the Plan. 
 
 C 2
 
 12 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 any place by water," are not one and the same thing, as many an 
 unfortunate being has wretchedly experienced. 
 
 In the third place, take his example : and you will find that it is 
 of one, who did not " come to any place by water ;" but who 
 actually did come to water by land. 
 
 At length, arriving on the banks of Nile, 
 Wearied with length of days, and worn with toil, 
 She laid her down " Dryden. 
 
 This poor wearied being was no other than lo, iiitensjuvenca, whom 
 Juno 
 
 Profugam per totum terruit orbem. 
 
 Ultimus immenso restabas, Nile, labori. 
 
 Quern simul ac tetigit, positisque in margine rip* 
 
 Procubuit genibus. 
 
 Is this one of " The blemishes not of that kind, quas incur ia fudit , 
 but the result of too much nicety and exactness." I can assure you, 
 that such nicety and exactness pervade the whole work. 
 
 By the Plan, you recollect, seven divisions of meaning are the 
 full portion allowed by Johnson ; — from the Dictionary I could 
 select you half a dozen starveling monosyllables, to which he has 
 allotted four hundred and sixty-four explanations, that is, about 
 seventy to each (upon the average) more than the Plan concedes to
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 13 
 
 them as their due. An adherence to the Plan, then, would have 
 diminished the bulk of the Dictionary in rather an unwelcome 
 degree ; — for these six little words occupy the space of forty folio 
 columns. 
 
 By the Plan we perceive that the metaphorical sense was always 
 carefully to be distinguished from the primitive ; and of course we 
 may infer, each was to be supported by distinct and proper exam- 
 ples. Not so in the Dictionary — There he tells us, that " A Mite 
 is a small insect found in cheese or corn ;" and for example we find, 
 " Virginity breeds mites." Blanket, he also informs us, means 
 " A woollen cover, soft and loosely woven, spread commonly upon 
 a bed, over the linen sheet, for the procurement of warmth." And 
 this is his first example : 
 
 Nor Heaven peep through the blanket of the dark 
 To cry, Hold, hold ! 
 
 Again. — I must assure you, that such nicety and exactness per- 
 vade the whole Dictionary ; — and you will find abundant proof that 
 they do so in the Criticism. 
 
 " The Verbs (says the Plan) are likewise to be distinguished 
 according to their qualities, as actives from neuters ; the neglect of 
 which has already introduced some barbarities in our conversation, 
 which, if not obviated by just animadversions, may in time creep 
 into our writings." .
 
 14 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 When you have sufficiently contemplated the solemn dogmatism 
 with which this most momentous distinction is ordained, peruse 
 this instance of the manner in which it is exemplified. 
 
 " To Ask, v. a. 1. To petition; to beg; sometimes with an 
 accusative only, sometimes withyb;-. 
 
 When thou dost ask me blessing, I'll kneel down. 
 
 And ask of thee forgiveness ." Shakspeare. 
 
 " To Ask, v.n. 1. To petition; to beg; with ybr before the 
 thing. 
 
 " My son, hast thou sinned ? Do so no more, but ask pardon for thy former 
 sins." Ecclus. 
 
 In the first place, I observe, that for is not expressed in the 
 example I have transcribed to the verb active, nor in either of the 
 other two, which you may find in the Dictionary, but may be sup- 
 plied in all of them. In the second place, that, if in the expression 
 '* Ask forgiveness," the verb " Ask" is an active verb, common 
 sense informs me, that in the expression " Ask pardon," it must be 
 so likewise. And, in the third place, that in the example to the 
 verb neuter, ybr is not before the thing, i. e. the thing asked. 
 
 I think you must now be sufficiently acquainted with Johnson's 
 qualifications as a lexicographer, to hear without surprize that this 
 neuter Ask does not appear in the first edition, but is an improve- 
 ment introduced into some subsequent edition.
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 15 
 
 Another of his rules, and one which he has taken no pains to 
 lionour with the observance, is this : " That the difference of sie- 
 nification in words generally accounted synonymous ought to be 
 carefully noticed, as in Pride, Haughtiness, Arrogance." Do 
 be patient, and have the perseverance to refer to all these words. 
 You will unexpectedly find, that some slight attempt is actually 
 made to mark a distinct meaning under the word Arrogance, but 
 do not fear : — your wonder will subside as you advance ; the efforts 
 of this mind, intent upon accuracy, are relaxed, when it undertakes 
 the adjective. Arrogant ; and are wholly relinquished in the inter- 
 pretation of Haughtiness. 
 
 Are you in search of a short and infallible recipe to write sheer 
 nonsense ? I will present you with one in an instant. — " The rio^our 
 of interpretative lexicography, (says Johnson) requires that the 
 explanation, and the word explained, should be reciprocal." Obey 
 this rule, in your use of his Dictionary, and your success is en- 
 sured. I will give you an instance ; — That stumbling-block to all 
 keen metaphysicians, the word Cause. 
 
 " A Cause is that which produces or effects any thing." 
 
 To effect is — " To produce as a Cause." 
 
 To produce is — " To cause." 
 
 Substituting the explanations for the words explained : — ^ 
 
 *' A Cause is, that which causes or causes as a cause — any thing." 
 
 Joy to great Chaos ! — Do you wish for any further proofs of the 
 value of my nostrum.^
 
 16 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 After Johnson had exhausted the Dictionaries already published, 
 to form his vocabulary, he confesses that his only reliance for the 
 enlargement of it, was upon fortuitous and unguided excursions into 
 books. Mr. Todd unquestionably must have resorted to surer 
 methods, for he has evinced in his edition of Milton that he does 
 not consider it as a degrading employment of his abilities to stoop 
 to the drudgery of arranging an index. 
 
 I am curious to learn to what period that gentleman will carry 
 his researches into the history of our language. Johnson excluded 
 from his work all words "but such as are to be found in authors 
 Avho wrote since the accession of Queen Elizabeth ;" and yet he 
 absurdly pretends " to give to every word its history, and inform 
 the reader of the gradual changes of the language." I hope that 
 Mr. Todd's deference to the authority of his admired predecessor 
 will not induce him to adopt the same law of exclusion. Whatever 
 that gentleman may have intended or accomplished, I have long- 
 indulged the hope that I shonld be doing some benefit to literature 
 by entering into a Critical Examination of the Dictionary of 
 Johnson ; and I have no doubt that I shall fully establish the justice 
 of the sentence already passed vxpon it : " That though it appears 
 to be a work of great labour, it is in truth one of the most idle 
 performances ever offered to the public, and that its author pos- 
 sessed not one requisite for the undertaking." 
 
 I have also a strong persuasion, that I shall not only be able to 
 clear up some grammatical doubts and difficulties which have
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. I/ 
 
 embarrassed, and to correct some errors which have misled, the un- 
 derstandings of some of the readers of the eoea iitepoenta ; but 
 tliat I shall impress a deep conviction, — that no man can possibly 
 succeed in compiling a truly valuable Dictionary of the English 
 Language, unless he entirely desert the steps of Johnson, and 
 pursue the path which Tooke has pointed out. 
 
 And here Mr. Todd and myself are completely at issue. He has 
 chosen Johnson's Plan as the " noble foundation," upon which he is 
 willing to rest his own fame as a lexicographer. Be it so. Were 
 " my dearest foe" to make such a choice, I should compassionate 
 his folly. I am, I confess, almost entirely ignorant of the abilities 
 or attainments of Mr. Todd. — He is, it is true, loud in his praise 
 of the Dictionary of Dr. Johnson : and — he ranks John Home 
 Tooke with Mr. Malone. Surely " his discernings are lethargied." 
 Hitherto, I believe, he was principally to be known as an Editor ; 
 and I never yet was so lost to shame as to waste that time upon an 
 annotator which is so much better bestowed upon the Poet. Some 
 of those gentlemen have, however, occasionally contributed much 
 to my amusement. Tom Warton, for instance, is an encyclopasdia 
 of wit. I mean in the effect he produces. I cannot conceive of 
 what stuff that man must be made, who can read Warton's notes on 
 " Trip and go," cum similibus, without shaking with laughter. I 
 fear that Mr. Todd has not proved himself so sincere a lover of a good 
 joke, as respectfully to preserve, in his edition of Milton, all the 
 entertaining lucubrations of Thomas Warton. At any rate, I mean 
 not to speak too disparagingly of an author with whose productions 
 
 D
 
 18 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 
 
 I am so little acquainted. But yet I may, — I 7nust, be permitted to 
 regret, that the labours of Mr. Tooke were not brought to a close : 
 and to express my suspicions, that if the Dictionary of John Home 
 Tooke had been completed, the united labours of Samuel Jolinson 
 and Henry J. Todd might have been spared to warm the baths of 
 Alexandria. 
 
 In a few months, I understand, I shall, by the publication of a 
 portion of JNIr. Todd's work, be either confirmed in my suspicions, 
 or ashamed of them ; and I will not fail to apprize you of the result, 
 whatever it maybe. — In the mean time, I send you a portion of my 
 Criticism ; — a sufficient one, I hope, to enable you to enter fully 
 into my design, and to judge with what success my exertions have 
 been crowned. 
 
 You will find that I have thought it necessary to enter with con- 
 siderable minuteness into examples, exhibiting in detail the manner 
 in which Johnson's work is executed ; and that the necessity of 
 contrasting the two writers has led to the selection of those words 
 chiefly, which Tooke in his etymological researches has also inter- 
 preted. These examples, though thus limited in the selection, 
 will be amply sufficient not only to decide our opinion of Johnson's 
 accomplishments in tracing the original of words ; Avhich he con- 
 siders as the first portion of the duty of that harmless drudge, a 
 lexicographer ; but also to ascertain in what degree he has suc- 
 ceeded in the second portion ; viz. the explanation of the meaning.
 
 INTRODUCTORY LETTER. 19 
 
 I have taken care, as you will not fail also to observe, to be 
 accompanied in every .stage of my progress by Skinner and Junius, 
 the two great authorities of Johnson, that I might make my readers 
 in some measure acquainted with the services, which those authors 
 have rendered both to Johnson and to Tooke ; and how very fre- 
 quently the former has neglected to avail himself of their useful 
 labours. 
 
 When I have proceeded through the Dictionary (a most appalling 
 enterprize), another object will demand my attention. I shall have 
 to notice a writer for whom, I know, you entertain a very consider- 
 able degree of respect : — I mean Dugald Stewart. I shall no fur- 
 ther anticipate the observations which I have to make upon the 
 Philological Essays of that gentleman, than to express myself not 
 a little indignant at those airs of superiority which he affects when 
 speaking of the labours of Home Tooke ; and to assure him, that 
 his former productions had raised him sufficiently in my esteem to 
 render his entire misconception of the doctrines established in the 
 Diversions of Purley wholly unexpected and surprizing. 
 
 Would you conceive it possible that a man, whose whole life has 
 been devoted to literary pursuits, should — but soft — not yet. — I 
 must not forget my resolution. I must dispose of the lexicographer 
 before I undertake the metaphysician. 
 
 Farewell. 
 
 March, 1814. 
 
 To Samuel Lambrick, Esquire. 
 
 D 2
 
 21 
 
 AN ANALYSIS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 GRAMMATICAL PRINCIPLES 
 
 OF 
 
 THE DIVERSIONS OF PURLEY. 
 
 '* A HERE is not, nor is it possible there should be, a word in 
 any language, which has not a complete meaning and signification, 
 even when taken by itself. Adjectives, Prepositions, Adverbs, &c. 
 have all complete, separate meanings, not difficult to be dis- 
 covered." 
 
 The author's notions upon language were formed from general 
 reasonings, which led him to the discovery of the particular in- 
 stances ; and not from a knowledge of the particular instances, 
 leading him to the general principle. His system had been fixed 
 for many years before etymology occurred to him as the means, 
 whence his particular proofs were to be drawn ; and of this branch
 
 22 ANALYSIS OF THE GRAMMATICAL PRINCIPLES 
 
 of learning he was so utterly ignorant, that he could not account 
 etyraologically for one single conjunction ; he was not even 
 acquainted with the characters of the Anglo-Saxon and Gothic 
 languages ; in Avhich, as the parent languages of the English, it 
 subsequently occurred to him, — that if his reasonings were well 
 founded, there must exist such and such words with precisely such 
 and such significations. To the study of those languages, then, he 
 devoted himself, and found all his predictions verified. 
 
 The first aim of language is to communicate our thoughts ; the 
 second, to do it with dispatch. Many words, therefore, are abbre- 
 viations, so used for dispatch ; the signs of other words, and not 
 immediately the signs of ideas. This latter purpose of speech 
 has much the greater share in accounting for the difterent sorts of 
 words. 
 
 Words justly deserve to be called winged, when the progress of 
 speech, with the aid of abbreviations, is compared with that which it 
 would make without them ; but not when compared with the celerity 
 of thought. The invention of all ages has with reason been 
 exerted to enable speech to keep pace in some measure with the 
 mind. 
 
 The inquiry, then, into the manner of signification of words 
 leads —
 
 OF THE DIVERSIONS OF PURLEY. 23 
 
 1st. To words necessary for the communication of speech. These 
 are the same in all languages. 1st. Noun. 2. Verb. 
 
 2d. To abbreviations employed for the sake of dispatch. These 
 abbreviations might strictly be called Parts of Speech, as they have 
 a different manner of signification ; but, for the sake of distinction, 
 that rank is refused them, because they are not necessary words, 
 but substitutes for necessary words. 
 
 The business of the mind, as far as it concerns language, is only 
 to receive impressions ; that is, to have sensations or feelings. A 
 consideration of the mind, or of ideas, or of things (relative to the 
 parts of speech), will lead us no further than to Nouns ; i. e. the 
 signs of those impressions or names of ideas. The Verb must be 
 accounted for from the necessity of it in communication. It is well 
 called PMjua, dictum; it is the communication itself; — Quodloquimur — 
 the noun, de Quo. 
 
 A Noun is the simple or complex, the particular or general sign 
 or name of one or more ideas. Declension, Gender, Number, 
 and Case, present no difficulties. Figure apart, in our language the 
 names of thinos without sex are also without sjender. 
 
 Connected with the Noun is the Article ; the necessity of which, 
 or of some equivalent invention, follows from the necessity of 
 general terms. The Article reduces the generality of terms, and 
 enables us to employ them for particulars. The Article, then.
 
 24 ANALYSIS OF THE GRAMMATICAL PRINCIPLES 
 
 combined with the general terms, is merely a substitute supplying 
 the place of words, which are not in the language ; and therefore to 
 be distinguished from those substitutes (classed under the general 
 head of abbreviations) which supply the place of words that are in 
 the language. 
 
 Relinquishing the further discussion of the Noun, and postponing 
 that of the Verb, and of the Abbreviations in sorts of words, 
 the Conjunctions are taken into consideration. These are not a 
 separate sort of word or part of speech ; they have not a separate 
 manner of signification. Each may be traced in every languai^je to 
 its origin among the other parts of speech ; and in English may be 
 reduced to one scheme of explication. Those which have created 
 the greatest embarrassment to etymologists, — If, An, Unless, Eke, 
 Yet, Still, Else, Tho' or Though, But, Biit, Without, And, are all 
 imperatives of their i-espective Anglo-Saxon Verbs ; — Lest and 
 Since are participles ; — That is the pronoun That*; — As and -So mean 
 That; — Or means Other. The rest are obvious at first sight. - 
 
 Prepositions ai'e also to be found among the other parts of speech . 
 The necessity of them follows from the impossibility of having a 
 difl:erent complex name for each different collection of ideas. The 
 addition or subtraction of one idea makes the collection different 
 from what it was. To use a difterent complex name for each different 
 
 * Mr. Stewart seems to have strangely imagined that all the Conjunctions are shewn 
 to be Pronouns or Articles. Essays, p. 174.
 
 OF THE DIVERSIONS OF PURLEY. 25 
 
 collection of ideas, would (if there were degrees of impossibility) 
 be more impossible, than to use a different particular term for each 
 different particular idea. When, thereforCj we have occasion to 
 mention a collection of ideas, for which there is no single com- 
 plex term, we either take that complex term, which includes the 
 greatest number, though not all of the ideas we wish to communicate, 
 and supply the deficiency, by the help of a Preposition, or we take 
 that which includes all, and the fewest ideas more than wewould com- 
 municate, and by the help of a Preposition retrench the superfluity. 
 
 The great grammatical distinction between Prepositions and 
 Conjunctions is, that the first are applied to words, the latter to 
 sentences. Some words {But, And, Since, If, Unless, &c.) are 
 applied to both; and, according to the application, are Prepositions 
 or Conjunctions. 
 
 With regard to their etymology : — By and With are Verbs ; Of, 
 For, To, From, Through, are Nouns. Others are compounded of 
 Verbs and Nouns. Others may be found more immediately in the 
 Noun or Verb, adjectived. 
 
 The Adverbs likewise may be found among the other parts of 
 speech. Those terminating in ly, receive that termination from the 
 corruption of like. Like is still used in Scotland for ly. 
 
 And thus we arrive at the conclusion of the^V*^ volume.
 
 26 ANALYSIS OF THE GRAMMATICAL PRINCIPLES 
 
 The main object of the first five chapters of the second volume, 
 is to account for what is called Abstraction, and for abstract ideas. 
 As a general term, Subaudition is proposed in lieu of Abstraction. 
 
 Those terms, which are usually considered as the signs of abstract 
 ideas, are generally Participles or Adjectives used without a Sub- 
 stantive, and therefore in construction considered as Substantives. 
 Such words form the bulk of every language ; those which we 
 borrow from the Latin, French, and Italian, are easily recognized ; 
 those from the Greek more so : but those which are original in our 
 own language have been overlooked, and have remained unsuspected. 
 The Latin Verbs agere, adolere, cadere, canere, capere, cedere, cin- 
 gere, clandere, currere, debere, dicere, ducere, facere, Jinire, Jliiere, 
 gradi, ire, jacere, legere, mittere, ponere, pellere, portare, qucerere, 
 queri, salire, sancire, sentire, specere, spirare, scribere, sfatuere, strin- 
 gere, tangere, tendere, tenere, trahere, — have much enriched our 
 vocabulary. 
 
 The names of qualities in ence and ance are from the neuter 
 plurals of present Latin Participles. 
 
 We are led to a discovery of our own Participles and Adjectives, 
 thus grammatically converted into Nouns : 
 
 1st, By the participial terminations in ed, and en; which are 
 also adjective terminations : "d is very commonly changed into t.
 
 OF THE DIVERSIONS OF PURLEY. 27 
 
 2d. By the change of the characteristic letter of the Verb ; i. e. 
 of the vowel, or diphthong, which in the Anglo-Saxon immediately 
 precedes the infinitive termination, an, can, or ian, jan, gean, or 
 gian. Thus, to form the past tense and participle of Wrinjan, to 
 wring, the characteristic, i or i/, was changed to a broad ; but as 
 different persons both spoke and wrote differently, this change was 
 exhibited by a broad, or by o, or by u. From Alfred to Shakspeare 
 chiefly prevailed in the South, and a in the North ; but since 
 that time the change, in some instances to ou, and in others to oa, 
 00, at, has decidedly prevailed. 
 
 Another source of general terras is in the third person singular of 
 the indicative ; of which person, th was the regular termination. 
 
 More than one thousand instances are produced in the original 
 work ; and a sufficient number will be found in the Critical Exami- 
 nation of Johnson's Dictionary, 
 
 The three remaining chapters are devoted to Adjectives and Par- 
 ticiples ; more properly discriminated by the names of Noun 
 Adjective and Verb Adjective : and now we shall find ourselves 
 arrived at those abbreviations, which are substitutes for words that 
 are in the language, and not necessary for communication, but only 
 for dispatch. 
 
 An Adjective is the name of a thing which is directed to be joined 
 to some other name of a thing. In adjectives ending in en, ed, and 
 
 E 2
 
 28 ANALYSIS OF THE GRAMMATICAL PRINCIPLES 
 
 ig, (our modern y) the terminations convey, by their own intrinsic 
 meaning, that they are to be joined, and nothing else, for tliey 
 mean give, add, join ; and the single additional circmnstance of 
 *' pertaining to," Wilkins truly says, is the only difference between 
 a Substantive and an Adjective ; between, for instance, gold and 
 golden. We say, a gold-ring, or, a golden-ring. The hyphen in 
 the one case, and the termination in the other, equally shew these 
 to be Substantives, adjective posita. 
 
 An Adjective, therefore, cannot stand by itself, because in it a 
 termination is added to the sign of an idea, which by conven- 
 tion signifies that it is to be joined to some other sign ; and that 
 other sign is always expected to follow. It is called a Noun Adjec- 
 tive, because it is the name of a thing, which may very well coalesce 
 with another name of a thing. 
 
 Adjectives in /j/, otis, full, some, les, ish, &c. are compound 
 words, the termination being originally a word added to -other 
 words, and still retaining its original meaning. Our ancestors incor- 
 porated many terminations into our language, which we did not, as 
 well as which we did, want. Thus, in some words we have a choice; 
 Bountiful, Bounteous ; Beautiful, Beauteous. 
 
 We have also borrowed, in great numbers, adjectived signs from 
 other languages, without always borrowing the imadjectived signs 
 of the same ideas, neglecting to improve our own language by the 
 same contrivance within itself, Mental, Magnanimous, are in-
 
 OF THE DIVERSIONS OF PURLEY. 29 
 
 stances ; and about two hundred more are adduced in the original 
 work. 
 
 Adjectives, then^ though convenient abbreviations for dispatch, 
 are not necessary for communication, and, therefore, not ranked 
 among the parts of speech. The Mohegans, a North American 
 tribe, have no adjectives. From the misapprehension of this use- 
 ful and simple contrivance of language, we have been bewildered 
 with false philosophy about qualities, accidents, substances, sub- 
 strata, essence, the adjunct nature of things, &c. 
 
 Participles, also, are abbreviations, for dispatch, and of these we 
 had formerly only two, — the pi'esent and the past ; but our ancestors 
 incorporated, from other languages into our own, four other partici-- 
 ples of equal value. Again, (as with the Adjectives,) they did not 
 abbreviate their own language, but took them ready made. 
 
 This sort of word is not the same as the Noun Adjective ;. it is 
 the Verb Adjective. It is equally useful to adjective the Verb as 
 the Noun ; and not only the Verb itself, but every mood and tense 
 of the Verb may be adjectived by a distinguishing termination. 
 Some languages have adjectived more, some fewer of these moods 
 and tenses, by these distinguishing terminations. We are in great 
 measure obliged to perform these modal and temporal abbreviations 
 by auxiliaries. 
 
 We now use six of these Verb- Adjectives in English :— -the.
 
 30 ANALYSIS OF THE GRAMMATICAL PRINCIPLES 
 
 simple verb-adjective, two adjective tenses, and three adjective 
 moods. 
 
 1. The simple verb-adjective, formerly terminating in and, now 
 in ing. — As the noun-adjective signifies all that the unadjectived 
 noun signifies, and no more, (except the circumstance of adjection,) 
 so must the verb-adjective signify all that the unadjectived verb 
 signifies, and no more, (except the circumstance of adject ion.} 
 There is no adsignification of manner or time in what is called the 
 indicative mood, present tense ; and none of time in what is called 
 the present participle. 
 
 2. The past tense adjective. — This does adsignify the circumstances 
 of time and manner ; in Latin by terminations only, and in English 
 by termination and auxiliaries. In English we sometimes add the 
 terminations cd, or en, and sometimes use the past tense itself, 
 without any change of terminations ; though this latter custom has 
 gradually decreased. The Latin makes an adjective of the- past 
 tense, as of the noun, by adding its article, o?, ji, n. 
 
 3. The potential passive adjective. — This was the first of the foui* 
 which our ancestors adopted. It is obtained by the termination 
 ab/e or ibk, and the contraction He, a termination having one com- 
 mon signification, and derived from the Latins, who received it 
 from the Gothic Aba/, robur ; whence, also, our English word able. 
 Those words in ble, which are used without a passive signification, 
 are taken from the French, who took them corruptly from the
 
 OF THE DIVERSIONS OF PURLEY. 31 
 
 Italian, and in the following manner: — Our Anglo-Saxon/w//, which 
 with the Germans is vol, became the Italian vole, which the French, 
 by a slovenly pronunciation, not distinguishing between bile and 
 vole, transformed into ble, as from capet-o/e, editable, &c. In this 
 manner our ov/n word, full, passing through the German, Italian, 
 and French, comes back to us again under the corrupt shape of ble ; 
 confounding those terminations, whose distinct application is so im- 
 portant to the purposes of speech. Thus we have senseful, sensitive, 
 sensible, which, properly interpreted, mean. Full of sense ; — Which 
 can feel ; — Which may be felt : and yet we hear " of a sensible man, 
 who is very sensible of the cold, or of any sensible change in the 
 weather.^' 
 
 4. The potential active adjective. — For this we have two termi- 
 nations : ive, borroAved from the Latin, as a provocat2i;e, a palliat- 
 ive ; any thing that can or may provoke, that can or may palliate: 
 and ic, from the Greek, as critic, any one who can or may discern. 
 Ive and ic are from vis and Uyja. Of these abbreviations also there 
 are corrupt applications. 
 
 5. The oflficiai mood passive adjective, is a name adopted from 
 distress. — It is intended to signify that mood or manner of using the 
 verb, by which we might couple the notion of duty with it ; by 
 which we might at the same time, and in conjunction with it, ex- 
 press T« Smix, the things which ought, and the things which ought not 
 to be done. The words, which we have adopted in this mood, are
 
 32 ANALYSIS OF THE GRAMMATICAL PRINCIPLES 
 
 merely Legend, Reverend, Dividend, Prebend, IMemorandum 
 and several of these are abused in their application. — This kind of 
 word we awkwardly and ambiguously supply by a circumlocution ; 
 the expression is to, or is to be, being all that we have of our own 
 to supply the place of this adjective, as well as of the potential pas- 
 sive adjective ; and also of 
 
 6. The future tense adjective. — In this latter we have only two 
 words, Future, and Venture, or Adventure. The aAvkwardness of 
 our substitutions for this future tense adjective, will be manifest 
 upon examining the ancient and even the modern versions of pas- 
 sages, M-here this future abbreviation is to be found, and which we 
 ought at once to snatch immediately from the Latin. 
 
 For these abbreviations are of great importance. A short, close, 
 and compact method of speech answers the purposes of a map upon 
 a reduced scale. Xt assists greatly the comprehension of the under- 
 standing ; and in general reasoning frequently enables us, at a glance, 
 to take in very numerous and distant important relations and con- 
 clusions, which would otherwise totally escape us. 
 
 " And here," says the author, " if you please, we will conclude 
 our discussion for the present. It is true, that ray evening is now 
 fully come, and the night fast approaching ; yet, if we shall have 
 a tolerably lengthened twilight, we may still perhaps find time 
 enough for a further conversation on this subject. And, finally, if
 
 OF THE DIVERSIONS OF PURLEY. 33 
 
 the times will bear it, to apply this system of language to all the 
 different systems of metaphysical (that is, verbal) imposture." 
 
 That this twilight, which is now sunk in darkness, was so em- 
 ployed, is most devoutly to be hoped ; and as the author declared, 
 in 1798, that all, which he had further to communicate on the 
 subject of language, had been then among his loose papers for up- 
 wards of thirty years, we may indulge a reasonable confidence that 
 we shall yet be enabled to accompany him " to a very different sort 
 of logick and critick than what we have hitherto been acquainted 
 with." 
 
 The work is thus closed upon us for the present, and we are left 
 wholly unsatisfied respecting the second part of speech necessary for 
 communication, the Verb. 
 
 Conjunctions, Prepositions, Adverbs, Adjectives, and Participles, 
 have been sufficiently explained to us. We have been informed 
 that a Verb is (what every word also must be) a Noun* : but that 
 it is something more, and that the title of Verb was given to it on 
 account of that distinguishing something more than the mere Nouns 
 convey. " What, then, is the Verb > What is that peculiar differ- 
 
 * Avla litv 5UV na,y aula. T^no/xtva ra ^nfiala, ovo/jiata soli, xcct cre/xMni li. 
 
 Arisiot. de Iiiler. cap. iii.
 
 34 ANALYSIS OF THE GRAMMATICAL PRINCIPLES 
 
 ential circumstance which, added to the definition of a Noun, con- 
 stitutes the Verb ?" 
 
 " How bold" (says one Critick*) "is it on the part of the author 
 thus to terminate ? Will no philosopher anticipate the discovery, 
 which the sage of Wimbledon refuses as yet to impart to the world ? 
 Does the problem baffle the sagacity of every man but one ? The 
 challenge is singular in the history of letters." 
 
 " The truth is" (another confidently assertsf) " he had no further 
 discoveries to make." And what is the ground of this assertion ? 
 The Critick looked Avithin his own breast for an answer. — " His 
 vanity would have insured the production of them." 
 
 Confining ourselves to the Verb, does this writer really imagine 
 that Mr. Tooke, who, upon every other branch of his subject, has 
 displayed such stores of profound and original research, would here 
 have entirely disappointed expectation ; that he, who till now had 
 been strong, would in an instant have sunk into imbecillity ? Does 
 he think that former grammarians, who have exhibited so erroneous 
 and confused and imperfect views upon the other parts of speech, 
 can present to us, with a steady hand, the torch of truth, to guide 
 
 * Monthly Review, Vol. LI. p. 406, The different criticisms upon Tooke's Philo- 
 logical Works which have appeared in this Review, have uniformly been distinguished 
 for candour and good sense. 
 
 t Quarterly Review, June, 1812.
 
 OF THE DIVERSIONS OF PURLEY. 35 
 
 our inquiries into the nature of the Verb ? In the writings of 
 what ancient or modern grammarian may the needful Information 
 be obtained ? 
 
 From Criticks of this description it is vain to seek a reply : for 
 " Boldness* is an ill keeper of promise. Nevertheless it doth fasci- 
 nate" (as Reviewers well know) " and bind hand and foot those that 
 are either shallow in judgment or weak in courage. Yet is it a 
 child of ignorance and baseness." 
 
 •o 
 
 * Bacon, Essay the I2th. 
 
 END OF THE ANALYSIS. 
 
 *-2
 
 37 
 
 CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 OF THE 
 
 DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 
 
 A. is placed before a participle, or participial noun ; and is considered by Wallis as 
 a contraction of at, when it is put before a word denoting some action not jet 
 finished : as, I am a walking. A, in composition, seems sometimes to be con- 
 tracted from at, as, Aside, Aslope, &c. (Johnson.) 
 
 In Anglo-Saxon, Jn means One, and On means Iti ; which word On we have in 
 English corrupted to Jn before a vowel, and to A before a consonant ; and in writ- 
 ing and speaking have connected it with the subsequent word : and from this double 
 corruption has sprung a numerous race of adverbs, which have no correspondent 
 adverbs in other languages, because there has been no similar corruption. (Tooke.) 
 Of these the following are among the most common : 
 ABLAZE ; (not in Johnson.) On blaze, Gower. (T.) 
 
 ABOARD; on borde ; on the borde ; Gower. Over the borde ; Chaucer. Within 
 burd, on burd, on bord ; Douglas. (T.) 
 
 About this word Johnson is not a little perplexed. " Bord is itself (he thinks) a 
 word of very doubtful original, and perhaps, in its different acceptations, is dedu- 
 cible from different roots." The reader may probably have his doubts satisfied 
 under the word Broad, hereafter. 
 ABROAD, adv. (compounded of a and broad. See Broad.) J. 
 
 It was hardly worth while to follow Johnson's directions, for there is nothing to 
 be found under Broad, in his Dictionary, except Bjiato, Saxon. 
 In Chaucer and Douglas, for Abroad, we find On brede. (T.)
 
 38 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 ACROSS, adv. (from a for at, and cross.) J. It is On cross. (T.) 
 
 ADAYS, (not in J.) is in Gower written, On daies, and in Douglas, On dayis. (T.) 
 
 AFIRE, (not in J.) is in Douglas written, In fyre. (T.) 
 
 AFOOT, adv. (from a and foot.) J. In Chaucer it is On fote ; in Douglas, On fute. (T.) 
 
 ALIVE, adj. (from a and live.^ J. In Gower it is On live ; in Chaucer, On lyve; in 
 
 Douglas, On life ; and means merely. In life. (T.) 
 AMID, }prep. (from a and mid, or midst.) J. These words, which are written by 
 AMIDST, J Chaucer and others, Amiddes, are merely the Anglo-Saxon On mibber, 
 
 in mediis. (T.) 
 ANEW, adv. (from a and new.) J. In Douglas it is Of new. (T.) 
 ANIGHTS, adv. (from a for af, and nights.) J. In Gower, On night, On nightes ; 
 
 in Chaucer, A nyght. On nyght. (T.) 
 ANON. 
 
 Johnson copies without preference from Junius, Skinner, and Minshew. Junius 
 was right in Tooke's opinion. — Anon means In one: (subauditur instant, moment, 
 minute.) Gower and Chaucer frequently write In one: and Douglas, without any 
 corruption, purely On Ane. It is from On "Rn. (T.) 
 AROW, adj. (from a and roie.) J. — In Douglas it is On raw. (T.) 
 ASIDE, adv. (from a and side.) J. — In Douglas it is On syde. (T.) 
 ASLEEP, adv. (from a and sleep.) J. — In Chaucer and Douglas it is On slepe ; in 
 
 Fabian, In slepe. (T.) 
 ASTRIDE, adv. (from a and stride.) J. It is merely. On stride. (T.) 
 ATWO, > (neither in J.) On twa. On thry. In two. In three. In Gower we find 
 ATHREE, S Atwynne ; Atwo : in Chaucer, Atwo, Athre. (T.) 
 
 I have deviated a little from the alphabetical arrangement, to place these words 
 in regular succession before the reader, that he may at the very outset have an 
 opportunity of observing the absurdity of Johnson's rule to carry his researches to 
 no remoter period than the reign of Elizabeth ; a rule which he first announced in 
 the plan, and which plan has been adopted by Mr. Todd. Johnson's inconsistency 
 with himself must not pass unnoticed : a (with him) is sometimes for af, and 
 sometimes a undisguised. 
 ABJECT, adj. (abjectus, Lat. thrown away, as of no value.) 
 
 Such is Johnson's etymology ; and then, as if ashamed of such accidental cor- 
 rectness, he gives as the primary meaning of the word, " Mean, worthless," t&c. ab- 
 surdly reversing the truth of his own etymology ; but this is one of the constant 
 blunders of the Dictionary.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 39 
 
 We have already seen in the Analysis that, in Tooke's opinion, our English 
 word Able is derived from the Gothic ; that the Latins derived their ter- 
 minations in Bills from the same source ; that from them we have imme- 
 diately our own terminations able and ible, and the contraction in He ; and 
 that to adjectives with this termination he applies the name of the po- 
 tential passive adjective. We have also seen in what manner (by the corruption 
 oi full) we have obtained those adjectives in ble, which we use actively: the 
 origin and force of the terminations ive and ic, and the appropriation of the 
 name, — the potential active adjective, — to those adjectives, which we have 
 adopted with those latter terminations, have also sufficiently, though concisely, 
 been explained. Full is free from any difficulty. Tooke is not original, nor does 
 he pretend that he is, in deriving Able from "Rbal, Robur. Junius (Johnson's great 
 authority) anticipates him, and declares that the English do not owe their word 
 Able to the Romans: but Johnson in opposition to this, and alarmed, as it should 
 seem, at the northern scenery, which is thus opened to him, turns his view to 
 Italy for Habilis, and to France for Habile. He takes not the slightest notice of 
 the etymology of Junius. 
 
 Other stores of information were accessible to him, which he equally disre- 
 garded. Scahger distinctly points out to him the force of the two termination* 
 His, and ivus: " Duas habuere apud Latinos, totidem apud Graecos terminationes: 
 In ivus, activam, in His passivam. Sic Grseci aurSrjWv, quod sensu praeditum est : 
 ttio-Snlev, quod sensu percipi potest." De Causis, lib. iv. c. 98. Yet Johnson pre- 
 serves no consistent mode of explanation according to the termination ; he did not 
 know, or he did not heed, that one ought to be preserved. 
 
 Defensi'6^e and Beiensive he distinguishes tolerably in his explanation ; but 
 offers defendens as the etymology of defensive. With Y'\sible and Y\sive he makes 
 sad work ; Visiye (which occurs repeatedly in Berkeley in its proper signification, 
 viz. Which can-see,) he explains " Formed in the act of seeing ;" and as if his 
 " Defensive" had, in his own estimation, a poor chance of adoption, he tries ano- 
 ther for Visive, i. e. Visus. Both CondMcible and Conducive he interprets ac- 
 tively. And all this appears to pass without creating the least suspicion of any 
 thing wrong or inconsistent ; and yet the words which have been adjectived by the 
 addition of both terminations, as in the instances already given, are numerous, and 
 might have roused the attention of the most sluggish. But Johnson knew that 
 deliberation and inquiry would occupy time, and of this he had none to spare. 
 
 The difficulties which our old translators felt in rendering the Latin verbals in 
 bilis, are worthy of remark. They could not translate them without a periphra- 
 sis ; and when they began to take a few of the words as they found them, they
 
 40 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 thought it necessary to explain them. From a MS. New Testament la 
 Tooke's possession, and which he supposes to have been written about the time of 
 Edward III., he produces the following examples of such words with the expla- 
 nation, which accompanies them : 
 
 Unenarrable, or that may not be told ; occurs twice. 
 
 Amyable, or able to be lovyd. 
 
 Insolible, or that may not be undon. 
 
 SWADIBLE, or esi for to trete, and to be tretid. 
 
 Upon comparing the translation of Wiclif with the passages in which the above 
 words and their attendant explanations are to be found, it appears that Wiclif has 
 not ventured to adopt the words, but uses merely the circumlocutions. And yet 
 if Tooke's conjecture as to the age of the translator of his MS. be right, Wiclif 
 must have been his cotemporary. Facts of this nature are important in the his- 
 tory of a particular language ; but where shall we find them in the work of 
 Johnson? 
 ABODE, Johnson derives from abide, and according to Tooke it is the past participle 
 of that verb, and means " Where any one has abided." 
 
 Neither Skinner, nor Junius, nor Johnson, nor indeed any other English gram- 
 marian, or lexicographer, had any idea that the past participle in our own lan- 
 guage was an abundant source of general terms ; the discovery was Tooke's ; and 
 it becomes necessary to remark that we shall find Junius and Skinner in many in- 
 stances (particularly Skinner) referring to the same Anglo-Saxon or old English 
 verb, which Tooke has also fixed upon as the parent of some English noun ; but 
 the difiference is this : Skinner refers generally to the verb, not unfrequently with 
 a mere Mallem deflecti, and knows neither in what manner, nor from what part, 
 of the verb, such noun is immediately obtained ; Tooke establishes -the past 
 participle to be the part of the verb, and explains the general manner of the adop- 
 tion. 
 ACCESS. 
 
 The application of this word to the approaches of disease, seems to Johnson to 
 be scarcely admitted into the language. He only finds it so used in Hudibras, 
 Junius has pointed out to him an instance in Chancer: and Skinner, himself a phy- 
 sician, explains it: Paroxysmus seu Morbi Accessio. 
 
 For upon him he had an bote accesse. 
 
 That day by day him shook full pitouslj-. Bl. Kn. Com. 136. 
 
 ACCIDENT. 
 
 Johnson adopts the definition of the logician for bis first meaning ; just as he
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 41 
 
 describes " Bit," like a bridle-maker, and " Lock," like a locksmith : without a 
 glance at the intrinsick signification. 
 
 ADDLE, "^ Addle, adj. (from Stoel, a disease, Sax. according to Skinner and Junius : 
 
 AIL, f perhaps from Ybel, idle, barren, unfruitful.) 
 
 IDLE, TTo Ail, V. a. (Gjlan, Sax. to be troublesome.) 
 
 ILL, 3 Idle, adj. (from Ytoel, Sax.) 
 
 Ill, adj. (contracted from Evil, and retaining all its senses.) So far J . 
 Though (T.) Mer. Casaubon and Junius would send us for Ail to a>jjt\.v raaerore, 
 afflci, or to a^y£lv, dolere; and for Idle to u^^o;, nugae; and for III to the Greek, 
 iWiOf, strabo ; or even to the Hebrew ; I am persuaded that these are ouly one 
 word, differently pronounced and written ; and that it is the past participle of the 
 Anglo-Saxon verb J^iblian, aegrotare, exinanire, irritum facere, corrumpere. 
 Addle becomes Ail, as Idle becomes III by sliding over the d in pronunciation. — - 
 Skinner would have conducted Johnson to this same verb for both Addle and 
 Ail. 
 
 ADRIFT. 
 
 We must expect no more from Johnson than a and drift ; without one word as 
 to the manner of formation even of Drift. Adrift (T.) is the past participle, 
 Adrifed, Adrif'd, Adrift, of the Anglo-Saxon verb, Dpif an, Hb;uj:an, to drive. 
 
 ADVENTURE ; adventura, supple fortuna vel bora, says Skinner. Johnson pro- 
 nounces it to be French. This Tooke calls the future tense adjective, as we have 
 already seen in the Analysis. 
 
 AFFABLE ; " Obvius affari volentibus." Junius. " Easy of manners," saith Johnson, 
 deserting his guide, when guiding him aright. 
 
 AFFIX ; affix-um (subaud. aliquid). Johnson insists that it means something united 
 to the end of a word. 
 
 AFTER, prep. (Sprep, Sax.) Of the existence of such a word as Aft, Johnson appears 
 utterly ignorant ; yet he might have found it in Skinner, though with the limitation 
 of " vox nautica." 
 
 After (T.) is used as a noun adjective in Anglo-Saxon, in English, and in most 
 of the northern languages. I suppose it to be no other than the comparative of 
 the noun Aft, (Anglo-Saxon, S'pc), for the retention of which latter noun in our 
 language we are probably obliged to our seamen. Hind, Aft, and Back, have all 
 originally the same meaning. 
 
 AGHAST, > Johnson is in doubt, whether it be the participle oi Agaze, or from a and 
 
 AGAST. 3 Gast, a Ghost. He first thinks Aghast is not improbably the true word, and 
 then he thinks that perhaps they were originally two words ; he also thinks that 
 the orthography Aghast favours the derivation (which is Skinner's) from a and 
 
 G
 
 42 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Gasf. ; and then that this orthography, favouring this etymology, took its rise from-, 
 a mistaken etymology. The word, however, is not without difficulty. 
 
 There is (T.) the Gothic verb Agjan, timere ; and the past participle Agids, 
 territus ; and it is not without an appearance of probability, that as Whiles, 
 Amonges, &c. have become with us Whilst^ Amongst, &c. ; so Agids might become 
 Agidst, Agist, Agast ; or Agids might become Agisd, Agist, Agast. And the 
 last seems to me the most probable etymology. 
 AGUE, Johnson and his two authorities. Skinner and Junius, say from Aigu, acutus. 
 Tooke thinks the long-sought etymology of this word is the Gothic aowa Agis, fear, 
 trembling. 
 ALE, n. s. (Gale, Sax.) a liquor made by infusing malt in hot water, and then fer- 
 menting the liquor. 
 
 Such are Johnson's etymology and Johnson's explanation of the radical meaning 
 of the word. 
 
 " Non absurdi potest deduci ab ^lan, accendere, inflammare, quia sc. ubi geue- 
 rosior est, qualis majoribus nostris in usu fuit, spiritus et sanguinem copioso sem- 
 per, saepe nimio calore profundit." Skinner says this with no advantage to John- 
 sou: Skinner does here tell him the meaning of the word, and the reason of the 
 application, though not how the word was derived. 
 
 Ale (T.) was in Anglo-Saxon, Sloth, i. e. Quod accendit, inflammat. The third 
 person singular of the indicative of yElan. — The discriminatiug termination th of 
 this third person being lost, as in many other words. 
 
 ALERT, adj. (alerte, Fr. perhaps from alacris, but probably from a Vart, according 
 to art or rule.) 
 
 Johnson then explains it in a common sense to mean, " brisk, pert, petulant-, 
 smart :" which are not usually applied to things that are " according to art or 
 rule." The writer of the article " Grammar" in Rees' Cyclopaedia, tries his 
 hand : " We presume, that Alert is all-ert, or all-art ; that is, all active." 
 
 Alert (T.) (as well as Erect) is the past participle of Erigere, now Ergere ; AW 
 erecta, AW ercta, Air erta. 
 
 AW ercta (by a transposition of the aspirate) became the French A I'herte, as it 
 was formerly written ; and by a total suppression of the aspirate, the modern 
 French Alerte. — 
 ALGATES, adv. (from all and gate. Skinner. Gate is the same as via, and still used 
 for way, in the Scottish dialect.) On any terms ; every way. Obsolete. 
 
 Algate (T.) and Algates I suppose to mean no other than All-get. To Get is- 
 sometimes spelled by Chaucer, Geate.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 43 
 
 ALOFT, adv. [loffter, to lift up, Dan; Loft, air, Icelandish: so ttiat aloft is, into the 
 air.) 
 
 Lofter, Johnson takes from Skinner ; and Loft, from Lye. 
 
 Aloft (T.) On Loft, On Luft, On Lyft, i. e. In the Luft or Li^ft ; or (the super- 
 fluous article omitted, as was the antient custom in our language, the Anglo- 
 Saxon,) In Lyft, in Luft, in Loft. 
 
 In Anglo-Saxon, Lypc is the Air or the Clouds. lu Danish and in Swedish, Luft 
 is air. From the same root are our other words. Loft, Lofty, To Luff, Lee, Lee- 
 ward, To Lift, &c. — 
 
 This root, it afterwards appears, is the Anglo-Saxon verb plipian, to raise ; but 
 of this verb no traces appear in Skinner and Junius, and of course none in Johnson. 
 Mer. Casaubon (whom even Johnson calls a dreamer,) and our Cyclopsedist (par 
 nobile) derive Loft and Aloft from ^opl5J, a hill. 
 ALONG, ^ Along, adv. (au tongue. Ft.) 1. At length, &c. 
 
 LONG, > Long, adv. (Erelanj, a fault. Sax.) By the fault, by the failure. — 
 
 TO LONG, 3 The etymology is Skinner's ; but there is no such word as Gelanj, a fault. 
 Fault or not fault depends upon the other words in the sentence. 
 To LONG, V. n. {Cielanger, German, to ask, Skinner.) To desire earnestly ; to wish 
 w^ith eagerness continued. 
 
 Though Johnson gives Skinner's authority for this etymology, it must be noticed 
 that Skinner first mentions the Anglo-Saxon verb Lienjian. Along, Junius and 
 Lye derive from T^nb-lanj, which Lye asserts " esse compositum ex prepositione 
 Snte, quse est plane Goth : Snb, per, ac lanj, longum." 
 
 Along (T.) On long, secundum longitudinem, or On length. — But there was 
 another use of this word formerly. " It was long of yourself." 
 
 The Anglo-Saxons used two words for these two purposes : Tfnblanj, Hnb 
 lonj, Ontolonj, for the first ; and Delanj for the second : and our most ancient 
 'writers observe the same distinction, using Endlong for the one, and Alontr for the 
 other. Tiinblanj or Endlong is manifestly On long ; but what (continues Tooke) 
 is Erelauj or Along ? His answer must be given entire. 
 
 " When we consider that we have, and can have, no way of expressing the acts 
 or operations of the mind, but by the same words by which we express some cor- 
 responding (or supposed corresponding) act or operation of the body: when, 
 amongst a multitude of similar instances, we consider that we express a moderate 
 desire for any thing, by saying that we incline (i. e. bend ourselvesj to it ; will it 
 surprize us, that we should express an eager desire by saying that we long, i. e. 
 Make long, lengthen, or stretch out ourselves after it, ox for it ? especially when 
 we observe that after the verb To incline, we say to or towards it; but after th? 
 
 G 2
 
 44 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 verb To long, we must use either the word J'ot or after, in order to convey our 
 meaning. 
 
 Lenjian in the Anglo-Saxon is To long, i. e. To make long. To lengthen, To 
 stretch out. To produce, extendere, protendere. 
 Lanj or Long is the preterperfect of Lenjian. 
 
 " The prepositions Ere, Be, and "R, are frequently interchanged (says Hickes). 
 May we not therefore conclude, that Erelanj, or Along, is the past participle of 
 Lenjian, andi me&ns produced ?" 
 ALMS, is derived by Johnson immediately from the Latin eleemosyna : Skinner and 
 Junius do inform us that it is Greek. We may obtain something more from Tooke. 
 " With the Christian religion were very early introduced to our ancestors the 
 Greek words, Church, Parish, People, Alms, which they corrupted and used as 
 substantives a long time before they wanted them in an adjf ciived state. When 
 the latter time arrived, they were incapable of adjectiving these words themselves, 
 and were therefore forced to seek them in the original language. Hence the adjec- 
 tives are not so corrupt as the substantives. And hence the strange appearance of 
 Eleemosynary, a word of seven syllables, as the adjective of the monosyllable 
 Alms ; which itself became such by successive corruptions of 'S.hfnid.oa-uvn, long 
 before its adjective was required; having successively exhibited itself as Almosine, 
 Almosie, Almose, Almes, and finally Alms; whilst in the French language it 
 appeared as Almosine, Almosne, Aumosne, Auin6ne" 
 AMONG, ~\ Skinner and Junius led Johnson to the Anglo-Saxon Hmanj and Demanj. 
 AMONGST,>- Skiuner goes farther: he tells him that Demanj is from Lemengan, 
 YMELL, 3 miscere, and that Gemenceb \i mixtus ; and Junius, that J^manj is 
 from Msengan, miscere; and both agree that the verb. To mingle, had the same 
 origin : and yet when Johnson arrives at this verb, it is given without any ety- 
 mology. 
 
 Emonge, (T.) Amonge, Amonges, Amongest, Amongst, Among, is the past part. 
 E-emsencjeb, Iremencjeb, of the Anglo-Saxon verb Ijemenc^an, and. the Go- 
 thic verb, Gemainyan, Or rather the pret. per. Demanj, Eremonj, Eremunj or 
 Amang, Among, Amung (oi the same verb meenjan, menjan,) used as a parti- 
 ciple, without the participial termination ot», ab, oreb: and it means purely and 
 singly Mixed, Mingled. 
 
 Chaucer uses the prep. Ymell instead of among; and it means Y-medled, 
 i. e. mixed, mingled. A medley is still our common word for Mixture, — 
 " Medley, n.s. (from meddle for mingle,)" says Johnson. 
 AN, the conjunction (T.) is the imperative of the Anglo-Saxon verb, Snan, to grant, 
 and means, Grant or Give.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 45 
 
 Junius and Skinner are silent upon this word, and Johnson says that it is some- 
 times a contraction of And if; sometimes of And before if; and sometimes of As 
 if; though (as Tooke has observed) under the word And, Johnson admits in the 
 expression And, if, the And to be redundant. Mr. Steevens (Shak. 1813,Vol. IV. 349) 
 says that An means As if; and Mr. Reed affirms that An if Avas a common 
 phraseology in Shakspeare's time, and this we are told again, and the same autho- 
 rity is quoted again, and by such repetitions (among other arts) is an edition of 
 Shakspeare eked out to one and twenty volumes: and yet not a niche could be 
 found for an atom of common sense from Home Tooke. 
 AROYNT, adv. (of uncertain etymology, but very common use.) Be gone; away! 
 a word of expulsion, or avoiding. 
 
 TO ROYNE, v.a. {Rogner, French,) to gnaw, to bite. 
 
 ROYNISH, adj. {Rogneux, French, mangy, paltry,') Paltry, sorry, mean, rude. 
 
 RONION, n. 8. (^Rognon, Ft. the loins. I know not certainly, " (i. e. not at all,)" the 
 meaning of this word.) A fat bulky woman. — Thus far Johnson in his Dictionary. 
 
 But we must hear him further as a commentator upon Shakspeare ; and one or 
 two of his colleagues must not be refused a moment's attention. 
 
 " Aroynt thee, witch, the rumpe-fed Ronyon cries." Macbeth, fo. 1-32. 
 
 " My lord, the Roynish clown, at whom so oft your grace was wont to laugh, is also missing." 
 
 As you like it, fo. 190. 
 " And Aroynt thee, witch ; Aroynt thee, witch." Lear, fo. 298, 
 
 In a note upon Macbeth, (Reed's Shak. 1813, Vol. X. p. 29,) Pope says, 
 " Aroint or avaunt, begone." 
 
 Johnson follows, and he confesses that be first thought Anoint to be the proper 
 reading; which, he seems to have convinced himself, by his own peculiar logick, 
 signified " Away, witch, to thy infernal assembly." By chance, it should seem, 
 however, he peeped one day into Hearne's Collections, and there he espied, or 
 fancied that he espied, a drawing, representing good St. Patrick on a visit in hell; — 
 and not a very peaceable one; for he was confounding the very devils, and driving 
 the miserable damned before him with a prong, and vociferating, (as appears per 
 label) " Out, Out, Arongt:" and hereupon Johnson declared for Aroynt; being 
 satisfied that the witch and St. Patrick must have one and the same meaning, 
 whatever they meant. 
 
 Mr. Steevens succeeds; and he makes it manifest that the Doctor is all in the 
 wrong ; that he, whom Johnson imagined to be the tutelary Saint of Ireland, is no 
 other than Satan himself in propria persona ; and that as to the Prong, it was — 
 he knew not what : Ecce signum, he exclaims ; and further he maintains that there
 
 46 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 was not a condemned soul in the whole company. But Mr. Steeven?, nevertheless, 
 leaves us, as Johnson had done before him, in utter ignorance of the meaning of 
 the word, which is the subject of the note. 
 
 Ronyon, in the same passage, Steevens explains, " A scabby or mangy woman. 
 Fr. Rogneux, Royne, scurf." Roynish, in As you like it, he derives and explains 
 in a similar manner. 
 
 And, lastly, Mr. Malone, in a note upon Lear, assures us, that " Aroint thee 
 (Dii te averruncent) has already been explained;" and he refers to the notes upon 
 Macbeth, in which not one word of explanation is to be found. Tooke then must 
 supply, — and he will do it easily, — what these pretenders could not. 
 
 " A raynous (\. e. roynous, from Roriger, Rogner, whence also Aroynf,) Scall, is 
 a separation or disconuity of the skin or flesh by a gnawing, eating forward, 
 malady." 
 
 Mr. Steevens found this word Jroynt, without the A prefixed, in a northern 
 proverb; " (^Rynt thee. Witch, quoth Bessy Locket to her mother:)" and 
 yet he never suspected it to have the same origin as Royne, which the north 
 country people would now call Ryne, as they pronounce Oil, He, and Anoint, 
 Nynt. 
 
 Ronton, (which, according to Johnson, means etymologically the Loins, but 
 poetically, I presume, A fat, bulky woman) is applied to one who has, or who is 
 suspected or accused of having, some gnawing, eating forward , malady ; and (to 
 continue in the style of Mr. Malone) is employed by Shakspeare, with his usual 
 propriety, as a retort by the Witch upon the Sailor's wife, who had imprecated 
 upon her (the Witch) a visitation of the same gnawing malady, wherewith she 
 (the Sailor's wife) was then or ought, for her ungracious refusal of a few chesnuts, 
 to be immediately visited. 
 
 AS. 
 
 Johnson adopts Skinner's Als, Teutonick, and gives, as he imagines, twenty-five 
 different meanings of the word. Junius derives it from the Greek a;, and in this 
 he is followed by our Cyclopeedist, who sagaciously adds, that wj inverted is so. 
 
 Mr. Tyrwhitt says, that " our As is the same with Als, Teutonick and Saxon. 
 It is only a further corruption of Also." 
 
 " As (according to Tooke) is an article, and means the same as It, or That, or 
 Which. In the German, where it still evidently retains its original signification and 
 use, (as So also does) it is written Es. It does not come from Als; any more than 
 Though, and Be it, and If (or Gif) come from Although, and Albeit, and Algif, 
 &c. For Als, in our old English, is a contraction of al, and es, or as. And this 
 Al (which in comparison used to be very properly employed before the first es or
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 47 
 
 ^s, but was not employed before the second) we now, in modern English, sup- 
 press: As we have also done in numerous other instances; where All (though not 
 improper) is not necessary." And this he supports by an example from Gower. 
 
 I will subjoin a similar resolution of a passage in the First Part of King Henry 
 the Fourth (fo. 65) which is quoted by Johnson ; and I invite the reader to try 
 his own ingenuity upon the rest of Johnson's examples. 
 
 Fat. " Why, Hal ? thou know'st, as thou art but a man, I dare : but, as thou 
 art a prince, I feare thee, as I feare the roaring of the lyons whelpe." 
 
 In the last case Shakspeare might without impropriety have used Als. — The re- 
 solution will be thus : 
 
 " Why, Hal? thou knowest (because) that thou art but a man, I dare ; but (i.e. 
 boot, add,) that thou art a prince ; I fear thee (in) that (degree, or with all that 
 fear, wherewith) I fear the roaring of the lion's whelp." 
 
 In vulgar speech as is constantly used for that : " I cannot say as I did," &c, 
 for that I did, &c. 
 
 In Lord Bacon's Apophthegms, (No. 109, 120, 213,) similar instances of the 
 use of as occur. 
 
 ASKANT, J Johnson offers no etymology. Probably (says Tooke) they are the par- 
 ASKANCE. 5^ ticiples Aschuined, Aschuins. In Dutch, Schuin, wry, oblique. Schui- 
 
 nen, to cut away. Schiiins, sloping, wry, not straight. — 
 
 In Anglo-Saxon the verb Scunian, Hj-cunian, to shun, vitare, seems to present 
 
 an etymology nearer home. 
 ASKEW, adv. (from a skew.') Should any one be desirous to know what this word 
 
 Skew means, he may look, but he will not find. In Gower it is written, Askie. In 
 
 (T.) the Danish Skiecev, is wry, crooked, oblique. SkicBver, to twist, to wrest. 
 
 SkicBvt, twisted, wrested. 
 
 ASTRAY, adv. (from a and stray.) In Gower it is written, Astrayde, Astraied, Astraie. 
 Astray (T.) is the past participle J^j-cjisejeb of the Anglo-Saxon verb, Srjiffigan, 
 Spargere, dispergere, to stray, to scatter. S. Johnson says. To stray, is from the 
 Italian Straviare, from the Latin Extra Viam. But Strawan, Streawian, Streo- 
 wian, Strewian, Stregian, Straegian ; and Straw, Streow, Streoh, Strea, Stre, were 
 used in our own mother tongues, the Gothic and Anglo-Saxon, long before the 
 existence of the word Straviare; and the beginning of the corrupted dialect of the 
 Latin called Italian, and even of the corrupted dialect of the Greek called Latin. 
 And as the words to sunder and asunder proceed from sond, i. e. sand ; so do the 
 words to stray, to straw, to strow, to strew, to straggle, to stroll, and the well-named 
 straw-berry, (i. e. slraw'd-berry, stray-berry,) all proceed from straw, or as oun
 
 48 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 peasantry still pronounce it, strah. And astray or astray'd means strawed, that 
 is, scattered and dispersed as the straw is about the fields." 
 
 Sir Joseph Banks, who has the character of being an excellent gardener, has 
 resorted to etymology in vindication of a favourite mode of cultivating the straw- 
 berry. It is his practice to lay straw under the leaves of the plants, when the 
 fruit begins to swell : ergo, our ancestors did the same ; and not having- a name 
 for the plant, till they had discovered the best means of improving the fruit, they 
 gave a name from this horticultural experiment. Johusou says, 
 
 " Strawberry, n. s. {fragaria, Lat.) a plant. Strawberry Tree, -n. s. {ar- 
 butus, Lat.)" I will not undertake to say that he did not mean these for etymolo- 
 gies, yet Skinner says, " Baccae stramineee, fort, quia prope humum crescunt, (/. e.) 
 instar straminis humi insternuntur." 
 
 We must now exhibit a few of Johnson's exertions when he felt a difficulty and 
 laboured to remove it. 
 
 " To Strew, v. a. The orthography of this word is doubtful. It is sometimes 
 written strew, and sometimes strow : I have taken both. Skinner proposes straw, 
 and Junius writes straw ; their reasons will appear in the word from which it may 
 be derived. Strawan, Gothic ; Stroyen, Dutch ; SrpeaJ'ian, Saxon ; Straweii, 
 German ; Stroen, Danish. Perhaps strow is best, being that which reconciles 
 etymology with pronunciation." 
 
 It is strange, but no less true, that Skinner does not propose strow, but very 
 properly gives, " To strew, or strow," and leaves it quite a matter of indifference 
 in which manner the word is written, 
 
 " To Struggle, v. a. (Of this word no etymology is known ; it is probably a 
 frequentative of stray, from stravviare, Italian, of extra viam, Latin.)—; 
 
 " Vel. q. d. to straggle, a verbo to stray." Skinner. 
 
 Stroll is not found in Skinner or Junius, and no etymology is attempted by 
 Johnson. 
 ASUNDER, (T.) is the past participle Tfj-untopen, or J^j-untopeb, separated (as the 
 particles of sa/w/ are]of the verb Sonbpiau, Sunbpiau, Synbpian, Sj-unbpisin, «&c. to 
 separate. This word, in all its varieties, is to be found in all the northern lan- 
 guages ; and is originally from Anglo-Saxon Sonte ; i.e. Sand. — 
 
 With s\ich an etymology it would be no difficult matter to give a consistent ex- 
 planation of the different words from the same source. 
 
 Junius and Skinner guide Johnson to the proper Anglo-Saxon verb for Asunder : 
 ihey both, however, had an idea that Sand had some affinity with the Greek 
 taixiAos; but neither of them imagined that Sarid was the origin of Sunder, 
 Asunder.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 49 
 
 " To Sunder, v. a. (Synbpian, Saxon,) to part, to separate, to divide. 
 
 " Sunder, n. s. (Suntoeji, Sax.) two ; two parts. 
 
 *' Sundry, adj. (Sunbeji, Sax.) Several, more than one." 
 
 If to Sunder, means " to separate," generally ; and Sundry, " more than one ;" 
 
 without limit ; how comes it that Sunder, the noun, means " two, two parts," 
 
 and no more ? 
 
 ASWOON, is neither in Johnson nor his two authorities. It is, according to Tooke, 
 
 " the past participle S/uanti, Sj-uonb, of the verb Suanian, Sj-Jiuuan, deficere 
 
 animo." 
 
 In Chaucer it is written Aswoune. Skinner, and after him Johnson, agree in 
 taking the verb to swoon from this Anglo-Saxon verb. 
 
 " Swoon, (T.) — This word was formerly written Swough, Swowe, Swowne, 
 Aswowne, Swond, Sowne, and Sownd. — Swoon, &c. is the past participle of 
 Sj^ijan, stupere ; whose regular past tense is Swog, or Swoug, written by Chaucer, 
 Swough and Swowe : adding to which the participial termination en, we have 
 Swowen, Swowne ; and with the customary prefix A ; Aswowne.'" 
 
 Skinner says, " Swoon, ab. Anglo-Saxon Sj-punan, animo deficere, T^j-uanian, 
 J^j-Jianian, Languere, Sj-uanb, Languidus, Enervatus." 
 
 Does Mr. Tooke mean that Sjaniau and SJnjan are the same words? 
 
 ATHWART, jnep. (from a and thwart.') Thwart, adj. (DJ^yji, Sax. Dwars, Dutch.) 
 Athwart, adv. k tort. 
 
 Athwart, (T.) i. e. Athweort, or Athweoried, wrested, twisted, curved, is the 
 past participle of Dpeojxian, to wrest, to twist; flexuosum, sinuosum, curvuin 
 reddere. 
 
 ATWIST, (which is omitted by Johnson) " is the past participle Erec|)ij-eb, St])ij-eb, 
 Ktyiy't), of the verb T)ypu, TJjij-an, Trec^yj-an, torquere." 
 
 Skinner, Lye, and Johnson, agree to derive Twist from this Tie-jiyj-an ; but 
 our Cyclopeedist is not swayed by their union : he asserts that it is from Tortus or 
 Tostus. 
 
 Twist (T.) is Twiced, Twic'd, Twist. 
 AVAST, (from basta, Italian,) it is enough : says Johnson, deserting Skinner, who 
 takes it from the Latin prep, ab ; and the Belgic Heesten, festinare. 
 
 (T.) Like the Italian Avacci, I think, it means — Be attentive. Be on the watch; 
 i. e. Awake. 
 
 AUGHT, pron. (Suhr, Spht, Saxon. It is sometimes improperly written Ought.) 
 Any thing. 
 
 Aught or Ought, (T.)(the Anglo-Saxon ppir, a whit, or o whit.—'i^. B. O was for- 
 
 H
 
 50 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 merly written for the article. A ; or for the numeral One. So, Naught or Nought ; 
 Na whit or No whit. 
 To AWARD, V. a. (derived by Skinner, somewhat improbably, from UJeajifc, Saxon, 
 Toward.) To adjudge ; to give any thing by a judicial sentence. 
 
 Johnson ought to have noticed, that Skinner also informs us of Spelraan's deri- 
 vation from the Anglo-Norman Agard, Fr. Gcirder. 
 
 I suppose (T,) Award to be a garder, i. e. a determination a qui c'est d, garder, 
 the thing in dispute ; i. e. to keep it. 
 AY, adv. (perhaps from aio, Lat.) Yes ; an adverb of answering affirmatively. 
 Oyes, (Oyez, hear ye, Fr.) Yes, adv. (^i]"e) Saxon. — 
 
 In the two latter etymologies Skinner leads the way. Junius says that yes 
 seems to be contracted from yea Is. 
 
 " Our Aye, or Yea (says Tooke) is the imperative of a verb of northern extrac- 
 tion, and means, have it, possess it, enjoy it. And yes, is Ay-es, have, possess, 
 or enjoy that. More immediately, perhaps, they are the French singular and 
 plural imperative Aye and Ayez ; as our corrupted O yes of the cryer, is no other 
 than the French imperative Oyez; hear, listen." 
 
 B. 
 
 BACON; Johnson, judiciously, in this instance, forsaking both Skinner and Junius, 
 shrewdly guesses, that Bacon is probably from Baken ; — that is, dried flesh. 
 
 Tooke says, that it is the past participle of Bacan, to bake, or to dry by heat. 
 
 BAR. (T.) Our English verb to Bar is the Gothic and Anglo-Saxon verb BUipjan, 
 Beopjan, Bij^jan, Bypjan ; which means to defend, to keep safe, to protect, to 
 arm, to guard, to secure, to fortify, to strengthen. And the past participle of this 
 verb has furnished our language with the following supposed substantives : 
 
 1. A Bar, (T.) which in all its uses is a defence; that by which any thing is 
 fortified, strengthened, or defended. 
 
 Bar, n. s. (barre, Fr.) 1. A piece of wood, iron, or other matter, laid across a 
 passage to hinder entrance. 
 
 This is Johnson's primitive signification ; his next explanation is equally descrip- 
 tive. In his third and fifth he does aim at some general meaning. 
 
 2. A Barn (T.) Bar-en, Bar'n, is a covered enclosure, in which the grain, &c. 
 is protected or defended from the weather, from depredation, &c. 
 
 Barn, n. s. (Bepne, Sax.) a place or house for laying up any sort of grain, bay, 
 or straw.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 51 
 
 Bern; fortftsse (says Skinner) Ab Anglo-Saxon Bepe, j7oj\beuin, and Spne, 
 locus, q. d. pojibeajiium : and Junius thinks this — Luce clarius. 
 
 3. A Baron (T.) is an armed, defenceful, or powerful man. 
 
 Baron, according to Johnson, is of very uncertain etymology, and he collects 
 much trash from Skinner and Junius, which is not worth transcription. He points 
 out the particular applications of the word — to a degree of nobility, to the barons 
 of the Exchequer, of the Cinque Ports ; not forgetting a baron of beef. 
 
 4. A Barge, (T.) is a strong boat. 
 
 Barge, n. s. (bargie, Dutch, from barga. Low Latin.) 1 . A boat for pleasure. 
 2. A sea commander's boat. 3. A boat for burden. 
 
 5. A Bark (T.) is a stout vessel. 
 
 6. The Bark of a tree is its defence ; that by which the tree is defended from the 
 weather. 
 
 7. The Bark of a dog is that by which we are defended by that animal. 
 
 Bark, n. s. (barck, Dan.) 1. The rind or covering of a tree. 2. A small ship, 
 (from barca, Low Latin.) — 
 
 Either these are two words, or they are not. If they are two, they ought not 
 to be placed as interpretations of the same one word. If they are not two, they 
 cannot have two different etymologies. The bark of a dog (the noun) is not in 
 the Dictionary ; the verb is there, with a Saxon etymology. Skinner thinks, that 
 Bark, a vessel, may be so called from the Bark of a tree ; " quia sc. multee bar- 
 barae gentes ex corticibus arborum sibi cymbas parant." 
 
 8. A Bargain (T.) is a confirmed, strengthened agreement. After two persons have 
 agreed upon a subject, it is usual to conclude with asking— Is it a bargain ? Is it 
 confirmed ? 
 
 Mallem (says Skinner) ab It. Per, Pro, et verb. Gagtiare, pro Guadagnare, 
 Lucrari, qui enim licitatur, lucrum quaerit. 
 
 Johnson derives it from the Welsh bargen, and the French bargaigne, and ex- 
 plains it to mean merely a contract or agreement, (not confirmed, strengthened ;) 
 but adds, with his usual perversity, " concerning the sale of any thing," 
 
 9. A Barken, (T.) according to Skinner, Vox in comitatu Wilts usitatissLma, 
 Atrium, a yard of a house, vel a verbo To Barr, vel a Germ. Bergen, abscon- 
 dere : Anglo-Saxon, Beojijan, munire, q. d- locus clausus, respectu sc. agrorum. 
 
 This word is not in Johnson. 
 
 10. A Hauberk. Vossius, Wachter, and Caseneuve concur (says Tooke) in its ety- 
 mology ; viz. from Hals, coUum, et Bergen, munire. The French (he continues) 
 changing in their accustomed manner the I in Hals to u, made the word Hauberg ; 
 and the Italians, in their manner, made it Usbergo. 
 
 H 2
 
 52 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 This etymology Johnson might have found both iu Junius and Skinner ; but he 
 is content with the old French, Hauberg. 
 
 11. A Burgh, (T.) or Borough, meant formerly & fortified town. 
 
 12. A BoROWE, (T.) was formerly used for what we now call a security, any person 
 or thing by which repayment is secured, and by which the lender is defended or 
 guarded from the loss of his loan. 
 
 Borough, «. s. (Bophoe, Saxon.) 1. It signified anciently a surety, or a waw bound 
 for others. 2. A town with a corporation. 
 
 So says Johnson, and afterwards gives this same word differently spelt, viz. 
 Burrow, Berg, Burg, Burgh ; and then he finds a different etymology from the 
 Saxon Bujij, Byjij, a city, tower, or castle ; and properly informs us from 
 Cowell, " That all places, which in former days were called Boroughs, were such 
 as were fenced or fortified ;" yet is this quite useless to him iu his explanation of 
 the word. 
 
 13. A Burrow (T.) for rabbits, &c. is a defended or protected place; to which a 
 Warren is synonymous, meaning the same thing : for Warren is the past participle 
 of lUe)-ian, defendere, protegere, tueri. 
 
 This word Johnson places as the second meaning of Burrough, from Bupj. 
 Warren he derives from the Dutch Waerande, and the French Guerene, and calls 
 it " A kind of park for rabbits." It is true that both Skinner and Lye plainly 
 direct to the Anglo-Saxon verb ; but Johnson will not be directed. 
 
 14. Burial, (T.) Bypjel, is the diminutive of Bypij, or Burgh, a defended or for- 
 tified place. To bury, Byjijan, scpelire, means to defend. Sepelire has the 
 same meaning. 
 
 To Bury, v. a. (Bypijean, Saxon,) to inter, to put into the grave. 
 Burial, n. s. (from to bury.) 
 
 Johnson offers not a word in interpretation of his Saxon verb, though if he had 
 consulted Skinner with any care he might have been led to Beopgan, munire. 
 
 Barren, (T.) i.e. Barr-ed, stopped, shut, strongly closed up, which cannot be 
 opened, from which can be no fruit or issue. — When we apply this word either to 
 land or to females, we assert, the passage either from the womb or from the earth 
 to be Barr-en, or Barr-ed, from bearing any thing into the world or into. life. 
 
 Johnson adopts Skinner's bare, nudus, and says, that it is properly applied to 
 trees or ground unfruitful. But our CyclopEedist attains a pitch of absurdity 
 which must be recorded. Barron, in Arabick, is the earth, or that whjch pro- 
 duces all things ; and therefore means, that which will produce nothing : and bar- 
 ren meant primarily an animal having produced ; and therefore means, an animal
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 53 
 
 which never will produce. — It is very possible to understand Arabick, and to have 
 but a slender provision of common sense. 
 BATEFUL, adj. (from Bate and full) contentions. 
 And Bale, Johnson says, seems to have been once the preterite of Bile. 
 
 Though he arrives at this etymology, he does not learn from it the meaning of 
 the word. 
 
 Batful is a favourite word in Drayton, a writer not anterior to Johnson's limited 
 period of authority, and Tooke produces several instances of his use of it ; in all 
 which it is applied to the earth, or glebe, or turf, which are not usually actuated 
 by a very contentious spirit. 
 BEAD. Spherula precatoria, say Junius and Skinner ; and the latter adds, " parum 
 deflexo sensu ab Anglo-Saxon, Beabe, oratio, inde, Bibban, precari." Johnson 
 adopts this Beade, oratio. Instead, however, of Bibban, precari, being from 
 Beade, oratio, — 
 Bead, (T.) is the past participle of Bibbau, orare, to Bid, to invite, to solicit, to 
 request, to pray. — Bead (something prayed) is so called, because one was dropped 
 down a string every time a prayer was said, and thereby marked upon the string 
 the number of times prayed. 
 BED, i. e. Stratum, (T.) the past participle of Bebbian, sternere. Therefore we speak 
 of a garden bed, and a bed of gravel, &c. And in the Anglo-Saxon, Bebb is 
 sometimes used for a table. 
 
 Johnson gives as the primitive meaning, " Something made to sleep on ;" and 
 after five more particular applications, he does approach the real signification. 
 Junius and Skinner ramble strangely. 
 BELIKE, adv. (from like, as by likelihood.) 1. Probably, likely, perhaps. 2. It is 
 sometimes used in a sense of irony, as it may be supposed. 
 
 What sense of irony the words " it may be supposed" convey, must be found, 
 ; . if any where, in the rest of the sentence. 
 
 Belike. (T.) This word is perpetually employed by Sir Philip Sidney, Hooker, 
 Shakspeare, B. Jonson, Sir W. Raleigh, Bacon, Milton, &e. but is now only used 
 in low language instead of perhaps. In the Danish, Lykke, and in the Swedish, 
 Lycke, mean Luck, i. e. chance, hazard, hap, fortune, adventure. 
 BELOW, prep, (from be and loio.) Beneath, prep. (Beneo^, Saxon, beneden, 
 Dutch.) 
 This preposition is merely (says Tooke) the imperative Be, and the noun Low ; — 
 which, as well as Fore, Hind, Side, remain yet in common use. Beneath means 
 the same as Below. It is the imperative Be, compounded with the noun 
 Neath.
 
 54 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Neath, (T.) Neo^aa, NeoSe, (in the Dutch, Neden; in the German, Niedere; and 
 in the Swedish, Ncdre and Neder,') is undoubtedly as much a substantive, and has 
 the same meaning, as the word Nadir; which Skinner (and after him S.Johnson) 
 says we have from the Arabians. This etymology, as the word is applied only to 
 astronomy, I do not dispute ; but the word is much more ancient in the northern 
 languages, than the introduction of that science amongst them. And therefore it 
 w£is that the whole serpentine class was denominated Nadr in the Gothic, and 
 Nebpe in Anglo-Saxon. 
 
 Nether and Nethermost still exist in our language. 
 Nether, adj. (Neo^ep, Saxon ; neder, Dutch.) It has the form of a comparative, 
 but is never used in expressed, but only in implied comparison ; for we say the 
 nether part, but never say that this part is nether than that, nor is any positive in 
 use, though it seems comprized in the word Beneath. Nether is not now much 
 in use. 
 Nethermost, adj. (superlative of Nether,') lowest. 
 BENT. Johnson can find nine different meanings of this word ; but all his examples 
 furnish no more than the applications of it to material substances, viz. to a rod, to 
 a bow, the ground ; and then to human atfections or inclinations. His fourth ex- 
 planation is " Utmost power, as of a bent bow." And in support of this use of 
 the word when so applied to material things, he produces two instances from 
 Shakspeare of the application of it to the affections of men. 
 Bent, (T.) Bended, Bended, Bent, a person's bent or inclination. 
 BETWEEN,? Between, (T.) ^^ formerly written Twene, Atwene, Bytwene,') is a, dual 
 BETWIXT. > preposition, and is almost peculiar to ourselves. It is the Anglo- 
 Saxon imperative Be and cjrejen, or tr|ain. 
 Betwixt, (T.) (by Chaucer written Byiwyt,') is the imperative Be, the Gothic Twos, 
 or two; and was written in the Anglo-Saxon Bec]?eox, Bet]>ux, Berjjix, and 
 Becjjyxc. 
 
 For Between, Johnson is content with Betjjeonan, Bet))inan, Saxon, from the 
 original word c]ia ; though Skinner guides him to the correct etymology, and 
 both Skinner and Junius furnish him with the changes of Betwixt : but by his plan 
 he had saved himself the trouble of using such information. He was aware of the 
 duality peculiar to Between. 
 BEYOND, (T.) (in the Anglo-Saxon lUi^jeontoan, Bijeonb, Beji;eont),) means ie 
 passed. It is the imperative Be, compounded with the past participle Deonb, 
 Deonet), or Doneb, of the verb Dan, Eangan, or Uronjan, to go, to pass. So 
 that " Beyond any place," means — Be passed that place, or Be that place passed.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 55 
 
 Johnson says, that Beyond means Before ; and half a dozen other such explana- 
 tions may be found in his Dictionary. 
 
 Yonne, or Yonder, is classed by B. Jonson in his English Grammar among the 
 pronouns ; and it is constantly used as one to this day in the north of England. 
 BIRTH. Skinner refers Johnson to the verb to bear, parere ; but Johnson prefers his 
 Beoji^i, Saxon. It is, according to Tooke, the third person singular of the pre- 
 sent indicative of the verb to bear, from the Anglo-Saxon Beapan. 
 BIT, > Bit, n. s. (from bite.) 1. As much meat as is put into the mouth at once. 
 BAIT. > 2. A small piece of any thing. 
 Bait, n. s. (from the verb.) 
 
 Bait, u. a. (Batan, Saxon; bailzen, German.) 1. To put meat upon a hook, in 
 some place, to tempt fish or other animals. J. 
 
 The first meat which Johnson puts upon his hook is a saint, and the animal to 
 be tempted is another saint. 
 2. To give meat to one's self, or horses, on the road. 
 
 The only horses which Johnson could find to feed are those of the sun. 
 
 To Bait, v. n. to stop at any place for refreshment : perhaps this word is now pro- 
 perly bate, to abate speed. 
 Bit, Bait, (says Tooke,) whether used (like Morse, Morseau, Morsel,') for a small 
 piece, part, or portion, of any thing ; or for the part of a bridle (imboccatura) 
 put into a horse's mouth ; or for that hasty refreshment which man or beast takes 
 upon a journey ; or for that temptation which is offered by treachery to fish or 
 fool ; is but one word differently spelled, and is the past participle of the verb 
 to Bile. 
 
 Johnson derives To Bite, from Saxon, Biran, and Bait, from Bacan ; Junius says, 
 " Bait valde affinis Anglo-Saxon, Bican, mordere," 
 
 BLAZE, ^ A Blaze, (T.) or Blase, is the past tense of Anglo-Saxon Blsejan, flare. 
 
 BLAST. J By adding the participial termination ed,, we have Blaz'd, Blas'd, Blast. 
 
 Blast, the noun, Johnson derives from Bleej-c, Saxon ; Blasen, German, to blow: 
 and he indulges in a few nonsensicalities worth our notice. Blast means " I. A 
 gust or puff of wind. 2. A sound made by blowing any instrument of wind mu- 
 sick. 3. The stroke of a malignant planet ; the infection of any thing pestilential, 
 (from the verb, to blast.)" The reader may probably not be satisfied with this 
 etymology, and may wish to learn whence the verb to blast; and if he will cast 
 his eye down two lines only, Johnson will tell him thus: " To blast, v. a. (from 
 the nomi,) to strike with some plague or calamity." — Such etymology as this seems 
 borrowed from the irreverent divine, who, appalled at the long series of genera-
 
 56 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 tions in the first chapter of St. Matthew, after reading a verse or two, concluded 
 thus summarily: " And so they begat each other to the end of the chapter." 
 BLIND, (T.) mined, Blin'd, is the past participle of the Old English verb, To 
 Blin, (Anglo-Saxon, Blinnan,) to stop. 
 
 Lye says, in Junius, " Blinn, vet. Angl. Cessare, desistere, desistere. Anglo- 
 Saxon, Blinnan." And Mr. Tyrwhitt says, that to Blin means to cease. In 
 Chaucer it is written Blynne, and by Lord Surrey, Blin. Johnson has not the 
 verb, and therefore he gives the particular application of the participle to the 
 sense of sight, as " the natural meaning." Under the verb To blind, we are taught 
 that " To darken the understanding, and to obscure the understanding," are ex- 
 pressions of diflerent meanings. 
 BLOW, > (T.) Sir Walter Raleigh, in his History of the World, instead of Bloio 
 BLOWTH. > uses Blowtk, (the third person singular of the indicative of Bloj^an, flo- 
 rere,) as the common expression of his day. 
 
 Johnson saw that Blowih must be from blow ; but he knew nothing about the 
 third person indicative. 
 
 BLUNT, adj. (etymology uncertain.) 
 
 Johnson could not relish what Skinner or Junius supply. " Potius immediate a 
 Belg. Plomp,Obtusus, mediate ab eodem(sc. F.Plomb) et Lat. Plumbum." Skinnei. 
 As Blind (T.) has been shewn to be Blin-ed ; so Blunt is Blon-ed, the past parti- 
 ciple of the Anglo-Saxon verb, Blinnan, to blin, to stop. Blon is the regular 
 Anglo-Saxon past tense ; to which, by adding ed, we have Blon-ed, Blon'd, Blont 
 or Blunt, i. e. stopped in its decreasing progress towards a point or an edge. 
 
 The reader may now judge for himself, whether the etymology be so vety un- 
 certain. 
 BOLD, > Johnson carries us no farther than to Balb, Saxon, for bold ; and to Boult, 
 BOLT, 3 Dutch, Po^(J, for bolt ; but he can find eight divisions of meaning for the first, 
 and for the latter he attempts no more than particular applications. Perhaps, with 
 Mr. Tyrwhitt, he thought it primarily meant, " an arrow." Our Cyclopsedist says, 
 that Bold originated in Validus, and Bolt is ^tMf or ffMilof, the thing cast. 
 
 Bold (T.) is the past participle of the verb To build. Bolt is the same. Our 
 English word, to build, is the Anglo-Saxon Bylban, to confirm, to establish, to 
 make firm and sure and fast, to consolidate, to strengthen ; and is applicable to 
 all other things, as well as to dwelling-places. And thus a man of confirmed cou- 
 rage, i. e. confirmed heart, is properly said to be a builded, built, or bold man ; 
 who in the Anglo-Saxon is termed Bylto, Bylbet), I/e-bylto, Ere-bylfcefe, as well as 
 Balb. The Anglo-Saxon words Bolb and Bolt, i. e. Builded, Built, are both
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 57 
 
 likewise used indifferently for what we now call a building [builden] or strong 
 edifice. 
 BOND, ^ (T.) however spelled, and with whatever subaudition applied, is still one 
 BAND, > and the same word, and is merely the past participle of the verb to Bind. 
 BOUND, 3 Bundle, i. e. Bondel, Bond-dael, is a compound of two participles, Bond 
 and Dcel, i.e. a small part or parcel bound up. — See Deal. 
 Bond, w. s. (Bonb, Saxon, bound; it is written indifferently in many of its senses 
 Bond or Band. See Band.) 
 
 After this association of Bond and Band, it was not unreasonable to expect that 
 a common origin should be assigned them ; but no — Band is from bende, Dutch ; 
 Banb, Saxon. — Bound is, to be sure, from the verb to bind, and that again is from 
 Binban, Saxon. 
 Bundle, n. s. (Bynble, Saxon, from Bynb.) 
 
 Band and Bond are both by Skinner derived from to Bind ; and he and Junius 
 also give the same derivation to the first part of Bundile, in which Johnson fol- 
 lows them. 
 BORN, >^ Johnson has with one orthography, Born, and they are the same word, i. e. 
 BORNE, J the past participle of Beajian, Anglo-Saxon, to bear. It was formerly 
 written Boren. — Born (adds Tooke) is borne into life, or into the world. 
 
 Beam, — vox toti septentrionali Angliae communis, says Skinner ; — yet it is not 
 in Johnson. 
 
 Beam (T.) (for a child) is also the past participle of Bearan, to bear, with this 
 
 only difference, that Born or Bor-en is the past tense Bore, with the participial 
 
 termination en ; and Beam is either the past tense. Bare, or the indicative Bear, 
 
 with the participial termination, en. 
 
 BOW, "^(T.) This word (for it is but one word differently spelled) whether ap- 
 
 BOUGH, f plied to the inclination of the body in reverence ; or to an engine of war ; 
 
 BAY, C or an instrument of music ; or a particular kind of knot ; or the curved 
 
 BUX-OM. y part of a saddle, or of a ship ; or to the Arc-en-ciel ; or to bended legs ; or 
 
 to the branches of trees; or to any recess of the sea-shore, or in buildings, iu barns, 
 
 or windows, always means one and the same thing ; viz. bended or curved ; and is the 
 
 past tense, and therefore the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Bygan, flec- 
 
 tere, incurvare. It will not at all surprize you that this word should now appear 
 
 amongst us so differently written as Bow, Bough, and Bay, when you consider that 
 
 in the Anglo-Saxon the past tense of Byjan, was written Bojh, Buj, and Beah. 
 
 Note. — I would recommend the above quotation from the Diversions of Parley 
 to the serious consideration of Mr. Dugald Stewart, and his fulsome flatterers, who 
 do not yet understand the difference between the meaning, and, what they call, 
 
 I
 
 58 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 the import of a word ; which import must always depend upon the application 
 and subaudition, and of course be subject to numerous variations ; whereas the 
 meaning never changes. 
 
 Buxom, (T.) in the Anglo-Saxon Boj-j-um, Boc-fum, Buh-j-um ; in old English 
 Bough-some, i. e. easily bended or bowed to one's will, or obedient. 
 
 Junius and Skinner led Johnson to the true meaning of this word Buxom, and 
 he is not a little proud of his learning. In his Life of Gray, he affirms, " His 
 epithet ' buxom health' is not elegant ; he seems not to understand the word." 
 Whether it be elegant or not is a matter of taste, and in matters of taste Johnsoa 
 is no authority. I think it quite clear, however, that Gray knew the meaning of 
 the word, and has here applied it in its proper meaning. Health may correctly be 
 called buxom, when it may be easily bowed or bended to the will, or made obedient 
 to the inclinations of youth for the enjoyment of those active sports and exercises, 
 which health alone can enjoy. 
 
 In the explanation and etymology of Bay, Bow, Bough, Johnson made little 
 use of the good sense of Skinner. 
 Bay, (says Skinner,) petendum est, a verb, Anglo-Saxon, Bu2;an, Byjan, flectere ; 
 nihil enira aliud est Sinus, quam littoris quaedam flexura et curvatura. And this is 
 adopted by Lye. 
 
 Baye, (Dutch,") satisfies Johnson ; and he says that it means, " an opening into 
 the land, where the water is shut in on all sides, except at the entrance." 
 
 The verb to bow. Skinner derives from the same Anglo-Saxon verb ; and Bow, 
 arcus, from the verb to 6010; Johnson gives no etymology for this noun. Bow, 
 " the doubling of a string in a slip knot," he thinks is corruptly used for bought ; 
 and bought, he tells us, is from bow. 
 
 The Bough of a tree, also. Skinner seems inclined to derive " a flexibilitate," 
 from the verb to bow. Johnson is content with B05, Saxon, and has no idea of 
 the meaning of the word. He says it means " An arm or large shoot of a tree, 
 bigger than a branch, yet not always distinguished from it." 
 
 A bay window, (which is no other than a bow or boieed window) Mr. Tyrwhit 
 thinks is probably a large window; so called, because it occupied a whole 6cfy, 
 i. e. the whole space between two cross beams. Mr. Steevens, and even Minshew, 
 could have told him better. (Reed, V. 384.) Johnson says that Bay in architec- 
 ture is " a terra used to signify the magnitude of a building." 
 BRAND, ^ (T.) Brand, in all its uses, whether fire-brand, or a brand of infamy, (i.e.. 
 BROWN, > stigma, itself a participle of cr7i^a>,) or brand-new, (i.e. newly burned,') is 
 BRUNT, J merely the past participle Bren-ed, Bren'd, of the verb to Bren ; which
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 59 
 
 we now write to Burn. — Brown and Brunt, as well as Brand, are the past parti- 
 ciple of the verb to Bren, or to Brin. 
 
 In Brandy, (German, Brand-wein,) JBrawrf is the same past participle. 
 
 The French and Italians have in their languages this same participle, written 
 by them Brim and Bruno. 
 
 Brown means burned, (subaud. colour.) It is that colour which things have 
 that have been burned. — Hence also the Italians have their bronzo, from which 
 the French and English have their bronze. 
 
 Brunt, {Bruried, Brun'd, Brunt,) i. e. Burnt, is the same participle as Brown 
 or Brun. In speaking of a battle, — to bear the brunt of the day, is to bear the 
 heat, the hot or burnt part of it. — Thus far Tooke. 
 
 I will first state what Johnson tells us concerning these words, and then what 
 he might have told us respecting some of them, if he would have allowed Junius 
 and Skinner to instruct him. 
 Brand, ?i.s. (Bpanb, Saxon.) 1. A stick lighted, or fit to be lighted, in the fire. 
 For his second meaning he gives a new etymology : 2- (Jbrando, Ital. brandar, Ru- 
 nick,) A sword, in old language. 3. A thunderbolt, &c. &c. 
 Brown, adj. (Bpun, Saxon,) the name of a colour, compounded of black and any 
 
 other colour. 
 Brunt, «.s. (irwnsi, Dutch.) 1. Shock, violence. 2. Blow, stroke. 
 Bronze, n.s. (bronze, Fr.) 1. Brass. — 
 
 " To bear the brunt of the day, i. e. the heat of the day, vide Burn," says 
 Skinner ; who refers us for Brand to the same verb. 
 
 From Junius he (Johnson) might have learned the old English word To Brenne; 
 and with respect to Brown, " Alii volunt (says Junius) esse ex Teut. bernen, bren- 
 nen, burnen, brunnen, ardere, comburere, quod igni proprius admota ac semicre- 
 mata eolorem hunc solebant trahere." 
 BRAWN. As Johnson acknowledges his ignorance of any certain etymology for this 
 word, it would be unreasonable to condemn him for not approaching its intrinsic 
 meaning, till he arrives at his fourth explanation : " The flesh of a boar." Skinner 
 acknowledges his perplexity likewise ; and Junius thinks that it may be derived 
 from the accusative of the Greek Hafof, Callus. Let us hear Tooke. 
 
 Bar-en, (T.) or Bawr-en, Baiern, was the ancient adjective of Bar, Bawr; 
 and by the transposition of r, Bawrn has become Brawn. — Bratcn, therefore, is 
 an adjective, and means Boar-en, or Boar's (subaud.) ^esA. 
 
 Now mark our Cyclopeedist, whose motto, as an opponent of Tooke, is simply 
 the reverse of that which the parasite in Terence so usefully adopted : — Ait? 
 Nego. Negat? Aio. And with much persevering industry does he proceed iu 
 
 I 8
 
 60 
 
 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 his exertions not only to reader himself ridiculous, but, as far as the influence of 
 his own example may avail, to render etymology contemptible : 
 
 " Hrawfi is not Boar's flesh ; it is Pig's flesh : For/c, porken, profcen, brawn, from 
 Porcus!!" 
 
 BREAD, (T.) is the past participle of the verb to bray, (French, broyer,') i. e. to 
 pound, or to beat to pieces, and the subauditum, (in our present use of the word 
 Bread,") is corn, or grain, or any other similar substance, such as chesnuts, 
 acorns, &c. — 
 
 Bread CBjieob, Saxon,) is all we learn from Johnson. Skinner derives it from 
 Bpeban, alere. — The Cyclopaedist assures us, that Bread is bear-ed, i. e. the pro- 
 duce of the earth. 
 
 BREED, ^Breed, v. a. (Bjiaban, Saxon.) 1. To procreate, to generate, &c. 
 
 BROOD, r Brood, v. a. (Bpaeban, Saxon.) 1. To sit as on eggs, to hatch. 
 
 BRIDE, ^ Thus, according to Johnson, the same word, to which he gives the same 
 
 BRAT, J etymology, has, because differently spelt, two different primary significa- 
 tions. This, however, is a trifle to what follows. His first example to this primary 
 signification of to Brood, is from Milton's sublime invocation of the Spirit, that 
 does prefer, " before all temples, the upright heart and pure ;" 
 
 " Thou, from the first. 
 
 Dove-like, sat'st brooding " 
 
 i. e. sat'st, — sitting as on eggs. His second example is from Dryden : 
 
 " Here nature spreads her fruitful sweetness round. 
 Breathes on the air, and broods upon the ground." 
 
 His next explanation of the verb to Brood, is, 2. " To cover chickens under 
 the wings. In the first example, Johnson's chickens are Virgil's bees. And, for 
 hi» second, we read — 
 
 " Find out some uncouth cell. 
 
 Where brooding darkness spreads his jealous wings.*' 
 
 Notwithstanding the above primitive meaning of the verb to Brood, we find 
 under the substantive no mention of eggs, till we arrive at his fifth explanation : 
 " The act of covering eggs ;" and these eggs we find, after all, are 
 
 » Something in his soul," (Hamlet's, to wit,) 
 " O'er which his melancholy sits on brood." 
 
 Shakspeare.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 6l 
 
 Bride, n. s. (Bjiyb, Saxon ; Brudur, Runick, signifies a beautiful woman,) A wo- 
 man new married. 
 
 " The day approach'd, when fortune should decide 
 
 The important eiiterprize, and give the bride." Dryden. 
 
 This lady is an old acquaintance of every reader of poetry; but she certainly was 
 a spinster. It is she, 
 
 " That Emely, that fayrer was to sene, 
 Than is the lylly, upon the stalke grene. 
 And fresher than May " 
 
 Bridegroom, n. s. (from Bride and groom) A new married man. 
 
 " As are those dulcet sounds in break of day, 
 That creep into the dreaming bridegroom's ear. 
 And summon him to marriage " Shakspeare. 
 
 I think it equally clear, that this happy mortal was as yet a bachelor. — Let us 
 not forget that this is the Dictionary in which the different significations are illus- 
 trated by examples from the best writers. Illustrated ! 
 Brat, n. s. (its etymology is uncertain : Bjiar, in Saxon, signifies a blanket ; from 
 which, perhaps, the modern signification may have come.) 
 
 Breed, Brood, Bride, Brat, are (according to Home Tooke) the past partici- 
 ple of Bpet>an, fovere. 
 
 Of Groom, he observes, " We apply this name to persons in various situations. 
 There is a Groom of the stables, a Groom of the chambers, a Groom of the stole, 
 a Groom porter, a Bridegroom. But all of them denote attendance, observance, 
 care, and custody ; whether of horses, chambers, garments, bride, dec. Groom, there- 
 fore, has always one meaning. It is applied to the person, by whom soinething is 
 attended. And notwithstanding the introduction of the letter r into our modern 
 word Groom, (for which I cannot account,) I am persuaded that it is the past 
 participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Fryman, curare, regere, custodire, cavere, 
 attendere, and that it should be written Goom, without the r. And I think it a 
 sufficient confirmation of my opinion, that what we now call Bridegroom our 
 ancestors called Bridegum. And at present in the collateral languages there is 
 no r." 
 
 Bride is derived by Skinner (with an unnecessary /brsam) from Bpeban, fovere ; 
 in which he is not followed by Johnson ; Groom, from Grom, Dutch, in which he
 
 62 
 
 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 is followed by Johnsou. He (Skinner) acknowledges, however, that Groom may 
 be from Guma, and Guma he believes to be from Erymau ; and Brat, he is posi- 
 tive, " sine ullo flagitio declinari possit ab Anglo-Saxon Bjiseban, fovere ;" in 
 which two latter points he is not followed by Johnson. 
 BROAD, i(T.) Are the past tense and past participle of Bpaeban, dilatare, propalare, 
 BOARD, f dispalare, ampliare. 
 
 BRID, r Junius says, " Board per metathesin literee R. est a broad, latus." 
 BIRD, ^Johnson, that we derive board, a piece of wood, from the Gothic; and 
 board, a table, from the Welsh ; and presents us with nothing but the Saxon simi- 
 lar words for the rest. 
 
 Junius thinks that Birde " per metathesin factum esse ex bjiifefte atque ipsum 
 illud bpytobe esse ex bpyban, parere, gignere, fcetare, foetificare." Of this Johnson 
 does not take any notice. 
 BROOK, ■^ Brook, n. s. (Bj\oc, or Bj^oca, Saxon,) A running water, less than a 
 
 BROACH, river. 
 
 BRACK, Broach, n. s. (broche, French.) 1. A spit. 2. A musical iustru- 
 
 BREAK, ). ment, &c. 
 
 BREACH, Brack, n. s. (from break,) A breach ; a broken part. 
 
 BRACCA, To Break, v. a. (Bjieccan, Saxon.) 
 
 BRACHIUM. J Of this verb Johnson i:nds thirty-nine meanings as a verb active, 
 and twenty-five as a verb neuter ; and concludes at last with calling it a perplexed 
 verb. And it would be strange if it were not, after such pains to make it so. 
 Break, n. s. (from the verb,) State of being broken ; an opening. 
 Breach, n.s. (from break; breche, French.) The act of breaking any thing. 
 Breech, «. s. (supposed from Bjisecan, Saxon.) 1. The lower part of the body; 
 the back part. 2. Breeches. — 
 
 Johnson might have picked up a little more information from Skinner and 
 Junius. Skinner tells him, " Doct. Th. Hickes Anglo-Saxon Bpoca deducit a 
 verbo Bjiaeccan, frangere ; quia rivus exiliens terram perrumpit." And Skinner 
 derives Breech from the same source. Junius says that Breach is from Bpe)cen, 
 frangere, perfringere. 
 
 All these words Tooke considers to be merely the same past participle (differ- 
 ently pronounced and written) of the verb Bjucan, Bpecan, Bpsecan, to break. 
 
 Brook, (in the Anglo-Saxon Bpoc,) (T.) approaches most nearly to our modern 
 past tense Broke, and indeed this supposed noun was formerly so written. 
 
 Abroach, (which Johnson declares is properly spoken of vessels,) is the regular 
 past tense of Bpecan, by the customary addition of the prefix a. 
 
 Brack is not far removed from our modern past tense, — Brake, which is still in
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 
 
 63 
 
 use with us as well as Broke; and it approaches still nearer to the past tense, as it 
 was formerly written Brak. 
 
 A Breach, (Bpic,) or Break, the same word as the former, with the accustomed 
 variation of ch or ck. 
 
 Of Breach, (the same past participle,) Skinner says well, " Veriim etymon 
 vocis iJreecA commodius deduci potest ab Anglo-Saxon Bpyce, ruptio, ruptura : 
 quia sc. in ano corpus in foramen quasi disrumpi videtur." — And Breeches, which 
 cover those parts, where the body is broken into two parts. Hence also, assuredly, 
 the Latin bracca, and, I believe, the Greek and Latin, ^^ax^av, bracchium. — Thus 
 far Tooke. 
 
 If Skinner suggests two etymologies, one right and one wrong, the latter will 
 probably be the choice of Johnson. Skinner, previous to the above mentioned ety- 
 mology of Breech, says ihdii Breech is perhaps from Breeches. This Johnson mentions, 
 but does not mention the etymology which Skinner preferred; and which saved him 
 from the absurdity of judging, that our ancestors invented a name for their gar- 
 ments, before they thought of one for the parts which those garments were to cover. 
 BROTH, n. s. (Bpo¥, Saxon,) Liquor in which flesh is boiled. 
 
 1 am afraid Johnson is not quite correct. According to this explanation, he 
 should have said that Gruel is " the liquor in which oatmeal is boiled ;" but this he 
 does not say. 
 
 Broth (T.) is the third person singular of the indicative Bjiipan, coquere ; that 
 which one bpipeS. 
 
 Skinner enumerates the Anglo-Saxon, the Dutch, the German, French, Italian, 
 and Spanish similar words ; and affirms " omnia a verb. Anglo-Saxon Bpipan, co- 
 quere." But of this Johnson makes no mention. 
 BRUISE, V. a. (briser, French.) 
 
 Bruise, contundere, ab. Anglo-Saxon Bjiyj-eb, contusus vel &c. Skinner. 
 Bruise, (T.) according to the constant practice of the language, by the change of 
 the characteristic letter, is the past tense and past participle of the Anglo-Saxon 
 verb Bpyj-an, conterere ; according to our ancient English, to Brise. 
 BRUIT. Skinner gives the French, bruit; the gfiSsir of Junius, and gfu/uf pro pi/Inj of 
 Mer. Casaub. ; but concludes " Mallem a sowo etymon petere." 
 Johnson is contented with the French. 
 
 Bruit (T.) means something spread abroad, divulged, dispersed. It is the 
 
 past tense, and past participle of the Anglo-Saxon Bjiircian, Bjiyttian, distri- 
 
 buere, dispensare. In English, also, to brit. 
 
 BUT, ^Notiiing can repress the courage of the writer in the New Cyclopaedia : he 
 
 HOT. ) acknowledges that " in the prepositions and conjunctions, Mr. Tooke is so
 
 64 A CRITICAL EXAMINAtlON 
 
 strongly fortified, that in the opinion of the pubhc no adversary can dislodge hiin- 
 " We, however, (he exclaims) shall make an attempt for that purpose. 
 
 It is Tooke's opinion that we use " one word, But, in modern English, for two 
 words. Lot and But, originally (in the Anglo-Saxon) very different in significa- 
 tion, though, (hj repeated abbreviation and corruption) approaching in sound. 
 
 ^^Bid is the imperative Bot of the Anglo-Saxon Bocnn, to boot ; i. e. to superadd, 
 to supply, to substitute, to atone for, to compensate with, to remedy with, to 
 make amends with, to add something more, in order to make up a deficiency in 
 something else. 
 
 " Bitt is the imperative Be-utan, of the iVnglo-Saxon Be-onucan, to be out." 
 
 Such is Tooke's etymology and explanation of the two words, and he declares 
 that it seems to him impossible for any man, who reads the most common of our 
 old English writers, not to observe their frequent recurrence. He produces thirty 
 passages from the translation of Virgil by Gawin Douglas, — and the preface to 
 it, — in every one of which both these words, Bot and But, are (so differently 
 written) used in their respective significations. Of this decisive fact, however, 
 not the least notice is taken by the Cyclopsedist, who courageously maintains, in 
 opposition to Tooke, that " But is the Anglo-Saxon Bucon, Buran, and has the 
 sense which it bears in that language of except, ■without, and no other but this, or 
 one resolvable into this." A very little pains will enable us to ascertain whether 
 the success of this writer is at all proportioned to his confidence. 
 
 Knott affirms, " We use for interpreting of scripture all the means which they 
 prescribe ; such as prayer, conferring of places, consulting the originals," &c. 
 
 To this Chillingworth replies : 
 
 " You pray, but it is not that God would bring you to the true religion', but 
 that he would confirm you in your own. You confer places, but it is that you 
 may confirm or colour over with plausible disguises your erroneous doctrines ; not 
 that you may judge, and forsake them, if there be reason for it. You consult the 
 originals, but you regard them not, when they make against your doctrine or 
 translation." 
 
 In all these places (says Tooke) But (that is Bot, or, as we pronounce the 
 verb, Boot,^ only directs something to be added or supplied, in order to make up 
 some deficiencies in Knott's expressions of " Prayer, conferring of places," &c. 
 
 Such is the opinion of Home Tooke ; and I know not how to justify myself for 
 introducing so formally such an opponent as the writer in the Cyclopaedia ; who 
 declares, upon his own gratis dictum, without any reference to old English usage, 
 or evincing any acquaintance with old English authors, " That But in all these 
 places denotes a separation or removal of something that ought not to be separated
 
 OF THE DICTIONAllY OF DR. JOHNSON. 65 
 
 or removed." And with this meauing of But, he thus proceeds to explain the 
 passage from Chillingworth : 
 
 " You pray not that God would bring you to the true religion ; you pray, mo- 
 tive being apart, that he should confirm you in your own." 
 
 In the first member of this sentence, the obnoxious but, ii: stead of being explained, 
 is omitted ; and in the second, — the very object of which is to subjoin, or super- 
 add, the real motive of prayer: — that motive is first declared to have no exist- 
 ence, and is then very gravely stated to be, — that the suppliant may be confirmed 
 in the peculiar tenets of his religion. This specimen of the Cyclopoedist's skill as 
 an interpreter must suffice. And I will (with something more of clearness and 
 consistency, I trust,) proceed to present a resolution of the whole passage from 
 Chillingworth, agreeably to the etymology of Tooke. 
 
 " You pray," — (Knott had affirmed and Chillingworth grants this ; but it is not 
 the whole truth ; — that which is not and that which is the object of your prayer 
 must be superadded — ) " buV^ (i. e. boot, superadd, continues Chillingworth,) " it 
 is not that God would bring you to the true religion ; but,'' (i. e. superadd) " that 
 he would confirm you in your own. You confer places ;" — (Knott had affirmed 
 and Chillingworth grants this ; but this is not the whole truth ; — that which is, and 
 that which is not your object in doing so must be superadded^ — ) " but," (i. e. 
 boot, superadd, continues Chillingworth) — " it is that you may confirm or co- 
 lour over with plausible disguises your erroneous doctrines; not that you may 
 judge of them, and forsake them if there be reason for it. You consult the ori- 
 ginals," (Knott had affirmed, and Chillingworth grants this ; but the language 
 of Knott is again deficient ; all is not said that ought to be said : the use which is 
 made of such consultation must be superadded — ) " but" (i. e. boot, superadd, Chil- 
 lingworth concludes") " you regard them not when they make against your doctrine 
 or translation." 
 
 In each of these expressions — 
 
 You pray • -j r The obvious question is. 
 
 You confer places . . .>but <But y,'ha.il Boot vfha.i'} 
 You consult the originals . y C Supply the deficiency. 
 
 The commentators on Shakspeare imagine the phrase " /o 600^' — to stand in 
 need of repeated explanation : and accordingly, on seven of the passages in which 
 it occurs, they treat us with their expository notes. One instance shall suffice. 
 
 In Richard III. (fo. 203,)— 
 
 " This, and Suint George to boote :" 
 K
 
 66 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 That is, " this is the order of our battle, which promises success ; and over and 
 above this, is the protection of our patron saint." Johnson. 
 
 " To boot is (as I conceive) to help, and not over and above." Hawkins. 
 
 Mr. Hawkins is certainly right. So, in King Richard H. : 
 
 " Mine innocence, and Saint George to thrive." 
 
 " The old English phrase was, " Saint George to borrow." 
 
 " So, in a Dialogue, &c. by Dr. William BuUeyne, 1564 : " Maister and maistres,. 
 come into this vallie, — -until this storme be past : Sainte George to borrowe, mer- 
 cifull God, who did ever see the like ?" Signat. K. 7. b." Malone. 
 
 This So is a word of mighty magick. " To boot; — so, to thrive; — so, to 
 
 borrow." 
 
 The reader, who has attended to Mr. Tooke's explanation of Bocan, will have 
 no further difficulty with to boot. 
 
 To thrive needs no explanation. But what is the meaning of to borrow ? Mr. 
 Malone affords no information. 
 
 The Anglo-Saxon Byjxjan, it must be remembered, (see Bar,) means to defend, 
 to protect, to secure ; and a Borowe was formerly used for what we now call a 
 security : 
 
 " We finde in the lyfe of Saynt Nicholas, that a Jewe lent a Christen man a 
 grete sorame of golde unto a certayue daye, and toke no sykernesse of him, but 
 his fayth and Saynt Nycholas to borowe." Dives and Pauper, 2 coram, cap. 9. 
 
 " I praye God, and Saynt Nicholas that was thy Borowe, that harde vengeaunce 
 come to the." D. and P. 2 coram, cap. 9. 
 
 To return to But and Bot. — The fate of these words is rather singular : the 
 Cyclopfedist (as we have seen) declares, that there is but one word, — the first. But, 
 and that it has no other meaning than except, without. Mr.Tyrwhitt could not find 
 this But as a preposition, with that meaning, even in Chaucer; and the commenta- 
 tors on Shakspeare, as if such meaning were unusual, and difficult to be disco- 
 vered, continually explain it ; and leave the second unexplained, as if wholly 
 unneedful of explanation. I will produce some instances of their explanations. 
 
 In Shakspeare, Terapest, fo. 2 : 
 
 " I should sinne 
 
 To think but noblie of my grandmother." 
 
 Mr. Steevens says, "but, m this place, means, otherwise than ;" and Johnson,
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 67 
 
 in his Dictionary, produces this quotation as au example to the same expla- 
 nation. 
 
 In the Taming of a Shrew, fo. 218 : 
 
 " For hit I be deceived. 
 
 Our fine musitian groweth amorous." 
 
 " But has here the signiiication of unless." Malone. 
 In Antony and Cleopatra, fo. 361 : 
 
 Cees. " But being charg'd, we will be still by land, 
 Which as I tak't we shall ; for his best force 
 Is forth to man his gallies." 
 
 " i. e. unless we be charged, we will remain quiet at land, which quiet I suppose 
 we shall keep. But being charged, was a phrase of that time equivalent to unless 
 we be." Warburton. 
 
 But (says Mr. Steevens) is from the Saxon Bucan. — Butan leas, absque falso, 
 without a lie. In ancient writings, (^he adds,) this preposition is commonly distin- 
 guished from the adversative conjunction — but ; the latter being usually spelt 
 bot.— 
 
 Mr. Steevens, then, was aware of the existence of the two words but and bot, 
 though he contents himself with calling the latter " an adversative conjunction." 
 Yet the Cyclopaedist considers it as the mere hypothesis of Tooke, adopted to 
 support his system. 
 
 In Antony and Cleopatra, fo. 364 : 
 
 " Look you, sad friends ; — 
 
 The gods rebuke me, but it is tydings 
 To wash the eyes of kings." 
 
 " That is. May the gods rebuke me, if this be not tidings to make kings weep. 
 But again for if not." Johnson. 
 
 Had these commentators once settled the etymology, and thence the true mean- 
 ing of the word, there would have been no occasion for the repetition of these 
 unsatisfactory notes. 
 
 In all these instances, But is the imperative Be-utan, of the Anglo-Saxon verb 
 Beonutan, to be out ; and has one and the same meaning in every passage. The 
 commentators on Beaumont and Fletcher, on Ford, and on Massinger, reject 
 
 K 2
 
 68 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 the aid which Tooke offers for their guidance, and proceed titubanter along their 
 darksome journey ; — as the following examples will abundantly prove. 
 
 " Naj', you must not excuse it ; for but you, 
 Perfection hath no crown to triumph in." 
 
 Weber's B. and F. Vol. I, p. lOG. 
 '■• But you, excepting you, without you." 
 
 " When your poor servant lives hut in your favour." 
 
 Vol. II. p. 284. 
 " But, except in your favour." 
 
 " But thy false self 
 
 1 fear no enemy " Vol. III. p. 346. 
 
 " But, i. e. except." 
 
 In p. 383, Vol. III. " They do but call yet;" the editor of 1778 would read 
 not. Mason explains it — only call. 
 
 " And, when she speaks, each syllable is music. 
 That does enchant the hearers : But your highness. 
 That are not to be parallel'd, I never yet 
 Beheld her equal " 
 
 " But, i. e. except your highness," &c. Gifford's Massinger, Vol. II. p. 133. 
 
 " How have I sinned 
 
 In my dotage on this creature ; hut to her 
 I have liv'd as I was born, a perfect virgin." 
 
 " But, i. e. except. See p. 29&. The word occurs again in this sense in p. 342, and 
 iu many other places." Id. Vol. III. p. 329. 
 
 It occurs twice in the very same page, as the same imperative Be-utan, Be-out; 
 and twice as the imperative of Bocan, to boot ; of which it is not very likely that 
 this editor had any suspicion. 
 
 Crotolon, " I thank thee, son, for this acknowledgment. 
 
 It is a sight of gladness. 
 Orgilus. But my duty." 
 
 " But, here, as in numerous instances, used for only." Weber's Ford, Vol. I. p- 288.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 69 
 
 «' I'll discover 
 
 There all, but looks of fancy's writing." 
 
 " But- — This word had formerly, besides its usual meaning, that of except." Id. 
 Vol. II. p. 353. 
 
 What this erudite editor considered to be the usual meaning, he never informs 
 us. It is very probable that he did not know ; he might, however, have learned, 
 that not only formerly, but now, in every day's usage, this word But means, as in 
 the preceding passage. Be-out. 
 
 In the expressions, " They do but call yet ;" — " But my duty," &c. as in the ex- 
 ample explained by Tooke ; viz. " I saw but two plants ;" Not or Ne is left out 
 and understood, which used formerly to be inserted, as it frequently is still. Of its 
 former insertion Mr. Tooke produces instances from Chaucer, and condemns the 
 omission of it, as one of the most blameable and corrupt abbreviations of construc- 
 tion, which is used in our language. 
 
 " For niyn entent is not but to play." 
 " I nam but a compilatour." 
 
 Modern usage would omit the not; and we should say — 
 
 " My intent is but to play." 
 " I am but a compiler." 
 
 From this excursion we must return to Johnson ; but it will not be necessary to 
 tarry long with him. " S. Johnson (says Tooke) in his Dictionary, has numbered 
 up eighteen different significations (as he imagines) of But; which, however, are 
 all reducible to Bot and Be-utan." 
 
 But or Bot, he at one time calls a particle of objection, and at another a par- 
 ticle of introduction ; and the examples which he produces, may furnish the 
 Cyclopaedist with fresh opportunities for the display of his critical acumen and 
 correctness ; and to him I leave them. 
 
 It will, I think, be manifest, that Johnson laboured quite under a mistake, when 
 he supposed that But, as used in the examples, which he gives to his 11th and 
 16th interpretations, is obsolete. This indeed is a discovery, M'hich he himself 
 fancied that he had made after the publication of his first edition, and is among 
 the improvements introduced into his subsequent editions. 
 BY. Tooke's opinions upon this word affect the Cyclopaedist with surprize: he really 
 wonders that any man of taste and understanding should write so. Let us see, 
 then, what cause there is for this strange emotion.
 
 70 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 " By (T.) (in the Anglo-Saxon written Bi, Be, B15,) is the imperative By^, of 
 the Anglo-Saxon verb Beon, to be. And our ancestors wrote it indifferently either 
 be or by. " Damville be right ought to have the leading of the army, but bycause 
 they be cosen-germans to the admirall, they be mistrusted." 1568. See Lodge's 
 Illustrations, Vol. II. p. 9. This preposition is frequently, but not always, used 
 with an abbreviation of construction. Subauditur instrument, cause, agent, &c. 
 Whence the meaning of the word omitted has often been improperly attributed to 
 by. With (when it is the imperative of Ulyji^an,) is used indifferently for By, 
 when it is the imperative of Beon, and with the same subauditur and imputed 
 meaning : as. He was slain by a sword ; or. He was slain with a sword." 
 
 The simple question is. Does this etymology supply the cause of the various 
 applications of the word by, both when it is used without, and when it is used 
 with, the alleged subaudition. Johnson says, — "By, prep. (Bi, Bij, Saxon,") and 
 he enumerates twenty-five different meanings, and gives seventy-six examples. 
 According to him. By means cause, agent, instrument, &c. Tooke, on the other 
 hand, asserts, that By means Be, frequently with a subaudition of cause, agent, &c. 
 Let us try, then, whether, with or without such subaudition, the imperative Be, 
 in Johnson's examples, may not be substituted for the preposition By. 
 
 " You must think, if we give you any thing, we mean to gain by you." i. e. We 
 mean to gain, be you the means of our gain ; or, you being the means of our gain. 
 
 And in this latter manner is the Saxon preposition 6e, rendered. — Be me cwicum, 
 (i.e. quick) me vivente. Be tham brether, or Be tham fader, lifigeudum. Fratre 
 or patre vivente. 
 
 And thus, too, the examples in Johnson may be resolved with less apparent 
 harshness : — 
 
 " The Moor is with child by you, Lancelot." i. e. be you, or you being (sub. 
 the cause.) 
 
 " But by Pelides' arms, when Hector fell." 
 
 i. e. when Hector fell, Be Pelides' arms, or Pelides' arms bei7ig (sub. the cause or 
 instrument.) 
 
 " I view, by no presumption led, 
 Your revels of the night." 
 
 i.e. Be no presumption, or presumption not being (sub. the cause, which led.) 
 
 " By chance, within a neighboring brook, 
 He saw his branching horns and alter'd look." 
 
 ). e. chance being (sub. the cause, and not design.)
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 71 
 
 " Let the blows be bij pauses laid on." i. e. Be pauses, or pauses being— he- 
 tween the blows. 
 
 " The North by myriads pours her mighty sons." 
 i. e. Be myriads, or there being myriads. 
 
 " Long labours both by sea and land he bore." 
 
 i. e. Be sea and land ; or, sea and land being (sub. the places where he bore, &c.) 
 " It is lawful both by the laws of nature, and by the law divine, which is the 
 perfection of the other two." i. e. Be the laws of nature, be the law divine— the 
 law appealed to. 
 
 " The present or like system of the world cannot possibly have been eternal, by 
 the first proposition." i. e. Be the first proposition, Let the first proposition be, 
 i. e. exist, stand, &c. the system cannot have been eternal. 
 
 " lu the divisions I have made, I have endeavoured the best I could to govern 
 myself by the diversity of matter." i. e. Be the diversity of matter, or the diver- 
 sity of matter being — that which governed, guided, or ruled my conduct. 
 
 " Judge the event 
 
 By what has passed." 
 
 i. e. What has passed being the cause of the judgment formed. 
 
 " .Her brother Rivers 
 
 Ere this lies shorter by the head at Pomfret." 
 
 i. e. Be the head, or the head being (when cut off) that by which the shortness 
 was caused. 
 
 " By her he had two children at one birth." 
 
 i. e. Be her, or she being the means. 
 
 Johnson's first explanation of the word by, is, " It notes the agent." And poor 
 Lancelot is produced as the agent who, suis viribus, it should seem in Johnson's 
 opinion had generated one likeness of himself: for Johnson declares that when two 
 children are produced at one birth it notes co-operation ; but when only one, an 
 agent merely. 
 
 " Having been in possession thereof by the space of seven hundred years." i. e. 
 Be seven hundred years the space of time elapsed, &c. 
 
 " By this time, the very foundation was removed." i. e. Be this time come, or 
 this time being come. 
 
 " Sail by it." i. e. Be it (sub. the place, which you pass in sailing.)
 
 72 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 " The church stands by thy labour, if thy tabour stand by the church." i. e. Thy 
 tabour being — the church being, (sub. the proximate object.) 
 
 " Sittiug in some place by himself." i. e. Be himself, (sub. alone.) 
 " He kept then some of the spirit by him, to verify what he believes." i. e. Him- 
 self being (sub. the keeper.) 
 
 " His Godhead I invoke, hy him 1 swear." 
 i. e. Be he (sub. the witness of what I swear.) 
 
 " Now by your joj's on earth, your hopes in heaven, 
 O spare this great, this good, this aged king." 
 
 1. e. Be vour joys, he your hopes (sub. causes for sparing or motives to spare.) 
 
 " And cruel calls the gods, and cruel thee. 
 By narhe " 
 
 1. e. You being named. 
 
 " The gods were said to feast with Ethiopians : that is, they were present with 
 them by their statues." i. e. Be their statues, or their statues being (sub. present 
 as their representatives.) 
 
 Thus I have passed through one example to each of Johnson's twenty-five sup- 
 posed meanings ; and if the reader's patience has not been exhausted by but and 
 by I heartily congratulate him on his abundant stock. As an exercise for the 
 residual portion, let him transcribe Johnson's explanations, and endeavour to 
 arrange the preceding examples into the places allotted to them by Johnson. Or if 
 that should be too severe a task, let him at least satisfy himself, that the word by 
 has but one meaning, and that the meanings imputed to it by Johnson, whether of 
 agent, or instrument, or cause, or means, or manner, (for all these does he distin- 
 guish as separate meanings,) or of quantity, place, permission, proof, conformity, 
 ground of judgment, sum of the difference, co-operation, time, passage, prox- 
 imity, &c. which he has huddled together ; — that all these meanings are to be 
 souo-ht in the context of the sentence, or in some subaudition to be inferred from it. 
 
 In such resolutions of sentences as above, we have no choice but this : — Either 
 the word explained must contain within itself, as part of its own intrinsick mean- 
 ing, the various meanings attributed to it by Johnson; or it must preserve one 
 uniform meaning, and the variety of meaning must be in the other words, or a sub- 
 audition of others. The mode of supplying the subaudition may not uufrequently 
 be somewhat harsh to our ears ; but harshness must be endured to escape absurdity.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 73 
 
 CAGE, -^ Cage, ??. s. (cage, French ; from cavea, Latin.) An enclosure of twigs or 
 GAGE, I wire, in which birds are kept. 
 
 WAGES, I Six examples of this meaning are thought necessary. One is the cele- 
 GAG, > brated reason of Swift, why so few marriages are happy ; viz. " Because 
 KEG, young ladies spend their time in making nets, not in making cages ;" i. e. 
 
 KEY, j substituting, according to Johnson's own rule, the explanation for the 
 QUAY. J word explained ; " in making textures, woven with large interstices or 
 meshes, not in making enclosures of twigs or wire." 
 
 Of Gage, Wages, Gag, Keg, Quay, Key, he merely gives the French, Ger- 
 man, and Dutch similar words. 
 Key, n. s. (Coej, Saxon.) 1. An instrument formed with cavities, correspondent 
 to the wards of a lock, by which the bolt of a lock is pushed backward or for- 
 ward. 
 
 In support of this mechanical description, Johnson has thought it necessary to 
 produce six examples ; and, accordingly, we have, 1. The Key of hell-gate ; 2. The 
 Key of fortune ; 3. St. Peter's Keys ; 4. The Key of eternity ; and, 5. The Key 
 of conscience. All of which, I presume, it is intended that we should believe to 
 be " instruments formed with cavities," &c. &c. 
 Let us hear Mr. Tooke. — 
 
 Cage, a place shut in and fastened ; in which birds are confined. Also a place 
 in which malefactors are confined. 
 
 Gage, by which a man is bound to certain fulfilments. 
 Wages, by which servants are bound to perform certain duties. 
 Gag, by which the mouth is confined from speaking. 
 Keg, in which fish or liquors are shut in and confined. 
 Key, by which doors, &c. are confined and fastened. 
 Quay, by which the water is confined and shut out. 
 
 All these (says Tooke) I believe to be the past participle of the verb Ccejjiau, 
 obserare. 
 
 " From the same x\nglo-Saxon verb are the French Cage, Gage, Gages, Ga- 
 geiire, Engager, Qiiai ; the Italian Gaggia, Gaggio, Gabbia; and the ancient 
 Latin Caiare ; which have so much bewildered the different etymologists." 
 Skinner and Junius consiider the Latin Cavea to be the parent of the French 
 
 L
 
 74 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 and Italian ; and thence of the English Cage. Skinner says of Gage, " a Fr. G'- 
 Gage; Italian, Gaggia, pignus, Gaggiare, pignorare, omnia a Lat. Vas vadis." 
 
 Of Quay, or, as he writes it, Kay, Junius observes, " NonnuUi post Cajetam in 
 littore Baiani sinus ab -^nea in memoriam nutricis suce Cajetce conditam, quasvisi 
 alias moles in litore maris aut ripa fluvii, onerandarum exonerandarumque navium 
 gratia extructas nomen suum Kaey ab hoc nobilissimo portu desumpsisse putaut." 
 Skinner prefers the Latin Cavea both for Quay and Gaol. 
 CANT ; (T.) Chaunt, Accent, Canto, Cantata, are the past participles of Canere^ 
 Cantare, and Chanter. 
 
 Skinner is sadly puzzled for the etymology of Cant. Nescio an a Teut. Caud ; 
 tel a Lat. cento ; — vel a Belg. Kond ; a cautaudo ; ab Anglo-Saxon lieneat : — 
 "Sed nihil horum satisfacit." Lye decides for Cautando ; and Johnson thinks that 
 it is " probably from Cantus, Lat. implying the odd tone of voice used by vagrants ; 
 but imagined by some to be corrupted from quaint." And he gives us the primi- 
 tive meaning : — " 1. A corrupt dialect used by beggars and vagabonds." 
 
 Chant he derives from Chanter, and Accent from Accenfus. 
 CARDINAL ; Johnson merely gives Cardinalis, Latin ; though the example which he 
 quotes from Ayliffe carries him to Cardo^ the noun, and supplies him with tha 
 reason of the application. 
 
 " A Cardinal (says Ayliffe) is so styled, because serviceable to the apostolick 
 see, as an axle or hinge, on which the whole government of the church turns." 
 
 For the etymology of Cardo, see Char, &c. 
 CELL, n.8. (cella, Lat.) 1. A small cavity or hollow place, Ac 
 
 2. The cave or little habitation of a religious jJerson. 
 
 " Then did religion, in a lazy cell, 
 
 111 empty, airy contemplation dwell." Denham. 
 
 3. Any small plac6 of residence; a cottage. 
 
 " Mine eyes he closed, but open left the cell 
 Of Fancy, my internal sight." MiLTON. 
 
 " In cottages and lowly cells 
 
 True piety neglected dwells." SomeRVILLE. 
 
 Religion and Piety might surely have been allowed to dwell in the same cell, 
 even to the exclusion of Fancy. 
 CHAP, (T.) Cheap, Chop. — The past participle of Cypan, mercari, to traffick, to 
 bargain, to buy, or sell.
 
 CHAIR, 
 
 AJAR, 
 
 CHEWR, 
 
 CHUR, 
 
 CAR, 
 
 CART, 
 
 CHURN. 
 
 > 
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 7^ 
 
 Good-cheap or bad-cheap, i. e. well or ill bargained, bought, or sold : such were 
 formerly the modes of expression. The modern fashion uses the word only for 
 g-ooc?-cheap, and therefore omits the epithet good, as unnecessary. 
 To chop and change — means to bargain and change. 
 A Chap or Chapman, — any one who has trafficked. 
 
 For chop and cJmap, Skinner refers to cheapen ; and under cheapen, after enu- 
 merating the Saxon, Belgick, and Teutonick similar words, he exclaims, " Quod 
 si omnia a Lat. Captare, deflecterem ?" Cheaping, Johnson says, is an old word 
 for market ; and that a chapman is a cheapener, one who offers as a purchaser. 
 " Mer. Casaubon deflectit nostrum chapman a Gr. Ka^rtiwj." Skinner. 
 CHAR, ^ We must listen awhile to TA EK TOT TPinOAOS. 
 
 " Churn (Chyren, Chyr'n, Chyrn, is the past participle Cyren, of the 
 Anglo-Saxon verb, Cypan, J^cyjian, vertere, revertere ; and it means, 
 turned, turned about, or turned backwards and forwards. This same verb 
 gives Hs also the following : Char, &c. 
 
 Menage, Minshew, Junius, Skinner, &c. have no resource for the 
 derivation of Chair, but the Greek ««&e5f« ; in which they all agree. But, 
 though they travel so far for it, none of thera has attempted to shew by 
 what steps they proceed from Ka^e$^a to Chair. The process would be curious 
 upon paper. But «a9E3"j)a, though a seai', is not a chair; nor does it convey the 
 same meaning. Chair is a species of seat. It is not a fixed, but a moveable seat ; 
 fumed about and returned at pleasure : and from that circumstance it has its deno- 
 mination. It is a c/ja(V-seat. 
 
 Car, Cart, Chariot, &c. and the Latin Carrus, are the same participle. This 
 word was first introduced into the Roman language by Csesar, who learned it in 
 his war with the Germans. Vossius mistakingly supposes it derived from Currus. 
 
 So Char-coal is wood turned coal by fire. We borrow nothing here from Car- 
 bone ; but the Latin etymologists must come to us for its meaning, which they 
 cannot find elsewhere ; as they must likewise for Cardo; that on which the door 
 is turned and returned. 
 
 A chur-vform is so called, because it is turned about with great celerity. 
 To set the door or the window achar, which we now write ajar, (or as Douglas 
 rit es it, on char,) is to put it neither quite open nor quite shut, but on the turn 
 •or return to either. 
 
 A cAar-woman is one who does not abide in the house, where she works, as a 
 constant servant, but returns home to her own place of abode, and returns again 
 to her work when she is required. 
 
 A char, when used aloue, means some single, separate act, such as we call a- 
 
 L 2
 
 76 
 
 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Turn or a Bout, not any unintermitted coherent business or employment of long 
 continuance. And in the same sense as Char was formerly used, we now use the 
 word Turn.—YW have a Bout with him. — I'll take a Turn at it— That Turn is 
 served — (which is equivalent to — That Char is char'd ; though not so quaintly ex- 
 pressed as it would be by saying — That Turn is turned.') — One good Turn deserves 
 another. Char, the fish, I believe with Skinner, is so called — quia hio piscis 
 rapide et celeriter se in aqua vertit." So far Tooke. 
 
 Char, the fish, so well accounted for by Skinner, is declared by Johnson to be 
 of uncertain derivation. 
 
 Of chur-worm. Skinner also says, " Nescio an ab Anglo-Saxon Cejipan, Cyp- 
 pan, vertere, quia hie vermis pree aliis celeriter se vertit." And as this is a good 
 reason, Johnson takes no notice of it. 
 
 Ajar, Chewr, and Chur, are not found so written in Junius, Skinner, or Johnson. 
 
 In Beaumont and Fletcher, Love's Cure, fo. 174, Vol. II. he might have seen 
 the expression : " Here's two chewres chewr'd." Upon which expression iu 
 Weber's edition, (Vol. VIJI. p. 430) we have this learned and sagacious note : 
 " That is, here are two businesses dispatched. Chewr may be a South country 
 word for business ; but in the North we should say, — Here's two chares char'd." 
 
 " All's chared, when he is gone ;" that is, " My task is done then." Chare is 
 frequently used for task work. (Weber's B. and F. Vol. XIII. p. 70.) 
 
 Mr. Steevens also explains Chares to mean task work. Hence, he adds, our 
 term cAare-woman. (Shak. Vol. XVII. p. 266.) 
 
 Johnson, iu his Dictionary, says, " Char, n. s. (Cyppe, work, Saxon, Lye. It 
 is derived by Skinner either from Charge, Fr. business ; or Cape, Saxon, care ; or 
 Keeren, Dutch, to sweep ;) Work done by the day ; a single job or task. 
 To Char, v. n. (from the noun) To work at others' houses by the day, without being 
 a hired servant," (i. e. without being a servant, " procured for temporary use at 
 a certain price, or engaged in temporary service for wages;") such being Johnson's 
 explanation of the word " to hire." — But to proceed — 
 Charwoman, n. s. (from Char and woman) A woman hired ( — hired — but hired — ) 
 " accidentally," (i. e. according to himself, his only parallel, — nonessentially,) " for 
 odd work, or single days." 
 To Char, v. a. (see Charcoal.) To burn wood to a black cinder. 
 Charcoal, n.s. (imagined by Skinner to be derived from Char, business; but by 
 Lye, from to chark, to burn ;) Coal made by burning wood under turf. 
 
 Of Chum, (Skinner says,) " potius ab Anglo-Saxon Cyppan, Ceppan, quia ad 
 separandum butyrum clava hue illuc valde circumagitur." And in this he is riot 
 followed by Johnson. 

 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 77 
 
 To Carry, v. a. {charier, French ; from curruS, Latin.) To convey from a place ; 
 opposed to bring, or convey io a place : — 
 " And devout men carried Stephen to his burial." Acts. 
 To Charge ; To impute : with on be/ore the person to whom any thing is imputed. 
 Johnson gives five examples, with each a different person, nominatim. 1. Na- 
 tive sloth. 2. Peripatetick doctrine. 3. The account of labour. 4. Absolute 
 decree. 5. Necessity. 
 CHICK, w. s. (&c.) 1. The young of a bird, particularly of a hen, or small bird. 
 
 Johnson deemed it necessary to illustrate this explanation by si.v examples. 
 His first deserves to be selected : — 
 
 " All my pretty ones ! 
 
 What, all my pietty chickens, and their dam. 
 
 At one fell swoop " ShakspeARE. 
 
 The hen, or small bird, whose young these chickens were, I need scarcely add, 
 was Macduff: — 
 
 " Lay on, Macduff; 
 
 And damn'd be him that first cries, Hold, enough." 
 
 See Swoop. 
 CHILL, ^ Mr. Tooke sufficiently exposes the commentators upon Shakspeare who have 
 COOL, > written about the word io keele : but he has not noticed that Johnson, 
 COLD, J in his Dictionary, — upon the authority of Goldsmith, it should seem, — 
 charges Shakspeare with writing Irish. Thus : — 
 
 " In Ireland, to keel the pot is to scum it. 
 
 " While greasy Joan doth keel the pot." Shakspeare. 
 
 Johnson also treats us with Hanmer's notable explanation, (for explanation Johnson 
 calls it,) which is this : " To keel, seems to mean to drink so deep as to turn up 
 the bottom of the pot, like turning up the keel of a ship." And yet Johnson de- 
 rives the word, after Skinner, from Coelan, refrigerare. As Tooke used the first 
 folio of the Dictionary, he might not be aware of this charge against Shakspeare ; 
 it is one of Johnson's improvements in his subsequent editions. In the first folio 
 he also had said, that " to keel probably means to cool," which he afterwards 
 expunged. 
 
 For Chill, Skinner refers to Cold, and Cold he traces to Coelan. Junius also 
 derives Chill, Cold, and Cool, from the same Anglo-Saxon verb ; and in this they 
 are not followed by Johnson.
 
 78 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 CHOICE, (T.) was formerly written Chose, and is the past participle of Cij-an, eligere, 
 to cheese, at it was formerly written. 
 Johnson derives it from Choix, French. 
 To Choose, v. n. To have tlie power of choice between different things. It is ge- 
 nerally joined with a negative, and signifies must necessarily be. 
 CLACK,? Are, in Tooke's opinion, the past participle of the verb to click. Johnson 
 CLOCK, 3 imagines CXi'cA to be the diminutive oi Clack; but Clock he fetches from 
 
 Wales and Armorica, with Junius for his guide. 
 CLOSE. (T.) A Close, with its diminutive a Closet, a Clause, a Recluse, a Sluice, are 
 past participles of Claudere and Clorre. 
 
 Johnson derives the noun and the adjective Close, from the verb ; and the verb 
 
 from the Armoriek, the Dutch, the French, and the Latin; Recluse, the adj. 
 
 from the French Rectus, and Latin Reclusus ; and Sluice, with the aid of Junius 
 
 and Skinner, from Sluyse, Dutch ; Escluse, French ; and Sclusa, Italian. 
 
 CLOUGH,? (T.) As well as Cleeve, Cleft, Clift, Cliff, and Cloven, are the past par- 
 
 CLOUT, 3 ticiple of Cliojzian, findere, to cleave. 
 
 Clouve, Clough, cleaved or divided — into small pieces. Clouved, Clouv'd, Clout. 
 Clouted cream is so called for the same reason. 
 
 Cleft, Clift, Clilf, is Cleaved, Cleaved, Cleft. — -In Chaucer they are written 
 Clyfte, Cleuis, Clyffe. 
 
 Johnson allows Cleft to be from the verb to Cleave ; but Cliff and Clift he re- 
 fers to the Latin Clivus : though Skinner tells him that it also is from the English 
 verb to Cleave; and Junius guides him quite home to the Anglo-Saxon Cliojrian, 
 findere. 
 
 Clough, Johnson derives from Cloujh, Saxon. — Skinner again directing him to 
 the verb to Cleave. 
 Clouted, particip. adj. Congealed, coagulated : corruptly used for clotted. 
 CLUB, n. s. has, according to Johnson, five distinct meanings, three of which have 
 one etymology assigned them, and two have another. His fourth meaning is — " An 
 assembly of good fellows, meeting under certain conditions." — His example shows 
 his loyalty, and what more ? It is this ; — " What right has any man to meet in 
 /ac/toMs clubs to vihfy the government?" Dryden. 
 TO COIN. 3. To make or forge any thing, in an ill sense. 
 
 " Those motives induced Virgil to coin bis fable." Dryden. 
 
 " Some tale, some new pretence, he daily coin'd, 
 
 To sooth his sister, and delude her mind." Dryden. 
 
 " A term is coined to make the conveyance easy." Atterbury,
 
 OP THE DICTIONAUY OP DR. JOHNSON. 79 
 
 It would be difficult to shew any marks of an ill sense in any of these ex- 
 amples. 
 
 COLOURABLE, Johnson says, is now little used in the sense of specious, plausible; 
 but in this he is not correct : it is constantly so used at the English bar. 
 
 COME, A kind of adverbial word, for when it shall come, as, " Come Wednesday, 
 when Wednesday shall come.*' 
 
 COMFORTABLE, adj. (ivom comfort.) 1. Receiving comfort; susceptible of com- 
 fort ; cheerful ; of persons. Not in use. 
 
 " For my sake be comfortable ; hold death 
 
 Awhile at arm's end." Shakspeare. As you like i(. 
 
 " My lord leans wondrously to discontent : 
 
 His comfortable temper has forsook him ; 
 
 He is much out of health." ShAKSPEAUE. Titnon, 
 
 Johnson was not aware that this use oi comfortable, i. e. " Able to be comforted," 
 is the only one which etymology justifies. 
 COWARD, (T.) i. e. Cowred, Cowered, Cower'd. One who has cower d before an 
 enemy. It is of the same import as Supplex. To cowre, or to cower, were for- 
 merly in common use ; and of this verb Coward is the past participle. 
 Coward, n. s. (couard, French, of uncertain derivation.) 
 To Cower, v.n. {cwrrian, Welsh ; courber, French ; or perhaps borrowed from the 
 
 manner in which a cow sinks on her knees.) 
 To Cow, V. a. (from Coward, by contraction.) 
 CRAVEN, (T.) is one who has craved or craven his life from his antagonist — dex- 
 tramque precantem protendens. 
 Craven, w. s. (derived by Skinner from crave, as one that craves or begs his life : 
 perhaps it comes originally from the noise made by a conquered cock.) 
 
 The annotator upon Beaumont and Fletcher, (Weber's edit. Vol. X. p. 211,) 
 says, " This term [ja craven) was used generally to denote a dastardly coward ; 
 and was derived from the ancient judicial trials by combat, where the person van- 
 quished, upon becoming recreant, and uttering the horrible word ' Craven,' saved 
 his life, but became ever after infamous." 
 
 What this horrible word meant, the writer cares not to inquire. In a note on 
 Ford, by the same editor, (Vol. I. p. 13,) we have a long account of the ancient 
 custom of Appeal of Battle, duly supported by a reference to Blackstone's Com- 
 mentaries, which is gravely closed with this cautious declaration: " I am informed, 
 that amongst cock-fighters tie word is still in use." Reed.
 
 80 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Mr. Steevens (Reed, Vol. IX. p. 85,) says, " A craven is a degenerate, dis- 
 pirited cock." 
 CRISP. (T.) In the Anglo-Saxon, Cijipj-, (the past participle) of Cijippan, crispare, 
 torquere." And Tooke also considers the Anglo-Saxon to be the root of the La- 
 tin crispare. 
 
 Johnson derives the adjective Crisp, from Crispus, and the verb from Crispo. 
 CRUM. (T.) Mica, is the past participle of Cpymman, Hcjiymman, friare. 
 
 Skinner gives the Saxon, Dutch, and German similar words, in which he is fol- 
 lowed by Johnson : and also the Anglo-Saxon verb Scpymman, in which he is 
 nof followed by Johnson. " Videntur esse ex ^^im^lz, mutato t into «," (says 
 Junius. 
 To Crumble, is a corrupt termination in ble, from the Dutch Krammelen. 
 CUCKOLD, n. s. {cocu, French, {t om coiicoo.) 
 
 CUCKOO, n. s. (cuculus, Latin ; cwccw, Welsh ; cocu, French ; kockock, Dutch.) 
 1. A bird, which appears in the spring, and is said to suck the eggs of other birds, 
 and lay her own to be hatched in their place : from which practice, it was usual 
 to alarm a husband at the approach of an adulterer, by calling cuckoo; which, by 
 mistake, was at last applied to the husband. 
 
 If Tooke's etymology be correct, (and doubtless it is,) there is no mistake in 
 the case : he says, — 
 
 " The Italian cucolo, a cuckow, gives us the verb to cucol, (without the termi- 
 nating f/,) as the common people rightly pronounce it, and as the verb was for- 
 Xnerly, and should still, be written : — 
 
 *' I am cuckolled and fool'd to boot too." • 
 
 B. and Fletcher, Woman Pleased. 
 
 " If he be married, may he dream he's ciickol'd." 
 
 B. and Fletcher, Loyal Subject, 
 
 To cucol, is, to do as the cuckow does : and cucol'cd, cucoVd, cucold, its past 
 participle, means — cxickow-^A ; i. e. served as the cuckow serves other birds. 
 
 Nothing can be more unsatisfactory and insipid than the labours (for they 
 laboured it) of Du Cange, Mezerai, Spelman, and Menage, concerning this word. 
 Chaucer's bantering etymology is far preferable." Remedy of Love, fo. 34, 
 p. 2, col. 1. 
 
 Junius, Vossius, and Skinner, were equally wide of the mark. 
 
 luepte autem Celtse, eosque imitati Belgse, cuculum vocant ilium qui, uxorera 
 habeus adulteram, ahenos liberos enutrit pro suis : nam tales currucas dicere
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR, JOHNSON. 81 
 
 debemus, ut paret ex natura utriusque avis, et contrario usu vocis cuculi apud 
 Plautum. Vossii etym. Lat. 
 
 Hi plane confudeniut Cuculum et Currucam. Juuius. 
 
 Certum autem est nostrum Cuckold, non a Cuculo ortum duxisse : tales enim 
 non Cuculi sunt, sed Currucce : non sua ova aliis supponunt ; sed e contra, aliena 
 sibi supposita incubant et fovent." Skinner. 
 
 The whole difficulty of etymologists, and their imputation upon us of absur- 
 dity, are at once removed by observing, that, in English, we do not call them 
 Cuculi, but Cuculati, (if I may coin the word on this occasion,) i. e. we call them 
 not Cuckows, but cuckowed. — 
 
 Thus far JMr. Tooke ; and I have been the more copious in extracting the notes 
 accompanying this etymology, for the purpose of giving effect to the contrast 
 which the Cyclopsedist supplies, and which I shall present with a single and short 
 remark. 
 
 " Few people," (he declares,) " know how the Cuckow does ; but all know how 
 a Cock acts on such occasions. Kokoraa is an eastern word, which, coming into 
 Italy, gave birth to cicurio, to crow ; and changing r into the connate I, as is often 
 the case, to kokalaa, which, in Celtic, is kilog and kilogee, to act as a cock does 
 with a hen. This, we presume, is the origin of Cuckold." 
 
 If this be the meaning of Cuckold, then is it no longer a word of feai- ; and 
 surely there is not a married man in Christendom to whom the name may not justly 
 be applied, and without being indebted for it to " Sir Smile, his neighbour.*" 
 CUD. To chew the Cud, (says Tooke,) is to chew the chew'd. And so Dr. Thomas 
 Hickes and Skinner would have taught Johnson, had he possessed any docility. 
 
 DAM, n. 8. (^dam, Dutch.) A mole or bank to confine water. 
 
 To Dam, v. a. (bemman, fopebemman, Saxon; dammen, Dutch.) 1. To confine, or 
 shut up, water by moles or dams. 
 
 " Home 1 would go. 
 
 But that my doors are hateful to my eyes ; 
 
 Fill'd and damm'd up with gaping creditors." Otway. 
 
 This is one of Johnson's examples of confining water. He found the word 
 
 * See Winter's Tale. 
 M
 
 82 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 used by Shakspeare oi fire, and by Milton of light. Yet this did not assist him 
 to discover that the word had one meaning with many applications. The editor 
 of Ford (Vol. I. p. 249,) assures us, that damin'd up " is a verb formed from the 
 dams or dikes, raised to defend flat countries from inundations." 
 
 Of the word Dumb, Johnson gives four difl'erent interpretations, attributing in 
 each a meaning to the word, which belongs to the context, and he proffers He- 
 brew, Gothick, Saxon, Danish, and Dutch similar words, as etymology. 
 
 Dam (T.) and Dumb, are the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Daeman, 
 Demman, obturare, obstruere, to dam. — Dumb means dammed, i. e. obstructed, or 
 stopped. It was formerly written Dome and Dum, without the b.— 
 
 In Antony and Cleopatra, Shakspeare writes, fo. 344, — 
 
 " So he nodded. 
 
 And soberly did mount an arme-gaunt steede, 
 Who neigh'd so hye, that what I would have spoke 
 Was beastly dumbe by him " 
 
 Upon which we have the following notes, — Reed, Vol. XVII. p. 56 : 
 
 " Was beastly durnVd by him.] The old copy has dumbe. The correction was 
 
 made by Mr. Theobald. 
 
 " Alexis means (says he) the horse made such a neighing, that if he had spoke 
 
 he could not have been heard." Malone. 
 
 " The verb which Mr. Theobald would introduce is found in Pericles, Prince of 
 
 Tyre, 1609: 
 
 " Deep clerks she dumbs," &c. Steevens. 
 
 There needs (says Tooke) no alteration. Dumbe is the past tense. — What I 
 would have spoke was, in a beastly manner, obstructed by him. 
 DAMN, Johnson derives from Damno ; and Tooke, Damno from the Anglo-Saxon 
 Daeman. If Johnson's explanations of this word, and of the adjectives and nouns 
 immediately from it are right, there is an end to all discussion among theologians, 
 as to the duration of future punishments. The lexicographer has settled that they 
 must be " eternal, never-ending," and the objects of them of course "excluded 
 from divine mercy." 
 
 At Delphis oracula cessant. 
 
 DASTARD, n. s. (Sfeaj-rpija, Saxon,) is all that Johnson supplies. 
 " Fortasse ab Anglo-Saxon J^baj-trjiijan, deterrere." Lye.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 83 
 
 " Dastard, pusillanimous, ab Anglo-Saxon Sbaftpijan, deterrere." Skinner. 
 Dastard, (T.) i. e. Territus, the past participle of Daj-rpigan, St)a]^cpij;an, 
 ferrere. Dastriged, Dastriyed, Dastried, Dastred, Dastr'd." 
 
 DATE, (T.) is merely the past participle datum, which was written by the Romans 
 at the bottom of their letters. 
 
 Johnson says, that it means the time at which a letter is written. He might 
 with as much propriety have said, that it means the place. It in fact means nei- 
 ther, but may be applied with a subaudition either of time or place. 
 DAY, n. s. (Dsej, Saxon.) 
 Dawn, n. s. (from the verb.) 
 
 To Dawn, v. n. (supposed by etymologists to have been originally to dayen, to ad- 
 vance towards day.) 
 
 He should have added the opinion of Skinner : — " Mihi magis probatur ab 
 Anglo-Saxon Daejiau, diescere." 
 
 Day, (says Tooke,) is the past participle Daj, of the Anglo-Saxon Dsejian, 
 lucescere. By adding the participial termination en to Daj, we have Dajen, or 
 Dawn. 
 DEALE, ^Deal, n.s. {deel, Dutch.) 
 
 DELL, w Skinner and Junius both conduct Johnson to the Anglo-Saxon verb 
 DOLE, y Deelan, dividere, partiri. Dell, in this application, is not in his Diction- 
 DOUIiE, y ary, and not at all in Skinner and Junius. 
 
 DOWLE, -'Dole, n.s. (from £/ea^— Daelan, Saxon.) 1. The art of distribution or 
 dealing. 2. Any thing dealt out or distributed. 
 
 " Fal. Now, my master, happy man be his dole, say I, every man to his busi- 
 ness." Shakspeare. 
 
 In this last explanation Johnson has a manifest advantage over the commenta- 
 tors on Shakspeare, who are exposed by Tooke ; but Johnson cannot escape with- 
 out an absurdity. He gives as the fifth explanation of this word — Dole. " 6. (from 
 dolor,] Grief, sorrow ; misery." 
 
 Dowle and Doule are not in Skinner nor in Johnson. Junius says, " DquI& 
 Chaucero usurpatur pro Deale, Pars, Portio. 
 
 " The gryfFon grinned as he were wocle. 
 
 And loked lovely as an owie, 
 And swore by cockes lierte and blode. 
 
 He would liim tere every doule." PL T. 12.59. 
 
 This very passage is produced by Mr. Steevens (Vol. IV. p. 118,)— who does 
 not appear to be aware of the use which Junius had made of it,— in support of hjs 
 
 M 2
 
 84 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 adoption of Bailey's explanation of Dowle to be " a feather, or rather the single 
 particles of the down." Tooke supports the opinion of Junius. " What think 
 you (he asks) is contained in this threat of the gryfifon ? Tliat he will tear off the 
 feathers or the small particles of down from the pelican ? Surely not. But that 
 he would tear him, as we say ; piecemeal; tear ewerj piece of him, tear him all 
 to pieces." 
 
 In a note upon the word Dole, in the passage cited by Johnson, Malone requires 
 us to refer to Vol. V. p. 145, n. 1. And when the reader has taken the trouble 
 to do so, what does he learn? This: " Happy man be his dole! A proverbial 
 
 expression." Steevens. But what this proverbial expression may mean, neither 
 
 Mr. Steevens nor Mr. Malone inform us. 
 
 All the above words Tooke concludes to be " the past tense and past par- 
 ticiple of the (G.) verb Dailyan, (S.) Deelan, dividere, partiri, to Deal, to divide, 
 to distribute." After many other examples, he gives the following : — 
 
 " We rede in holy wryte, Deut. xxvii. Cursed be he that iiytteth the boundes 
 and the Boles or termes of his neyghbour, and putteth him out of his ryght." — 
 Dives and Pauper, 10th comm. cap. 7. 
 
 In this last passage, (he observes) Dole is applied to a land-mark, by which 
 the lands of different occupants are divided and apportioned. 
 
 Dal, (T.) DopI, Dole, Doule, Dowle, Deal, Dell, are all but one word differ- 
 ently pronounced and differently written ; and mean merely a part, piece, or por- 
 tion, without any adsignification o{ feather or down or alms, or any other thing. 
 And when the cards are dealed or dealt round to the company within doors ; each 
 person may as properly be said to receive his dole or dowle, (i. e. that which is 
 dealed out, distributed, or dealt to him,) as the attendant beggars at the gate. — 
 
 Johnson shuts his eyes to the rational suggestion of Skinner, that dollar is from 
 bael, portio " quia sc. est Aurei sen Ducati dimidium." Tooke agrees with 
 Skinner. 
 DEARTH, n. s. (from (fear.) 1. Scarcity, which makes food dear. 
 Dear, arf/. (tseop, Saxon.) 1. Beloved; favourite; darling. 
 
 Perhaps " the rigour of interpretative lexicography" may require, that the pri- 
 mitive meaning of this adjective and that of the substantive, (which according to 
 Johnson himself is derived from the adjective,) should bear some evidence of their 
 affinity ; but Johnson heeds not such trifling difficulties. His fourth explanation of 
 the adjective is thus : — " 4. It seems to be sometimes used in Shakspeare for deer 
 sad, hateful ; grievous." But of Deer we find no account in the Dictionary. 
 
 The commentators on Shakspeare were distressed by this word, as will suffi- 
 ciently appear from the following extracts.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 85 
 
 Duke. " Notable pyrate, tliou salt-water theefe. 
 
 What foolish boldnesse brought thee to their mercies, 
 
 Whom thou in termes so bloudie, and so deere. 
 
 Hast made thine enemies ? " Twelfth Night, fo. 272. 
 
 '' Dear is immediate, consequential. So, in Hamlet • 
 
 " Would I had met my dearest foe in heaven," &c. Steevens. 
 
 " Then, if sickly eares, 
 
 Deaft with the clamours of their owne deare grones, 
 
 Will bear your idle scornes," &c. Love's Labour's Lost, fo. 144. 
 
 " Bear should here, as in many other places, be dere, sad, odious." Johnson. 
 
 " I believe dear in this place, as in many others, means only immediate, conse-; 
 quential. So, already in this scene : 
 
 .Full of dear guiltiness." Steevens. 
 
 •' How canst thou urge God's dreadful law to us. 
 
 When thou hast broke it in such dere degree." Richard III. fo. 181. 
 
 ♦* This is a word of mere enforcement, and frequently occurs with different shades 
 of meaning in our author. So, in Timon of Athens." Steevens. 
 
 And in a note on Troilus and Cressida (Vol. XV. 449,) JVIr. Steevens repeats 
 that " Dear, on this occasion, seems to mean important, consequential." 
 
 " Our hope in him is dead : let us returne. 
 
 And straine what other means is left unto us 
 
 In our deere perill " Timon of Athens, fo. 97. 
 
 " In our dear peril.] So the folios, and rightly. The Oxford editor alters dear 
 to dread, not knowing that dear, in the language of that time, signified dread, 
 and is so used by Shakspeare in numberless places." Warburton. 
 
 " Dear, in Shakspeare's language, is dire, dreadful. So, in Hamlet, (ut su- 
 pra.)" Malone. 
 
 " Dear may, in the present instance, signify immediate, or imminent. It is au 
 enforcing epithet, with not always a distinct meaning. To enumerate each of the 
 seemingly various senses in which it may be supposed to have been used by our 
 author, would at once fatigue the reader and myself. 
 
 " In the following situations it cannot signify either dire or dreadful : —
 
 86* A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 " Consort with me in loud and dear petition." Troilus and Cressida. 
 
 " Some dear cause 
 
 Will ia coucealment wrap me up a while." King Lear, Steevens. 
 
 I have deemed it best to let these editors display their own uncertainty and con- 
 fusion. Mr. Steevens would have been much relieved from his difficulties in this 
 and other instances, had he learned the first duty of a commentator ; viz. To settle 
 the meaning of the word from its etymology : — that being done, it would have 
 cost his sagacity little trouble to perceive the reason of the various appli- 
 cations. 
 
 Dearth (says Tooke) is the third person singular of the English (from the Anglo- 
 Saxon verb, Depian, nocere, Isedere) to Dere. It means some, or any, season, 
 weather, or other cause, which Dereth, i. e. maketh dear, hurteth or doth mis- 
 chief. — The English verb to Dere, was formerly in common use." 
 
 He then produces about twenty examples. The last is the one from Hamlet, in 
 which Mr. Steevens interprets the word to mean, " immediate, consequential." 
 
 Tooke continues. — " Johnson and Malone, who trusted to their Latin to ex- 
 plain his (Shakspeare's) English, for Deer and Deerest would have us read Dire 
 and Direst; not knowing that Depe and Depienb meant hurt and hurting, mis 
 chief and mischievous ; and that their Latin Dims is from our Anglo-Saxon 
 Dejie, which they would expunge." 
 
 Dere, then, is properly applied to any object which excites a sensation of hurt, 
 pain, and, consequently, of anxiety, solicitude, care, earnestness, &c. 
 DEED, is Daefe, Anglo-Saxon; Daed, Dutch; according to Skinner, Junius, and 
 Johnson. 
 
 Deed, (T.) (like actum &nd factum,) means — something, any thing done. It is 
 the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Don, to do. Do-ed, did, deed, is the 
 same word differently spelled. It was formerly written Dede, both for the past 
 tense and past participle. 
 DEEP, adj. (feeep, Saxon,) Having length downwards, &c. 
 Depth, n.s. [irom deep ; of diep, Dutch.) 
 
 Dabchick, n. s. {Colymbus,) A small water-fowl, called likewise Dobchick, and Di- 
 dapper, and Dipchick. 
 
 Deep, (T.) which some (^Junius for one) derive from Bi/9o;, fundum ; primis tri- 
 bus literis inversis, and others from i^mla, (Skinner for one,) is merely the past 
 participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Dippan, mergere, to dip, to dive. 
 
 In Dab-c/itti-, or Doh-chick, Dab or Dob, (so pronounced for Dap or Dop,) is
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. B7 
 
 also the past participle of Dippan ; by the accustomed change of the charac- 
 teristic i to a or o. 
 
 Depth, also, is the third person singular of the same xerh : — Dippeth, 
 
 Depth.— 
 DIM, is, according to Junius, from A£i/««&ai ; Skinner from Demmen, obturare; and 
 Johnson from Dow, Erse. 
 
 It is (T.) the past participle of Dimnian, Stoimnian, obscurare. It was for- 
 merly written Dimn. 
 DIN, ^ Din, n.s. (byn, a noise ; toynau, to make a noise, Saxon; dy7ia, to thunder, 
 DINT,> Iceslandick.) A loud noise, a violent and continued sound. 
 DUN, 5 Dint, w. .s. (ftyne, Saxon.) 1. A blow, or stroke. 
 To Dun, v. a. ('ounan, Saxon, to clamour.) 
 Dun, n. s. (from the verb,) A clamorous, importunate, troublesome creditor. 
 
 The substantives (T.) are all the past participle of Dynan, strepere, to difi. 
 A Dun is one who has dinned another for money, or any thing. 
 To Dun, " Debitoris auribus obstrepere," says Skinner. 
 " Cujus originem videre licet in Dinn, sonitus," says Lye. 
 DITCH, -\ Ditch, n. s. (feic, Saxon ; diik, Erse.) A trench cut in the grounds, usually 
 DYCHE,C between fields. 
 DIKE. 3 Dike, n. s. (bijc, Saxon ; dyk, Erse.) 
 
 Skinner gives Johnson much better information. He refers him to the Anglo- 
 Saxon Dician, for Ditch or Dike; and declares it to be clearer than the sun at 
 noon day : — " Ortum esse a verbo to dig, omnino ut fossa a fodiendo." 
 
 Tooke asserts, that they are all three the same word : — The past participle of 
 the Anglo-Saxon verb Dician, fodere, to dig ; as the Latin reputed substantive 
 Fossa, is the past participle of fodere. 
 
 In these words, (he continues,) Dig, Dike, Dyche, Ditch, we see at one 
 view how easily and almost indifferently we pronounce the same word either with 
 g, k, or ch. 
 DITTY and DITTO, Tooke thinks, are the past participle of Dicere, and so says 
 
 Skinner of Ditty ; but Johnson prefers the Dutch, Dicht. 
 DOOM, " Vide etymon in Deem," says Skinner ; and Deem he derives from the Anglo- 
 Saxon Deman, judicare ; with little advantage, however, to Johnson. 
 Doom, n. s. (bom, Saxon ; doem, Dutch.) — This is his etymon of the noun ; though 
 he derives the verbs, To deem and To doom, from the same source as Skinner 
 does. 
 
 Doom (T.) is the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb, Deman, judicare, 
 censere, decernere, To deem.
 
 88 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 DOT, n. s. (This is derived by Skinner from Doiter, German, the white of an egg ; 
 and interpreted by him a grume of pus. It has now no such signification, and 
 seems rather corrupted fromyo^, a point.) A small point or spot made to mark 
 any place in a writing. — He also gives — 
 To Dot, v. a. To mark with specks ; — and, 
 To Dot, v. n. (from the noun,) To make dots or spots. 
 
 The three words stand without example in the Dictionary. 
 
 Dot (T.) is merely the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Dyrran, occlu- 
 dere, obturare, to stop up, to shut in. It has the same meaning as Dycret), Sax. 
 Dated, occlusum. It is not " made to mark any place in a writing ;'' but is 
 what we call a full stop. The verb To dit, to stop up, is used, in its participle, by 
 Douglas, Booke v. p. 155. 
 DOTARD, > Johnson derives both from the verb To dote, and the former, accord- 
 DOTTEREL. > ing to him, means " A man whose age has impaired his intellects." 
 
 Dotard, Tooke believes to be Doder'd, (i. e. Befooled,) the regular past partici- 
 ple of Dybepian, Dybjiian, illudere, to delude. Dotterel is its diminutive. 
 DOUGH, U.S. (bah, Saxon; deegh, Dutch.) 1. The paste of bread or pies yet un- 
 baked. 
 Dew, ti.s. (^eaj;, Saxon; daaw, Dutch.) The moistuTe upon the ground. 
 
 " Never yet one hour in bed 
 
 Did I enjoy the golden dew of sleep. 
 
 But with his tim'rous dreams was still awak'd." Shakspeare. 
 
 " The churchman bears a bounteous mind, indeed ; ' 
 
 A hand as fruitful as the lands that feed us ; 
 
 His dew falls every where " Id. 
 
 Such are some of Johnson's instances of moisture upon the ground. 
 
 Dough (T.) is the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon Dea]))an, to moisten or to 
 wet. Dough, therefore, or Dow, means wetted. — Dew, (Anglo-Saxon, Dea]),) 
 though differently spelled and pronounced, is the same participle with the same 
 meaning. After the bread has been wetted, (by which it becomes Bough,) then 
 comes the leaven, (which in the Anglo-Saxon is termed Haej: and Heepen,) by 
 which it becomes Loaf. — See Bread, Loaf, and Leaven. 
 
 Skinner derives Dew from Dea])ian, in which he is not followed by Johnson. 
 DOUGHTY, " a nom. Duju?!, virtus, et hoc a Dujau, valere." So says Skinner ; but 
 not Johnson.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 89 
 
 Duguth (T.) is the third person singular of the indicative of Dugan, and from 
 Duju^ we have Doughty. 
 DOWN, ? " S. Johnson, (says Tooke) in point of etymology and the meaning of 
 ADOWN, > words, is always himself. 
 
 Adown, the adverb, he says, is from a and down, and means, On the ground. 
 
 Adown, the preposition, means, towards the ground. 
 
 But though Adown comes from a and down, — Down, the preposition, he says, 
 comes from Sbuna, Saxon, and means, 1st, Along a descent ; and, 2dly, Towards 
 the mouth of a river. 
 
 Down, the adverb, he says, means, — On the ground. But Down, the substan- 
 tive, he says, is from Dun, Saxon, a hill ; but is used now as if derived from the 
 adverb, for it means, 1st, A large open plain or valley. 
 
 And as an instance of its meaning a valley, he immediately presents us with 
 Salisbury Plain : 
 
 " On tlie doiDtis, as we see, near Wilton the fair, 
 A hasteii'd hare from greedy greyhound go." 
 
 He then gives four instances more, to shew that it means a valley; in every one 
 of which it means hills or rising grounds. To compleat the absurdity, he then 
 says, it means, " 2dly, a hill, a risiug ground, and that, this sense is very rare ;' 
 although it has this sense in every instance he has given for a contrary sense ; nor 
 has he given, nor could he give any instance where this substantive has any other 
 sense than that which he says is so rare. — But this is like all the rest from that 
 quarter ; and I repeat it again, the book is a disgrace to the country." 
 
 The later editions of the Dictionary are not chargeable with the same absurdi- 
 ties with which the first is. In the ninth, a down is not said to be a valley, but 
 " A large open plain, properly a flat on the top of a hill ;" and the second defini- 
 tion, quoted by Tooke, is entirely omitted : but the example is introduced among 
 those to the first, and now only, explanation. It is this: — " Hills afford pleasant 
 prospects ; as they must needs acknowledge who have been on the downs of SuS' 
 sex." And now let Johnson's admirers estimate the value of this improvement. 
 
 Mr. Tooke does not seem to be confident in his own etymology. " If," (he 
 says,) " with Camden, we can suppose the Anglo-Saxon Dun to have proceeded 
 through the gradations of 
 
 Diifen,^ 
 
 ^Duven, Duvn, Dun, Don, Down, 
 Daven, Davn, Dan. 
 
 N
 
 90 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 " / should think if. more natural to derive both the name of the rivers, and the 
 preposition from Duj:en, the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon Dujrian, mergere, 
 to sink, to plunge, to dive, to dip." 
 
 But Johnson has some further extravagancies under the word Down. He 
 says — 
 Down, (Jo go.) To be digested ; to be received. 
 
 " If he be hungry, more than wanton, bread alone will down," &c. LoCKE. 
 To Down, v. a. (from the particle,) To knock ; to subdue ; to suppress ; to con- 
 quer. 
 
 " The hiddp'.i beauties soem'd in wait to lie. 
 
 To doicn proud hearts that would not willino- die." Sidney. 
 
 DRAUGHT, according to Johnson, is from Draw, and its first meaning is, " The act 
 of drinking;" but the first meaning of To draw, is, "To pull along; not to 
 carry." And he can discover fifty-six meanings of this verb. 
 
 Draught, (says Tooke,) is the past participle of Dpajan, To dratigh, (^now 
 written To draw,) Draughed, Draugh'd, Draught. 
 DROP, n. s. (bjioppa, Saxon.) 1. A globule of moisture. 
 
 Drop, (T.) any thing dripped ; the past participle of To drip. 
 DROSS, according to Tooke, is the past participle of the Gothic Driusan ; Anglo- 
 Saxon Djieojan, dejieere, precipitare. 
 
 Johnson informs us, that it is from Djioj-, Saxon ; and, for the instruction of the 
 unlearned reader, that it means, " The recrement or despumation of metals." 
 And, according to his custom, produces one example, in which there is merely a 
 figurative allusion to metals. 
 DROUGTH, iDrougth, (T.) Anglo-Saxon Dpuj;o^. It was formerly written Dryeth, 
 DRY, f Dryth, and Drith. — Drougth is that which dryeth, the third person 
 
 DRONE, C singular of the indicative of Dpijan, Djiujan, arescere. 
 DRAIN, J Dry, Anglo-Saxon, Dpij, is the past participle of the same verb ; 
 
 as is, also, Drugs, a name common to all Europe, and which means dryed, (sub- 
 aud. Herbs, roots, plants, &c.) When we say any thing is a mere drug, we mean 
 dryed up, worthless.- — • 
 Drought, n.s. (Djiu^o^e, Saxon.) 1. Dry weather, want of rain. 
 Drug, n.s. (^Drogue, French.) 1. An ingredient used in physicks, says Johnson ; but 
 whether wet or dry, he say.s not. 
 
 For Drug, Skinner refers to Drij, and there we find the Anglo-Saxon verb 
 S^pijan : " Mer. Casaubon (he adds) nostrum Drjj deflectit a Lat. Aridus, sane 
 N rairo, nee laudando artificio."
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 91 
 
 Dry, Drone, Drain. — These words, (T.) though diiferentlj spelled, and differ- 
 ently applied, are the same past tense and past participle of the Anglo-Saxon 
 Dpyjan, excutere, expellere, and, therefore, siccare. 
 
 Dry, siccus, in the Anglo-Saxon Djiyj, is manifestly the past tense of Djiy jan, 
 used participially. 
 
 Drone, excussus, expulsus, (subaud. Bee,") is written in the Anglo-Saxon, Djian, 
 Dpane. Djieen, Dpaej, (y in Dpyjan being changed into a broad,) is the regular 
 past tense of Djiyjan ; — by adding to it the participial termination en, we have 
 Djiajen, Djiaj'n, Dpan, (the a broad,) pronounced by us in the south. Drone. 
 
 Drain is evidently the same past participle, differently pronounced, as Djiaen ; 
 being applied to that by which any fluid (or other thing) is expulsum or excus- 
 sum. — 
 
 Drain, the verb, Johnson derives from the French trainer; and Drain, the 
 substantive, from the verb ; and Drone, from Djioen, Saxon. — Of Drone, Skinner 
 says, " Crediderim potius contr. a Droven, part, verbi, To drive, quia sc. ab api" 
 bus alveari abiguntur fuci." 
 DRUDGE, Johnson after Skinner, derives from Dpeccan, to vex. Tooke derives it 
 from the past participle of Dpeojan, rie-tepeoran, agere, tolerare, pati, sufferre- 
 Djieojenb, the present participle. 
 DULL,>(T.) Dull, Dol, is the regular past tense of D)ielian, Dj^olan, hebere, hebe- 
 DOLT, S tare. And Dolt, i. e. dulled, (or bol-eb, feol'b, bolt,) is the past participle 
 of the same verb. To dull was formerly in good use. 
 
 Johnson presents Teutonick, Welsh, Saxon, and Dutch similar words, and is 
 rather acrimonious in his account of a Dolt. Nor does he appear to have forgotten 
 that his own employment was not his own choice: Dull, (he says,) means, " Not 
 exhilarating ; not delightful : as, To make Dictionaries is dull ^cork." 
 DUNG, 71. s. (Dinej:, Saxon,) The excrement of animals used to fatten ground. — 
 Johnson is referred by Skinner to Dynjan. 
 
 Dung, (T.) (or as it was formerly written Dong,} is the past tense, and, there- 
 fore, past participle of the verb Dynjan, dejicere, to cast down. It therefore 
 means dejectum, and in that meaning only is applied to stercus. 
 DURING, (T.) the French participle duranl ; from the Italian ; from the Latin. The 
 whole verb Dure was some time used commonly in our language. 
 
 Even Johnson says, that this word During, is rather a participle from the verb 
 Dure, than a preposition. 
 
 M 2
 
 92 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 E. 
 
 EAR, n. s. (Gajie, Saxon ; Oer, Dutch.) 1. The whole organ of audition or hearing. 
 
 There are eight more explanations, the last of which is, " The spike of corn ; 
 that part which contains the seeds." We must proceed to 
 Eared, adj. (from ear.) 1. Having ears or organs of hearing. 2. Having ears or 
 ripe corn. 
 
 The first explanation is unaccompanied by any example : the last is in a still 
 worse predicament. It has this for an example : 
 
 " The covert of the thiice-far'f/ field 
 
 Saw stately Ceres to her passion yield." 
 
 The passage is from the 5th book of the Odyssey, (v. 125 in the original, aud 159 
 in the translation.) And I am afraid that it will appear, upon consulting the ori- 
 ginal, that Pope very well knew the meaning of Homer, and has expressed it iu 
 English undefiled ; and that Johnson has been guilty of a most egregious blunder. 
 The Greek expression is Nfiffl £vi T^i^o^a. The word Tfiuroxov occurs also in the 18th 
 Iliad, V. 542, and there it is translated by Pope, " thrice-laboured :" and, in fact, 
 the scene described is that of labourers in the very act of ploughing, or earing, 
 the field. The Scholiast, upon the word in both passages, interprets Tfisrofof, to 
 mean Tf if or r^iiov tal^ai^svn. , 
 
 Now, to complete the matter, Johnson has the verb " To ear, to plow, to till ;" 
 which he derives from the Latin Aro; and yet he gives this obvious past participle 
 of this verb To ear, i. e. to plow, as an adjective from the noun, — the name of the 
 organ of the sense of hearing, and explains it accordingly. 
 
 He was also entirely unsuspicious that " Earth," was any part of this verb ; but 
 upon this head we must hear Tooke. 
 
 " Earth, that vrhich one ereth or earetk, i. e. plougheth. It is the third person 
 of the indicative of Gjiian, arare, to ere, to eare, to plough. 
 
 Instead of Earth, Douglas and some other ancient authors use Erd ; i. e. Ered, 
 Er'd, that which is ploughed ; the past participle of the same verb. 
 
 Where we now say Earth, the Germans use Erd; which Vossius derives from 
 the Hebrew : ' Ab Hebraeo est etiam Germanicum Erd.' From the Hebrew also 
 he is willing to derive Tellus. But both Erd and Tellus are of Northern origin, 
 aud mean —
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 93 
 
 Erd, that which is Er-ed < 
 
 f. Ar-are 
 
 Tell-us, that which is Till-ed "5 rw, ,' 
 
 Ar-are. 
 Til-ian, 
 Tol-ere. 
 
 And it is a most erroaeoiis practice of the Latin etymologists to fly to the He- 
 brew for whatever they cannot find in the Greek ; for the Romans were not a 
 mixed colony of Greeks and Jews, but of Greeks and Goths; as the whole of the 
 Latin language most plainly evinces." 
 
 One of Johnson's explanations of Earthly may be selected as a specimen of his 
 own peculiar strain. It means, 4. Any thing in the world; a female hyperbole." 
 EAST, from Gojc, Anglo-Saxon, says Johnson, after Skinner and Junius. The latter 
 indeed would derive the Anglo-Saxon from the Greek Hat vel Eas, Aurora. 
 
 Vest, Johnson says, is from Irej-t:, Saxon, and means 1. The foam, spume, or 
 flower of beer in fermentation ; barm. 2. The spume on a troubled sea. 
 Yesty, adj. (from Fes/,) Frothy, spumy. 
 
 " Though you untie the winds, and let them fight 
 
 Against the churches ; though the yesty waves 
 
 Confound and swallow navigation up." Shakspeare. Macbeth. 
 
 East, according to Tooke, is the past participle of Ypj-ian, or Jepj-ian, irasci: 
 thus formed— Ypj-eb, Yj^j-'b, Yjij-t,— dropping the p, it becomes Yj-c, and so it is 
 much used in Anglo-Saxon. Supplying the place of r by a, which is usual with 
 those who cannot pronounce the r, we have East, which means " Angry, en- 
 raged." And hence alsoFes/y, in Anglo-Saxon Yj-cij, Jej-tij, procellosus, stormy, 
 enraged. 
 
 " The enraged waves" is an expression rather more suitable to Shakspeare's 
 " high-charged description, than the wretched allusion to fermenting beer." 
 To EBB, V. a. To flow back towards the sea. 
 
 So the first edition of the Dictionary ; which was afterwards improved by this 
 addition: — " Opposed to flow;" which, I presume, means to intimate, that io flow 
 back is not io flow at all: and this is one of Johnson's improvements upon his first 
 edition. 
 
 However, Johnson could find no instance of the tide of water flowing iu this 
 
 manner, and therefore he makes the tide of blood, and the tide oi fortune, serve 
 
 his purpose. 
 
 EKE, the adverb, Johnson derives from Gac, Saxon; Ook, D'ltch: though Junius 
 
 thinks that it may more correctly be taken from the Gothic Aucan, and Auglo-
 
 94 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Saxon Gacan ; whence the verb Eake, Eeke, augere. And Tooke fixes upon the 
 imperative 6ac, of the same Anglo-Saxon verb, as the part of the verb, to 
 which we are indebted for this supposed conjunction. Skinner, who had the 
 good sense to derive Iri]: from Irijran, would here derive Gacan from Gac. 
 ELSE. Unless, Else, Lest, have all (says Tooke) one meaning ; (viz. of separation,) 
 and are all portions of the same word, Lej-an, i. e. of On-lej-an, S-lejaii, Lej-an. 
 Else is the imperative Slej- of the verb Slej-an, to dismiss. 
 
 On-les . of . . . On-lej-an. 
 
 Les . of . . . Lej-an. 
 
 It is the same imperative Les placed at the end of nouns and coalescing with 
 them, which has given to our language such adjectives as hopeZess, restZess, death- 
 less, motion/ess, &c. i. e. dismiss hope, rest, death, motion, &c. 
 
 The adjective Less, and the comparative Less, are the imperatives of Lejan; 
 and the superlative Least is the past participle, and so is the conjunction. — 
 
 Upon these words, and the opinions of different writers respecting them, Mr. 
 Tooke has written very fully ; and no reader, who has any desire for information, 
 will forbear to consult the Diversions of Purley. 
 
 But from this Gothic and Anglo-Saxon verb Lej an, he also derives the follow- 
 ing words : — - 
 To Lose,— Lost, — A Loss. 
 To Loose, — Loose. 
 To Un-loose. 
 To Loosen. 
 To Un-loosen. 
 To Lessen. 
 To Lease, — A Lease. 
 
 To Re-lease, — A Release, — A Lease and Release. 
 
 To go a Leasing, i. e. Loo.sing, i. e picking up that which is loose, (i. e. loosed,) 
 separate, (i. e. separated,) or detached, {detachh) from the sheaf. 
 
 And however (he adds) this word (for they are all one) may be now differently 
 spelled, and differently used and applied in modern English, the reader will easily 
 perceive that separation is always invariably signified in every use and application 
 of it.— 
 
 Let us see, then, what Johnson has to say upon these words. — 
 To Lose, v. a. (Leojan, Saxon,) has ten explanations, and the first, the most re^ 
 
 mote from the iutrinsick meaning ; viz. " To forfeit by unlucky contest." 
 Lost, participial adj. (from lose,) No longer perceptible. 
 
 For To Loose, v. a. Johnson, after Skiuner, does refer to the Anglo-Saxou
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 95 
 
 Lej-an, but explains it to mean, first, " To unbind ; to untie any thing fastened ;" 
 and has the following, for one of his examples: 
 
 " Who is worthy to loose the seals thereof." Rev. v. 2. 
 Lease, n. s. {laisser, French, Spelman.) 1. A contract by which, in consideration 
 of some payment, a temporary possession is granted of houses or lands. 
 
 " Lords of the world have but for life their lease." Dknham. 
 
 2. Any tenure. 
 
 " Thou, to give the world increase. 
 
 Shortened hast thy own life's lease.'" Miltois. 
 
 Though Johnson gives the legal application of the word Lease, as its first mean- 
 ing, he does not appear to have known the legal application of the word Release 
 to any thing but the acquittal from a debt. 
 To Unloose, v. a. To loose. A word, perhaps, barbarous and uiigrammatical, the 
 particle prefixed implijing negation. So that to Unloose is, properly, to bind. 
 
 On, the Anglo-Saxon particle, (as Johnson calls it,) implies no such thing. 
 Lease, v. n. {lesen, Dutch.) To glean, to gather what the harvestmen leave. 
 ENOUGH. (T.) In Dutch, Genoeg : from the verb Genoegen, to content, to satisfy. — 
 In the Anglo-Saxon it is ISeno;^, or Denoh, and appears to be the past participle 
 Lenojet), multiplicatum, manifold, of the verb Irenojan, multiplicare.— 
 
 This word puzzles Johnson : he thinks it not easy to determine whether it be an 
 adjective or an adverb ; and he therefore concludes, that it is not only both adjec- 
 tive and adverb, but a substantive also : that when it is an adjective, Enow is the 
 plural of it ; though in his Grammar he informs us that adjectives have no num- 
 ber. And when it is an adverb, he says that sometimes it notes " a slight aug- 
 mentation," and sometimes " a diminution," &c. &c. 
 EXCISE. The patriotick indignation of Johnson, though so well known, deserves to 
 be preserved in this collection of the curiosities of his Dictionary. — " A hateful 
 tax, levied upon commodities, and adjudged, not by the common judges of pro- 
 perty, but by wretches hired by those to whom excise is paid." I shall subjoin one 
 of his examples : it is of that unsparing collector of this hateful tax, the bee 
 errant, which, 
 
 " Having rifled all the fields 
 Of what dainties Flora yields;'' 
 
 becomes, according to the extract in Johnson,
 
 96 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 " Ambitious now to take excise 
 
 Of a more fragrant paradise." Cleavelani). 
 
 And proceeds, therefore, to the sleeves of the poet's mistress, 
 
 " Where all delicious sweets are hived." 
 
 FAIN, adj. (peajn, Saxon.) 1. Glad; merry; chearful ; foud. It is still used in 
 Scotland in this sense. 
 2. Forced ; obliged ; compelled. This signification seems to have arisen from the 
 mistake of the original signification in some ambiguous expressions ; as, I was fain 
 to do this, would equally suit vcith the rest of the sentence, whether it was under- 
 stood to mean / was compelled, or / was glad, to do it for fear of worse. Thus 
 the primary meaning seems to have been early lost. 
 
 It has very much the appearance of what Johnson calls "a risible absurdity," 
 for him, at this stage of the Dictionary, to talk about " original signification" and 
 " primary meaning." But the reader may be assured that the primary meaning 
 is not lost in any one of the examples produced by Johnson; in every one of which 
 the word " glad" may be substituted without any alteration of sense, and " the 
 fear of worse" may be collected from the contest. 
 
 Fain, (says Tooke,) is the past participle jiaejenet), psejen, pse^n, laetus, of the 
 verb paejeman, paejnian, gaudere, leetari. — 
 
 And from this Anglo-Saxon verb Skinner derives it, but not Johnson. 
 FANCY, > Fancy, n. s. (contracted from phantasy, phantasia, Latin 
 
 IMAGn:ATION,> (pocilaina. It should be PAaws?y.) 
 
 I. Imagination; the power by which the mind forms to itself images and repre- 
 sentations of things, persons, or scenes of being. 
 Imagination, n. s. (^imaginatio, Latin ; imagination, French ; from imagine.') 
 1. Fancy; the power of forming ideal pictures; the power of representing things 
 
 absent to one's self or others. 
 To Fancy, v. n. (from the noun,) To imagine; to believe without being able to 
 
 prove. 
 To Fancy, v. a. 
 
 1. To portray in the mind ; to image to himself; to imagine. 
 To Imagine, v. a. {imaginer, French ; imaginor, Latin.)
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 97 
 
 1. To fancy, to paint in the mind. 
 
 Thus Johnson attempts to distinguish between words " generally accounted 
 synonymous." 
 
 Mr. Stewart, in his Elements, has condescended to appear in the character of 
 the despised philologer ; and endeavours to settle the distinction between these two 
 words, — Fancy and Imagination. According to his explanation, " The office of 
 fancy is to collect materials for the imagination ; and, therefore, the latter power 
 presupposes the former ; while the former does not necessarily suppose the latter. 
 A man whose habits of association present to him, for illustrating or embellishing 
 a subject, a number of resembling or of analogous ideas, we call a man of fancy ; 
 but for an effort of imagination," (Mr. Stewart means a successful effort, which 
 can have no influence upon the distinction between the two supposed powers,) 
 " various other powers are necessary, particularly the powers of taste and judg- 
 ment ; without which we can hope to produce nothing that will be a source of 
 pleasure to others : — It is the power of fancy which supplies the poet with meta- 
 phorical language, and with all the analogies that are the foundation of his allu- 
 sions ; but it is the power of the imagination that creates the complex scenes he 
 describes, and the fictitious characters he delineates. To fancy we apply the epi- 
 thets of rich or luxuriant ; to imagination, those of beautiful or sublime." 
 
 Surely we might say, without any impropriety, and without even violating any 
 established modes of expression, — That the fancy of Collins (and of his genius 
 fancy may be emphatically styled the characteristick,) was beautiful and sublime ; 
 
 the imagination of Thomson, rich and luxuriant. But Mr. Stewart's meaning 
 
 requires illustration. 
 
 25. 
 
 " Yet such the destiny of all on earth : 
 
 So flourishes and fades majestick man : 
 
 Fair is the bud his vernal morn brings forth ; 
 
 And fostering gales awhile the niirslino- fan. 
 
 O smile, ye heavens, serene ; — ye mildews wan. 
 
 Ye blighting whirlwinds, spare his balmy pride, 
 
 Nor lessen of his life the little span. 
 
 Borne on the swift, though silent wings, of Time, 
 
 Old age comes on apace to ravage all the clime." Beattie's Minstrel, 
 
 As I understand Mr. Stewart,— Fancy suggests the analogy between the destiny 
 of man and vegetable nature ; as exposed to sudden and resistless destruction. 
 Imagination creates the scenes. 
 Fancy supplies the language. 
 
 O
 
 98 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 This I believe to be Mr. Stewart's intended distinction; a distinction, which 
 appears to me not only perfectly nugatory, but even to involve a contradiction. 
 
 Imagination, Mr. Stewart affirms, necessarily presupposes fancy ; but fancy 
 does not necessarily suppose imagination : fancy supplies the analogies and the 
 language; and imagination creates the scenes. The language, — for what purpose, — 
 if not to describe these scenes — to express that which, according to Mr. Stewart, 
 imagination must present to the eye of fancy ? Fancy is dumb ; she knows no 
 language, till imagination bid her speak : and yet are we assured that the former 
 power does not necessarily suppose the latter. — What analogies, I would also ask, 
 can fancy distinguish, until imagination has presented the sceaes from which those 
 analogies are to be drawn ? 
 
 This latter power is, indeed, undoubtedly competent to the full performance of 
 the whole task, which Mr. Stewart has so uselessly divided between the two. If 
 imagination " lodged in any mortal mixture of earth's mould," can create the 
 scenes, she will be at no loss to describe them. 
 
 I will venture, then, an attempt to mark the boundaries of the provinces, which 
 we might fairly allot to these two conflicting powers, with a little more clearness 
 and precision, than, I think, Mr. Stewart has been so fortunate as to attain ; first 
 premising, that the object to be accomplished is simply this : to fix the distinct 
 application of two words, whose real meaning might allow an indiscriminate ap- 
 plication ; and that, in endeavouring to do this, we are restricted to no other rule, 
 than to preserve a cause of the application inviolate. 
 Our poets must lend me also their " artful aid." 
 
 38. 
 
 " But who the melodies of morn can tell .'' 
 
 Tlie wild brook babbling down the mountain side ; 
 
 The lowing heid ; the tsheepfold's simple bell ; 
 
 The pipe of early shepherd dim descried 
 
 In the lone valley ; echoing far and wide 
 
 The clamorous horn along the cliffs above ; 
 
 The hollow murmur of the ocean tide ; 
 
 The hum of bees, the linnet's lay of love ; 
 
 And the full choir that wakes the universal grove. 
 
 39. 
 
 The cottage curs at early pilgrim bark ; 
 
 Crown'd with her pail the tripping milkmaid sings ; 
 
 The whistling ploughman stalks a field ; and, hark ! 
 
 Down the rough slope the ponderous waggon rings ; 
 
 Through rustling corn the hare astonish'd springs ;
 
 OP THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 99 
 
 Slow tolls the village clock the drowsy hour : 
 The partridge bursts away on whirring wings ; 
 Deep mourns the turtle in sequester'd bower, 
 And shrill lark carols clear from her aerial tower." 
 
 All the pictures exhibited iu these exquisite stanzas are pure and unmixed pic- 
 tures of imagination. 
 
 " How sleep the brave, who sink to rest, 
 By all their country's wishes blest ! 
 When Spring, with dewy fingers cold, 
 Returns to deck their hallow'd mould, 
 She there shall dress a sweeter sod. 
 Than Fancy's feet have ever trod. 
 
 " By fairy hands their knell is rung, 
 By fairj' forms their dirge is sung ; 
 There Honour comes a pilgrim gray, 
 To bless the turf that wraps their clay. 
 And Freedom shall a while repair 
 To dwell a weeping hermit there." 
 
 CoLUNS's Ode, written in the year 1746. 
 
 These are the pictures of fancy. 
 
 " Still is the toiling hand of Care ; 
 
 The panting herds repose : 
 
 Yet, hark ! how through the peopled air 
 
 The busy murmur glows ! 
 
 The insect youth are on the wing. 
 
 Eager to taste the honied Spring, 
 
 And float amid the liquid noon : 
 
 Some lightly o'er the current skim. 
 
 Some show their gaily gilded trim 
 
 Quick glancing to the sun." GRAY. Ode on Spring. 
 
 These are the pictures of imagination. 
 
 " The dangerous passions kept aloof 
 Far from the sainted growing woof ; 
 But near it sat extatic Wonder, 
 Listening the deep applauding thunder : 
 
 O 2
 
 XOO A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 And Truth in sunny vest array'd, 
 
 By whose the Tarsel's eyes were made; 
 
 All the shadowy tribes of mind 
 
 In braided dance their murmurs join'd ; 
 
 And all the brio-ht uncounted powers, 
 
 Who feed on heaven's ambrosial flowers. 
 
 Collins. Ode on the Poetical Character. 
 
 These are the pictures of fancy. 
 
 " And let us 
 
 On your imaginarie forces worke. 
 Suppose within the girdle of these walls. 
 Are now confin'd two mightie monarchies. 
 Whose high, upreared, and abutting fronts. 
 The perillous narrow ocean parts asunder. 
 Peece out our imperfections with your thoughts : 
 Thinke when we talke of horses, that you see them 
 Printing their prowd hoofes i'th' receiving earth." 
 
 SuAKspEARX. Chorus to Hettry V. \ 
 
 These again are pictures of imagination. jj 
 
 In Collins's Ode to Evening the two classes of pictures are most beautifully in- 
 termixed : 
 
 " Or if chill blustering winds, or driving rain 
 
 Prevent my willing feet, be mine the hut, , 
 
 That from the mountain side 
 
 Views wilds and swelling floods. 
 
 And hamlets brown, and dim-discover'd spires. 
 And hears their simple bell, and marks o'er all 
 
 Thy deicy Jingers draw 
 
 The gradual dusky veil." • 
 
 The sole business of fancy, then, as distinct from the imagination, consists in 
 personification, and in supporting imagery appropriate to such personification ; a 
 distinction wholly neglected by Mr. Stewart, but which, as it appears to me, has . 
 the merit of being clear and precise ; and by observing which we shall, I think, 
 add considerably to those enjoyments of poetical compositioD, that result from 
 just and elegant discrimination. 
 
 \
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 101 
 
 FANG, V. a. (jranjan, Saxon ; vangen, Dutch.) 
 
 Fang, n. s. (from the verb.) The long tusks of a boar or other animal, [with which 
 the prey is seized and held ;] any thing like 'em. 
 
 The words inclosed are not in the first folio. This eking out of an explanation 
 by the comprehensive addition, " Any thing like 'em," has no small policy in it, 
 and I wonder that it is not more frequently repeated. It supplies all deficiencies, 
 and obviates a,ll objections. For instance, if the icy fang of the winter's wind be 
 not exactly " the long tusks of a boar or other animal," it may be, and in Johnson's 
 estimation is, " very much like 'em." There is no disputing such points. 
 
 Fang, Tooke pronounces to be the past tense and past participle of Fenjan, 
 capere, prehendere, and Finger, quod prehendit. 
 FARTHING, n.s. (peop'Slinj, Saxon ; from peojiep, /owr; that is, the fourth part of 
 a penny.) 
 
 Farthing (T.) is also a participle, and means merely, fourthing, or dividing 
 into four parts. 
 FEAT, n. s. (fait, French.) 
 
 Fit, n. s. (from fight. Skinner ; every fit of a disease being a struggle of nature ; 
 from viit, Flemish, frequent. Junius.) 
 
 Such is Johnson's indifference to the primary meaning of words. 
 Feat and Fit, in Tooke's opinion, are the past participle from the French fairs, 
 from the Latin facere. 
 FEN, ^Fen, n. s. (fenn, Saxon ; venne, Dutch.) 1. A marsh, «fec. 
 
 FAINT, JFaint, adj. (fane, French.) 1. Languid, &c. 
 
 FENOWED,r ViNNEWED, or Vinney, adj. Mouldy. Ainsworth. 
 VINEVVED, ^ Such is all the information which Johnson gives, and that in this 
 or % instance he preferred the authority of Ainsworth to that of Skinner, 
 
 WHINID. J can only be attributed to his idleness. His authorities, however, sup- 
 ply something more, and something better, than he has taken the pains to pro- 
 duce. — Junius says, — 
 
 " Fustie, foistie, mucidus, situm recipiens. Cantianis fennow vel finnow est 
 mucidus — Anglo-Saxon fynij, est mucidus, pynejmn, mucescere." 
 
 Under Finny, Lye says, " Ita damnonii panem, caseum, &c. mucore seu situ 
 corruptos amant vocare. Est idem ac Finnow." 
 
 In the first folio of Shakspeare, (Troilus and Cressida,) we find — 
 
 " Speake, then, thou whinid'st leaven, speake." 
 In Mr. Steevens's edition of Twenty Plays of Shakspeare from the quarto, for
 
 102 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 " 'wkinid'st" v/e find " unsalted;'' and this unsalted keeps its place in the text of 
 Malone's and Reed's edition, notwithstanding it is accompanied by notes, which 
 shew that the word " ?rAi'««r' is properly applied, and though '■'■unsalted" evi- 
 dently murders the metre. 
 
 Fan or Fen, (says Tooke,) is the past tense, and therefore past participle of 
 Fynigean, ; and means corrupted, spoiled, decayed, withered. In modern speech 
 we apply Fen only to stagnated or corrupted water ; but it was formerly applied to 
 any decayed or spoiled stibstance. 
 
 Faint is Faned, Fand, Fant, or Fened, Fend, Fent. The French participle 
 Fan^, of the verb Faner or Fener, is also from Fynijeau. 
 
 Whinid, Vinew'd, Fennowed, Vinny, or Finie, is a past participle, and of the 
 verb Fynijean, to corrupt, to decay, to wither, to fade, to pass away, to spoil 
 in any manner. Finie pla]:, in Anglo-Saxon, is a corrupted or spoiled loaf, whe- 
 ther by mould or any other means. — 
 FIELD. (T.) This word, by Alfred, Gower, Chaucer, &e. was always written 
 Feld (Saxon, Felb.) It is merely the past participle Felled, FelVd, of the verb 
 To fell, (Feellan, Be-jrsellan,) and is so universally written Feld hy all our old au- 
 thors, that I should be ashamed to produce you many instances. Field-lsaidi is 
 opposed to Wood-\a.r\A, and means, — Land where the trees have heen felled. — 
 
 Of this opposition of IVoodes and Feldes he then produces four instances from 
 Gower and Chaucer ; and proceeds. — 
 
 In the collateral languages, the German, the Dutch, the Danish, and the Swed- 
 ish, you will find the same correspondence between the equivalent verb and the 
 supposed substantive. 
 
 German. Fellen . Feld. Dutch. Vellen . Veld. 
 
 Danish. Feelder . Felt. Swedish. Falla . Felt. 
 
 What does the Cyclopsedist say upon this word ? He writes in this manner : — 
 " One of those broad analogies, by which the Latin separated from the Greek, is 
 to convert a guttural into a labial, as in x;'^on, flos, x'Ku^oi;, floridus. Thus, it may 
 be, cultus became, as it were, fultus, full, field; i. e. cultivated ground, and not a 
 ^\dice felled." 
 
 A little further on, and the Cyclopaedist rises superior to this modest, " It may 
 be." To derive Field from Felled, is pronounced to be one of the many errors 
 into which Mr. Tooke has been betrayed ; and for this satisfactory reason : — 
 " Whereas we conceive it (i. e. Field) is a corruption of cultus, as if inlixxs, fuld, 
 field, i. e. a cultivated piece of ground, precisely in the same way as x'^oi became 
 flos, and x<»^'n, fel, gall."
 
 OP THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 103 
 
 " It may be," " as it were," " as if," constitute the major, minor, and conclu- 
 sion of so convincing a syllogism, that the CyclopBedist did well to consider it wholly 
 needless to attempt to invalidate the effect, which the instances, produced by Mr. 
 Tooke, have to establish his etymology ; and equally superfluous to produce any 
 examples in support of his own : full, fuld. 
 
 This cultufi, quasi fultus, should, in a new edition of The Diversions of Purley, 
 be subjoined to the noted Quasi from Cynthia's Revels : — Breaches, quasi Beare- 
 riches. " Most fortunately etymologized." 
 FILE, ^ For File, the w. s. Johnson gives five interpretations; four under one ety- 
 FILTH,> mology, and the remaining fifth under another. And in the verb To File, 
 FOUL, y he rises in absurdity, he gives three explanations, and a separate etymology 
 prefixed to ea-->h. 
 To File, v. a. {irom Jilum, a thread.) 1. To string upon a thread or wire. 
 
 2. (from jreolan, Saxon.) To cut with a file. 
 
 3. (from pllan, Saxon.) To foul ; to sully ; to pollute. This sense is retained in 
 Scotland. 
 
 Filth, n. s. (pil^, Saxon.) 1. Dirt; nastiness ; any thing that soils or fouls. 
 Foul, adj. ifuls, Gothick; pul, Saxon.) 1. N ot c\ean ; Jilihy ; &c. 
 
 What idea Johnson had of the etymological connection which these three words 
 have, it is scarcely possible to form a conjecture. Yet with respect to two of 
 them, Junius and Skinner are explicit enough ; though erroneous, inasmuch as 
 they consider the one to be derived from the other, instead of giving them one 
 common origin, as different parts of the same verb. 
 
 Foul, (says Tooke,) the past participle of fylan, apylan, bejrylan, to file, which 
 we now write to defile. 
 
 Filth, whatsoever y/MA, anciently used where we now say defileth.— 
 FLAW, n. s. {(p%aa, to break; ploh, Saxon, a fragment; flauw, Dutch, broken in 
 mind.) 
 Flay, i\ a. (adflaa, Islandick ; flae, Danish ; vlaen, Dutch.) 
 Such are Johnson's etymologies. Tooke says, — 
 Flaw, the past participle of plean, excoriare, To flay. 
 FLOOD, is Flowed, Flow'd, according to Tooke; but Johnson says, that " To flow, 
 
 is from plojian, Saxon ; and Flood is from plob, Saxon ; flof, French." 
 To FLOUT, Junius and Johnson derive horn Fluyten, Dutch; and Flouwe, Frisick. 
 Skinner prefers the Dutch, Blutten, stultus. 
 
 Tooke decides, that it is the past participle of plitan, jurgari, contendere. 
 FOAM, n. s. (pam, Saxon.) The white substance which agitation or fermentation 
 gathers on the tops of liquors; froth, spume.
 
 104 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 " The foam upon the water.''' Hosea x. 7. 
 
 " Whitening down their mossy tinctur'd stream 
 Descends the billowy foam." Thomson's Spring. 
 
 Water, it must be observed, is the only liquor of which Johnson produces any 
 example : and it is therefore proper for the reader to know, that Johnson himself 
 declares the word Liquor to be " commonly used of fluids inebriating, or impreg- 
 nated with something, or made by decoction." 
 
 Foam, (T.) Fsem ; the past participle of jiseman, spumare. 
 FOOD, > The first of these two words Johnson does derive from the Anglo-Saxon 
 FAT. J fsefean ; but under the second he exhibits the common absurdity of giving 
 different etymologies for what he himself considers as merely different significations 
 of the same word. 
 
 Food and Fat, (says Tooke,) are in Anglo-Saxon Fob and Fsec, and they are 
 the past participle of Feban, pascere. 
 
 And Junius, also, derives Fsec from this Anglo-Saxon verb, Feban. 
 
 FIE, ~\Fie, (T.) is the imperative of the Gothic and Anglo-Saxon verb pian, to 
 
 FIEND, / hate. 
 
 FOE, \ Fiend, Goih.fiands ; Anglo-Saxon jrianb ; the past participle of the same 
 FOH, y verb, and means (some one — any one) hating. 
 
 FAUGH, y /be, Anglo-Saxon, pa, by the regular change of the characteristick letter 
 of the verb, is the past tense, and, therefore, past participle of the same verb, 
 jrian, and means (subaud. Any one) hated. 
 
 Foh, Faugh, (the nauseating interjection, as it is called,) is the same past 
 participle. 
 
 Such are the opinions of Home Tooke : I must now exhibit those of Samuel 
 Johnson. 
 Fy, interj. (^fy, French and Flemish ; ftu, Greek ; vah, Latin.) A word of blame 
 
 and disapprobation. 
 Fiend, n. s. (j:iaub, fionb, Saxon, a foe.) 1. An enemy ; the great enemy of man- 
 kind ; Satan ; the Devil. 
 2. Any infernal being. 
 Foe, n. s. (j-'ah, Saxon ; fae, Scottish.) 1. An enemy in war. 
 
 2. A persecutor ; an enemy in common life. 
 
 3. An opponent ; an ill wisher. 
 
 Foh, interject, (from pah, Saxon, an enemy.) An interjection of abhorrence ; as if 
 one should at sight of any thing hated cry out, " y/foe .'"
 
 OP THE DICTIONAUY OF DR. JOHNSON. 105 
 
 It does not appear that Johnson had any knowledge of the existence of the 
 Anglo-Saxon verb, jrian ; and yet had he not been so fully persuaded " that to 
 search was not always to find," as seldom to think the search worth the trouble, 
 he might have found some nearer approach to correct etymology than he has now 
 given. 
 
 Junius, after mentioning the various northern words similar to the English 
 . Fiend, continues, " A. S. feojan, pean, j:ian. Al. jrien, sunt odisse ;" and ob- 
 serves, that the Devil, on account of his signal hatred of mankind, was emphati- 
 cally called peonb, in Anglo-Saxon ; but he knew better than to assert that 
 such was the meaning of the word. And this etymology is recognized by 
 Skinner ; and both agree that Foe has its origin in the same verb, though, as 
 usual, without attempting to fix upon the part of the verb. 
 
 Under Fie, vel Fye, after the display of much useless learning by Junius, Lye 
 remarks, " Non alienum erit fortasse hoc in loco notare, quod pian A. Saxonibus 
 est Odisse." 
 
 Johnson, however, must not be degraded to any comparison with the Cyclopae- 
 dist, who asserts that, " Fiend, Foe, is the participial termination of ^la, ^ta^a, 
 violence'.! in which, as Socrates says, there is enmity." 
 FOR. (T.) I imagine the word For, (whether denominated preposition, conjunction, 
 or adverb,^ to be a noun, and to have always one and the same signification, viz. 
 Cause, and nothing else. Though Greenwood attributes to it eighteen, and 
 S. iohnson forty-six different meanings ; for which Greenwood cites above forty. 
 and Johnson above tico hundred, instances. But, with a little attention to their 
 instances, you will easily perceive, that they usually attribute to the preposition 
 the meaning of some other words in the sentence. 
 
 Junius (changing p into/, and by metathesis of the letter ?•,) derives For from 
 the Greek a-po. Skinner from the Latin Pro. But I believe it to be no other than 
 the Gothic substantive, — Fairina, — Cause. — 
 
 Tooke then explains one instance under each separate meaning attributed to 
 For; so that there are, in the first volume of The Diversions of Parley, between 
 sixty and seventy sentences, in which the word For is shewn to mean Cause, and 
 nothing else; and shewn so clearly, as to satisfy every mind, in which the 
 'A/Mzl^ia Tn; iv^ofjin; has not subjugated every principle of rationality. 
 
 The Cyclopsedist declares, " That the matter is just the reverse of what our 
 Grammarian represents ;" and that for does not mean cause, " but consequence or 
 end." — " For," (he says,) " always supposes the attention not directed backwards, 
 as to the cause, but forwards, as to some end, and its etymology is this, xsfaa, to 
 
 P
 
 106 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 pass over, -Ttt^, or per, the medium of passing to an object ; the French pour, for, 
 the object or end, to which passage is made. Johnson gives for forty-six different 
 meanings. But there is not one instance in which it does not bear a sense dedu- 
 cible from its primary signification of end or object. Thus Christ died for uS ; 
 Christ died, us (i.e. our redemption) being the end or object of his death. To 
 fight/or the public good ; to fight, the public good being the end or object of fight- 
 ing. He does all things for the love of virtue ; he does all things, the love of 
 virtue being the end or motive of all his actions, and so in all other instances." 
 
 And here the Cyclopsedist closes his instances ; all of which are from Green- 
 wood, and are explained by Tooke ; thus : — 
 
 Christ died /'or us. (^Cause us ; or, We being the cawse of his dying.) 
 To fight/or the public good. (i. e. Cause the public good ; or, The public good 
 being the Cause of fighting.) 
 
 He does all things for the love of virtue, (i. e. The love of virtue being the 
 Cause.) — 
 
 The word Cause, and that only, is consistently used by Mr. Tooke in every 
 explanation, as the true and only meaning of For. But the Cyclopsedist submits 
 to no such trammels. According to him, End has the same meaning, first, with 
 Consequence; — then, with Medium ; — then, with Object; — and, lastly, with il/o- 
 tive. Now as, agreeably to the old axiom, things which are equal to the same 
 thing are equal to one another, it will follow, that in the judgment of the Cyclo- 
 psedist. Consequence and Motive have the same meaning. And thus the last in- 
 stance explained by him, will be in these terms : — " He does all things, the love of 
 virtue being the end or consequence of all his actions, and so in all other in- 
 stances." And this is the writer who has the confidence to affirm, "That Mr. 
 Tooke appears not to have studied the true theory of the human mind ; and from 
 the want of just ideas on this subject, he has plunged himself and his readers in 
 deep and manifold errors." 
 
 Mutato nomine is too mild a retort ; and it may be useful to apprize this writer 
 that the love of truth, and the love of contradiction, may each be the motive of 
 a man's conduct, and that the consequences will be as ditierent as the motives; — in 
 the first case, — the approbation, and in the second, — the contempt of the world. 
 
 There are some instances of the use of For in Beaumont and Fletcher, and 
 in Massinger, which it seems necessary to clear up for the benighted editors. I sub- 
 join the passages, and the notes. 
 
 " I am of opinion, 
 
 I shall take ofi" the edges of their appetites.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 107 
 
 And grease their gums/br eating heartily, 
 
 This month or two " 
 
 Beaumont and Fletcher, Vol. III. p. 336. Weber's edit. 
 
 " For eating heartily, means to prevent their doing it. 
 
 " My lord, this makes not 
 
 For loving of my master." Vol, VII. p. 19C, 
 
 " This means simply, — This shews not that I do not love my master. For is used 
 in almost every play for — to prevent, and Mason produces instances of it from the 
 Spanish Curate, the Pilgrim, and the Captain. One from the latter may suffice. 
 
 " Wilt have a hihjbr spoiling of your doublet ?" 
 
 Seward, and the last editors, both completely ignorant of old language, propose 
 different amendments.'" (.He must mean alterations for the worse: — ) 
 
 •' Father. Sir, though I could be pleased to make my ills 
 
 Only my own, for grieving other men. 
 
 Yet, to so fair and courteous a demauder, 
 
 I will relate a little of my story." Vol. IX, p. 164. 
 
 " For grieving, &c.] That is, to avoid grieving other men." Mason. 
 
 " Full platters round about them, 
 
 But far enough ybr reaching." Massinger, Vol, I, p. 101. Giftord's edit. 
 
 " For reaching.] For occurs perpetually in these plays in the sense of pre- 
 vention." 
 
 Even Mr. Steevens says that/or means/or- /ear. Reed's Shakspeare, Vol. XXI. 
 p. 168. And the diflFerent editors of Shakspeare are continually informing us that 
 for, in this instance, means because. 
 
 Mr. Tyrwhitt, too, in his Glossary, says, " For Prep. Sax. It sometimes signi- 
 fies Against." Of which he gives three instances. 
 
 " He didde next his white lere 
 Of cloth of lake fin and clere 
 
 A breche and eke a. sherte 
 And next his shert an haketon 
 And over that an habergeon 
 
 For percing of his herte." 
 
 P 2
 
 108 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Ml". Tyrwhitt says, — " Against, or to prevent, piercing." 
 
 " Therefore _/()»• stealyng of the rose 
 I rede her nat the yate unclose." 
 
 Mr. Tyrwhitt says, — "Against stealing." 
 
 " Some shall sow the sacke 
 
 For shedding of the wheate." 
 
 Mr. Tyrwhitt says, — " to prevent shedding." 
 
 All these instances are cited by Tooke, who observes, " That though their con- 
 struction is awkward and faulty, aud now out of use, yet is the meaning oi for 
 equally conspicuous. The Cause of putting on the habergeon, of the advice not 
 to open the gate, of sowing the sack — being respectively — that the heart might 
 not be pierced, that the rose might not be stolen, that the wheat might not be 
 shed." 
 
 And so in the instances from Beaumont and Fletcher, and Massinger : — The 
 cause of greasing their gums, of having a bib, of the desire to make his ills only 
 his own, of putting the platters far enough, — being respectively, — that they might 
 not eat heartily, that he might not spoil his doublet, that men might not grieve, 
 that they might not reach. 
 FORD, n. s. (pojito, Saxon, from papan, to pass.) 
 
 1. A shallow part of a river, where it may be passed without swimming. 
 
 2. It sometimes signifies the stream, the current, without any consideration of pas- 
 sage or shallowness. 
 
 Mark the examples to this last explanation : — 
 
 " Medusa, with Gorgonian tenour, guards 
 
 The ford," &c. Milton, B. II. 612. Parad. Lost. 
 
 " Rise, wretched widow ! rise ; nor undeplor'd 
 
 Permit my ghost to pass the Stygian ybrrf; 
 
 But rise prepar'd in black to mourn thy perish'd lord." Dryden. 
 
 This last example (from Dryden's translation of Ceyx and Alcyone,) speaks for 
 itself. To understand the first, which appears to have suffered by " hasty de- 
 truncation," a few preceding lines must be given :
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DU. JOHNSON. 109 
 
 " Ihey ferry over this Lethean sound 
 Both to and fro, their sorrow to aua;ment. 
 And wish and struggle, as they pass, to reach 
 The tempting stream, with one small drop to lose 
 In sweet forgetfulness all pain and woe, 
 All in one moment, and so near the brink ; 
 But Fate withstands, and to oppose the attempt 
 Bledusa with Gorgonian terrour guards 
 lUeford, and of itself the water flies 
 All taste of living wight, as once it fled 
 The lip of Tantalus " 
 
 And thus Johnson supports his assertion, that Ford sometimes means " stream 
 without any consideration of passage," &c. 
 
 Ford (T.) is the past participle of jzapan, to go ; and always, without excep- 
 tion, means Gone, i. e. A place gone over or through. — 
 
 There is a certain past participle of this verb papan, to go, to which my re- 
 gard for the delicacy of Mr. Stewart would prevent me even from alluding, if 
 Johnson's example were not too curious to be permitted to pass unnoticed. This 
 past participle is a very innocent word, and means, merely, — gone. 
 
 " Far'd, and joy go with you." 
 Johnson's instance is Love, — 
 
 " Which pains a man when 'tis kept close, 
 
 And others doth offend when 'tis let loose." Suckling. 
 
 FORTH, (T.) from the Latin Fores, Foris. The French had Fors, (their modern 
 
 Hors.) And of the French Fors, our ancestors, (by their favourite pronunciation 
 
 of th,^ made Forth, Forth. 
 
 And to this Anglo-Saxon Fop?!, Johnson is content to refer. 
 FOWL, (T.) As Bird, so Fowl, (Anglo-Saxon, Fujel,) by a similar, but not quite so 
 
 easy and common, a metathesis, is the past participle of Flio^an, Fioljan, Fio- 
 
 jlan, volare. 
 Fowl, n. s. (Fujel, Saxon ; Vogel, Dutch.) A winged animal ; a bird. It is 
 
 colloquially used of edible birds, but in books of all the feathered tribes. 
 FRAME, ^ Of Frame, the verb, Johnson gives no etymology, and Frame, the noun, 
 FORM. 3 he says, is from the verb. Both Junius and Skinner, however, supply 
 
 him with the Anglo-Saxon verb Fpeman, facere ; and of this verb Tooke thinks
 
 110 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 that both Form and Frame are the past participles. For the etymology of Form, 
 the Latin Forma, of course, satisfies Johnson. 
 To FREAK, V. a. (A word, I suppose, Scotch ; brought into England by Thomson.) 
 Could none of Johnson's amanuenses remind him of Milton's 
 " Pansies/reaA;'* with jet .^" 
 
 FRIEND, n. s. (^Friend, Dutch; Fjieoub, Saxon.) 
 
 Of this word, Johnson imagines six meanings, one of which is — "A familiar 
 corapellation." 
 
 Friend, Junius says, is, " Manifeste a Goth. Frigon, amare, diligere ; cujus par- 
 ticipium est Frigonds, amans, diligens. inde medio G. liquescente, factum est 
 Frionds, Friond, (^and) Fpeonto, (Sax.)" &c. 
 
 It is remarkable that Junius should not have noticed the Anglo-Saxon verb 
 Fpeon, amare, of which Fjieonb is the present participle. Lye has, Fpeon, 
 amare, Fjieont), amans, amicus. And this etymology is adopted by Tooke. 
 
 The Cyclopsedist asserts, that Friend is the participial termination of " Fran, a 
 woman, (from f sfoj, i. e. the bearing animal,) and seems at first to mean, A female 
 loved." 
 " FROM," Mr. Harris says, " denotes the detached relation of body, as when we say — 
 These figs came from Turkey. So as to motion and rest, onlj^ with this difference, 
 that here the preposition varies its character with the verb. Thus, if we say, — 
 That lamp hangs from the cieling, — the preposition yVom assumes the character of 
 quiescence. But if we say. That lamp '\s falling from the cieling ; — the preposition 
 in such case assumes a character of motion." 
 
 So far Harris, as quoted by Tooke, who is asked, " What one noun or verb can 
 be found of so versatile a character as this preposition ; what name of any one 
 real object or sign of one idea, or of one collection of ideas can have been insti- 
 tuted to convey these different and opposite meanings?" 
 
 " Truly," he replies, " None that I know of. But I take the word/rowi (pre- 
 position, if you chuse to call it so,) to have as clear, as precise, and at all times 
 as uniform and unequivocal a meaning as any word in the language. From means 
 merely beginning, and nothing else. It is simply the Anglo-Saxon and Gothic 
 noun Fjium, Frum — Beginning, origin, source, fountain, author." 
 
 He then proposes to try whether From cannot be made to speak clearly for it- 
 self, without the assistance of the interpreting verbs. 
 
 " Figs ca7ne from Turkey. 
 Lamp falls from cieling. 
 Lamp hangs FROM cieling.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OP DR. JOHNSON. Ill 
 
 " Came is a complex term for one species of motion. 
 Falls is a complex term for another species of motion. 
 Hangs is a complex term for a species of attachment. 
 
 " Have we occasion to communicate or mention the commencement or beginning 
 of these motions and of this attachment ; and the place where these motions and 
 this attachment commence or begin? It is impossible to have complex terras for 
 each occasion of this sort. What more natural then, or more simple, than to add 
 the signs of those ideas ; viz. the word beginning, (which will remain always the 
 same,) and the name of the place, (which will perpetually vary) ? Thus : 
 
 " Figs came — beginning Turkey. 
 Lamp falls — beginning cieling, 
 Lamp hangs — beginning cieling. 
 
 That is, — 
 
 " Turkey the place of beginning to come. 
 Ceiling the place of beginning to fall. 
 Cieling the place of beginning to hang. 
 
 " From relates to every thing to which beginning relates, and to nothing else ; and 
 therefore is referable to time, as well as motion ; without which, indeed, there 
 can be no timer 
 
 I have again permitted Mr. Tooke to speak the more fully for himself; because 
 I must again present the Cyclopsedist to the reader's notice. He asserts that Mr. 
 Tooke happens to be right in the meaning oi frcmi, merely because the Gothic 
 corruption o{ /mm has correctly retained the sense of primus. But whence, he 
 sagaciously enquires, " did this Frum originate ?" From Araby the blest, no 
 doubt. — Phraa, Arabic ; wf/», wfui, Greek ; prce, Latin ; &c. &c. 
 
 He has the condescension to acknowledge, that Tooke's explanation of Harris's 
 three examples is " rational and just ;" but he proceeds to say, — " When Mr. Tooke 
 adds that came and falls are complex terms for dift'ereut species of motion ; and 
 hangs a complex term for a species of attachment ; this, though very true, is no- 
 thing to the purpose," 
 
 I am in very confident hope, that the reader, who has sufficiently attended to 
 Mr. Tooke to understand his purpose, will clearly perceive that the explanations 
 in question were indispensable, and will further be convinced that the Cyclopsedist 
 himself had not observed what that purpose was. 
 
 The reader will remember, that Mr. Harris, (quite in consistency with his prin-
 
 112 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 ciples of Grammar,) considers the preposition to vary its character with the verb . 
 and to assume a character of quiescence from the verb hang; and of motion from 
 the verbs came and faiis. Either the Cyclopsedist had forgotten this, or he did 
 not perceive, (which is quite as likely,) that the purpose of Tooke was, — to 
 shew that the characters of quiescence and motion, attributed by Harris to the 
 preposition /Vow, belonged to the verbs hang and fall, and to them only. The 
 Cyclopaedist for a moment happened to be right; but having a disposition of mind 
 quite unsuitable to such fortuitous occurrences, he hastens to become himself 
 again ; atid in this there was no dilEculty. 
 
 FROST, n. s. (Fpoj-c, Saxon.) The last effect of cold, the power or act of con- 
 gelation. 
 
 This explanation wants the addition — "Any thing like it." His example is from 
 the beautiful, but figurative, language which Shakspeare appropriates to Cardinal 
 Wolsey. 
 
 Frost, (T.) is the past participle of Fpyj-au, to freeze. By the change of the 
 characteristic y, the regular past tense is Frose, which we now write Froze ; add- 
 ing the participial termination ed, we have Frosed, Fros'd, Frost. 
 
 FULL, (T.) is the past tense, used as a past participle of the verb j^yllan, to Jill ; and 
 may at all times have its place supplied by Filled. 
 Full, adj. (fulle, Saxon; vol, Dutch.) 1. Replete; without vacuity; without any 
 space void : — and fourteen other explanations. 
 
 GAIN, (T.) i. e. any thing acquired. It is the past participle of Dejan, of the verb 
 rie-|)innan, acquirere. 
 
 Gain, Johnson derives from the French Gain ; but Junius (as well as Menage,) 
 conceives the French, and also the Italian and Spanish, to have been adopted from 
 
 the Saxon. 
 GAUDE, n. s. (The etymology of this word is uncertain. Skinner imagines it may 
 come from Gaude, French, a yellow flower, yellow being the most gaudy colour. 
 Junius, according to his custom, talks of ayavoi, and Mr. Lye finds Gaude, in 
 Douglas, to signify deceit or fraud, from Gwawdio, Welsh, to cheat. It seems to 
 me most easily deducible from Gaudium, Latin, joy ; the cause of joy ; a token 
 of joy ; thence aptly applied to any thing that gives or expresses pleasure. In 
 Scotland this word is still retained, both as a showy bauble, and the person fooled.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 113 
 
 It is also retained in Scotland to denote a yellow flower.) An ornament; a fine thing ; 
 any thing worn as a sign of joy. 
 Gewgaw, n. s. (jejaj:, Saxon ; joyau, French.) A showy trifle ; a toy ; a bauble ; 
 a splendid plaything. 
 
 What we (T.) write Gewgaie, is written in the Anglo-Saxon Ireja]:. It is the 
 past participle of the verb De-jipan, and means any such trifling thing as is given 
 away, or presented to any one. Instead of Gewgawes, it is sometimes written 
 Gigawes and Gew-gaudes. 
 
 Gaud has the same meaning, and is the same as the foregoing word, with only 
 the omission of the prefix Ge, Gi, or Gew. It is the past participle of Iripan ; 
 Gaved, Gav'd, Gavd^ Gaud. — 
 
 Such is the plain and satisfactory etymology of Tooke. Even Johnson might 
 have suspected some aflRnity between Gaud and Gewgaude, had he found the lat- 
 ter word so written ; and it is so written in Beaumont and Fletcher ; in the folio, 
 (1679,) Vol. II. p. 236. In Weber's edit. Vol. V. p. 293. 
 GLEAM, ?^ Gleam, n.s. (Delioma, Saxon.) Sudden shoot of light; lustre; bright- 
 GLOOM.J uess. 
 
 Gloom, n. s. (Dlomanj, Saxon, twilight.) I. Imperfect darkness ; dismalness ; ob- 
 scurity ; defect of light. 
 
 In these etymologies Johnson follows Lye. Skinner says, " Gleam, warm 
 gleams, ab Anglo-Saxon Leoma, Lux, Jubar, Leoman, lucere ; Leoma autem, et 
 Leoman credo, a Lat. Lumen." And Gloomy, he also derives from the same 
 Anglo-Saxon Leoma. 
 
 Gleam and Gloom, says Tooke, are the past participle of Anglo-Saxon Leo- 
 man, Lioman, lie-leoman, Eie-liomau, radiare, coruscare, lucere. The Latin 
 Lum^n is the past participle of Lioman. 
 GRASS, n. s. (Djifej-, Saxon.) Graze, v. n. (from Grass.) And of this word, with 
 this etymology, Johnson gives three interpretations ; and, for a fourth, he feels 
 obliged to resort to the French Raser. 
 
 Grass, (T.) that which is grazed or fed upon by cattle ; the past participle of 
 I/fiaj-ian, to Graze. 
 GRAVE, 1 Erjia;:]: and Gjiaej:;!, (T.) serve equally in the Anglo-Saxon for Grave or 
 GROVE, Grove. Grave, Grove, Groove, are the past tense, and, therefore, past 
 GROOVE, participle of Er]ia;:an, fodere, insculpere, excavare. 
 GRAFT, 1* Graft, (sometimes written Graff,) is the same past tense Djia]:, with 
 GROT, the participial termination ed. Graf-ed, Grafd, Graft. 
 
 GROTTO, J In Grot, from Graft, (a broad,) the / is suppressed, and Grotto, (or 
 rather Grotta,') is obliged to the Italians for its terminating vowel. — So far Tooke. 
 
 Q
 
 114 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Grave, n. s. (Irpaef , Saxon.) The place in the ground in which the dead are re- 
 posited. 
 
 To Grave, v. a. (^graver, French ; y^a^n.') 1. To insculp ; to carve a figure or iu- 
 scription in any hard substance. 
 
 " Cornice with bossy sculptures graven." SIilton. 
 
 Cornice may pass very well for a hard substance, and " bossy sculptures" for 
 figures carved : but what are we to say to his two subsequent examples ; the first 
 of which speaks of gr a vings made upon metis souls by just and lawful oaths; and 
 the second, of the sum of duty graven on the heart ? 
 Grove, n. s. (from Grave.) A walk covered by trees meeting above. 
 Groove, n. s. (from Grave.') A deep cavern, or hollow in mines. 
 Graff, n. s. (see Grave.) A ditch ; a moat. 
 
 Graff, }n. s. {Greffe, Freuch.) A small branch inserted into the stock of another 
 Graft, > tree, and nourished by its sap, but bearing its own fruit ; a cyon. 
 
 His first example of these small branches is this : 
 " God gave unto mau all kind of seeds and graffs of life ; as the vegetative life of 
 plants, the sensual of beasts, the rational of man, and the intellectual of angels." 
 
 And the same absurdity is committed under the verb to Graff, more than 
 once. 
 
 Grot and Grotto he derives from the same French and Italian, and says that the 
 one is made for coolness and pleasure, and the other for coolness only. 
 
 In all this we find no traces whatever of the Anglo-Saxon verb Dpaj:an. Yet 
 Skinner tells him that to grave is from Irpajran, sculpere ; and Lye that Graff 
 may be derived from the same verb. 
 
 Junius also says, that Grove is from the Dutch graven, fodere. " Arbusta aempe 
 fovea circumjecta plerumque muniebantur." 
 
 Skinner would derive Grove from the verb to grow, though aware that in Lin- 
 colnshire it was used for a Ditch, — fossa. 
 GREEN. For Green, the noun, Johnson gives no etymology, and the verb accord- 
 ing to him is from the noun ; but the adjective from Grun, German ; Green, 
 Dutch. 
 
 Green, says Tooke, is the past participle of Irjienian, virescere ; as viridis of 
 virere, and prasinus from srj »«■«>'. 
 
 Junius thinks it is from the Anglo-Saxon DpoJ^an ; and Skinner from the Eng- 
 lish, to Grow. 
 
 In Lye, Johnson might have found for his editions, subsequent to the publica- 
 tion of Lye, —
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 115 
 
 E-pene, Green, . . viridis. 
 Irjien-hBeJjen, . . viridis coloris. 
 Erjienian . . . virescere. 
 
 And thus he might have been led to introduce an improvement of a description 
 somewhat different from those which I have before noticed. 
 GRIP, (T.) and its diminutive, Grapple, are the past participle of Eipipan, pre- 
 hendere. 
 
 To Gripe, Johnson first derives from the Gothic, the Saxon, the Dutch, and 
 the Scotch, and with these etymologies he gives one interpretation. To his second 
 interpretation he prefixes Gripper, French ; but to which of these etymologies his 
 third and fourth interpretations belong, he does not say. 
 GRUB, n. s. (from grubbing or mining.') 
 
 To Grub, v. a. (Grab-an, preterite Grob, to dig, Gothic.) 
 
 And Tooke thinks it the past tense, and, therefore, past participle of this Go- 
 thic verb, Graban, fodere. 
 
 Grub Street was Johnson's Ithaca. He exclaims — 
 
 Xaip, I9«kS, (UeT at^hci, f^iT ay^yia, mm^a 
 'AcTTramas It'ov sJaf "iHavof^ai. 
 
 GRUDGE, the noun, Johnson derives from the verb, and of the verb he writes in this 
 strange manner : — 
 To Grudge, v. a. (from Gruger, according to Skinner, which, in French, is to 
 grind or eat. In this sense we say of one who resents any thing secretly, he cheics 
 it. Grwgnach, in Welsh, is to murmur, to grumble. Grunigh, in Scotland, de- 
 notes a grumbling morose countenance.) 
 
 When he arrives at his fifth explanation of the verb neuter, viz. "To give or 
 have any uneasy remains," he adds, " I know not whether the word in this sense 
 be not rather Grugeotis, or remains ; Grugeons being the part of corn that re- 
 mains after the fine meal has passed the sieve." 
 
 Grudge, (T.) Vv-ritten by Chaucer, Grutche, GrucJie, and in some copies Groche, 
 is the past participle of J?pea]iian, (ISe-hjieo];jan,) ]PpeoJij-mn, Eie-hpeojij-ian, do- 
 lere, ingemiscere, pcBnitere. 
 GUN, n. s. (Of this word there is no satisfactory etymology. Mr. Lye observes that 
 Gun in Iceland signifies Bailie ; but vyhen guns came into use we had no com- 
 merce with Iceland.) 
 
 G^4«, (T.) formerly written Gon, is the past participle of Irynian, hiare. 
 
 Q 2
 
 116 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 H. 
 
 Ha\FT, 71. s. O^sepc, Saxon ; heft, Diitrh : from to have or kold.^ A handle ; that part 
 of any instrument that is taken into the hand. 
 
 JHa/f (T.) is Haved, Hav'd, Haft. The haft of a knife or poniard is the haved 
 part ; the part by which it is haved. 
 HALT, (T.) means, Hold, stop ; and is the imperative of the Anglo-Saxon verb 
 pealban, to hold ; and Hold itself is from Healtoan, and was formerly written Halt. 
 To Halt, v. a. ()7ealtr, Saxon, lame, healtan, to limp.) 
 1. To limp; to be lame. 
 3. To stop in a march. 
 
 (T.) In German, Still halter, is to halt or stop ; and Halten is to hold. In 
 
 Dutch, Still houden, to halt or stop ; and houden to hold. 
 
 HAND, -jOf Hand, Johnson imagines that he has found upwards of forty different 
 
 HINT, V meanings ; he tells us, that it is JJanfe, JJonb, Saxon ; and in all the 
 
 HANDLE, ^ Teutonick dialects ; and that Handle is ]7anble, Saxon ; that Hint, the 
 
 noun, is from the verb, and the verb from Enter, French. 
 
 Hint, says Lye, G. Douglas est idem quod Chaucero Hent. — Hent: henten, 
 hende, Chaucero est capere, assequi, prehendere, arripere, ab Anglo-Saxon 
 penban. 
 
 Hint, (T.) something taken. Hand, that limb by which things are taken. The 
 past tense, and past participle of penran, capere. Handle, or Hand-del, is a 
 small part taken hold of. 
 HANDSEL, n.s. (Jiansel, a first gift, Dutch.) The first act of using any thing; the 
 first act of sale. 
 
 " Vox est originis A. Saxonicae, liquetque compositam ex hanto et j-ellan. Quum 
 tamen j-ellau illud non tantum vendere, sed et Dare, significat, manifestum quo- 
 que est postremam acceptionem locum hie habere." Junius. 
 
 Sale, (T.) Handsel, the past participle of fylan, dare, tradere, to sell. In our 
 modern use of the word a condition is understood. Handsel is something given 
 in hand. 
 
 Sale, Johnson derives from Saal, Dutch, though the first meaning that he gives 
 
 it is the act of selling. The verb to sell, from f ylan, Saxon ; sela, Islandic ; — 
 
 " To give for a price : the word correlative to buy ; to vend." 
 
 HANK, -\ One (T.) and the same word, only with a different final pronunciation, 
 
 HAUNCH, V- common throughout the language, either of k, ch, or ge. All the three 
 
 HINGE, 3 words are merely the past participle of jJangan, pendere, to hang.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. llj 
 
 To have a Hank upon any one, is, to have a hold upon him ; or to have some- 
 thing hank, hankyd, hanged, or hung upon him. 
 
 The Haunch, the part by which the lower limbs are hankyd or hanged upon the 
 body or trunk. Hence also the French Hanche, and the Italian and Spanish 
 Anca. 
 
 Hinge, that upon which the door is hung, heng, hyng, or hynge ; the verb be- 
 ing thus differently pronounced and written. — 
 
 And that the word was so written he produces examples. As Tooke exposes 
 Skinner's derivation of Haunch from Ayxx, he should have acknowledged that he 
 (^Skinner) derives Hank from to hang, and hinge also, " sic dictus, quia Janua ab 
 eo pendet." 
 
 Hang, Johnson, directed by Junius and Skinner, derives from Hangan. Hank, 
 uninfluenced by Skinner, he says, with Lye, is from Hank, Islandic, a chain or 
 coil of rope ; and it means, " 1. A skein of thread. 2. A tye ; a check ; an in- 
 fluence. A low word." 
 Hinge, n. s. (or Hingle, from Hangle or HangS) 
 
 Junius furnished him with Hingle; though Tooke believes that no one ever be- 
 fore saw or heard of it, till produced by Johnson. 
 
 Haunch, Johnson derives from the French, Italian, and Spanish. 
 
 HARANGUE, n. s. {harangue, French. The original of the French word is much 
 
 questioned. Menage thinks it a corruption of hearing, English ; Junius imagines 
 
 it to be discours au rang, to a circle, which the Italian arringo seems to favour. 
 
 Perhaps it may be from orare, or orationare, orationer, oraner, oranger, haranguer.} 
 
 This is certainly one of the most curious specimens of Johnson's more elaborate 
 attempts at etymology. The last, says Tooke, in order of time, — the first in 
 fatuity. 
 
 Skinner (T.) briefly mentions a conjecture of Menage ; and spells the word 
 properly Harang ; and not {d la Frangoise} Harangue. 
 
 The word itself is merely the pure and regular past participle JJpanj, of the 
 Anglo-Saxon verb ppingau, to sound, or to make a great sound. As ppno is also 
 used. 
 
 So far has the manner of pronunciation changed with us, that if the commencing 
 aspirate before r was to be preserved, it was necessary to introduce an a between 
 h and r ; and instead of Hrang, to pronounce and write the word Harang. — 
 HARM. (T.) Our modem word Harm was in the Anglo-Saxon Yjim'S, or Jejim^, i.e. 
 whatsoever Aarme^A or hurteth: the third person singular of the indicative of 
 Ypraan, or Jepman, laedere. 
 
 Johnson is satisfied with taking the Saxon peaj\m, from Junius and Skinner;
 
 118 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 and he gives, as the first meaning of the word, " Injury ; crime ; wickedness :'" 
 and as the second, " Mischief; detriment; hurt." And under the verb To harm, 
 and the adjective Harmful, he blends the two explanations into one. 
 HEARSE, n. s. (of unknown etymology.) 
 
 1 . A carriage, in which the dead are conveyed to the grave. 
 
 2. A temporary monument set over the grave. 
 
 Hurst, 71. s. (J?ypj-t, Saxon.) A grove or thicket of trees. Ains. 
 
 Hearse, (T.) Hurst, are the past participle of J?yp]-tan, ornare, phalerare, de- 
 corare. Hearse is at present only applied to an ornamented carriage for a corpse. 
 Hurst is applied only to places ornamented by trees. — 
 
 And in Lye, Johnson might have found this Hypj-can, or;i«re, and Hyp)-r, orna- 
 tus ; but for his Hurst, a grove, &c. he is entirely indebted to the Dictionary of 
 Ainsworth. 
 HEAT, n. s. (JJeac, psec, Saxon ; keete, Danish.) 
 
 Of this word Johnson gives eleven explanations. 
 Hot, adj. (]?ar, Saxon ; hat, Scottish.) 
 
 Of this there are seven explanations. 
 
 Heater, upon the authority, no doubt, of the good woman who got up his linen, 
 is said to be, " An iron made hot, and put into a box iron, to smooth and plait 
 linen." He might as well have said that to get up means to iron and starch linen, 
 and prepare it for use, &c. 
 
 Heat, (T.) in Anglo-Saxon J3aer, pat ; i. e. heated ; is the past participle of the 
 verb JJsecan, calefacere. Hot, as a participle, is sufficiently common. Heat is 
 rarely so used. B. Johnson, however, so uses it in Sejanus, Act III. (Tol. I. 
 p. 351. line the last.) 
 To HEAVE, peajran, Anglo-Saxon. " Our ancestors," (says Mr. Tooke,) " did not 
 deal so copiously in adjectives and participles as we their descendants now do. 
 The only method which they had to make a past participle was by adding ed or 
 en to the verb ; and they added either the one or the other indifferently, as they 
 pleased (the one being as regular as the other,) to any verb which they em- 
 ployed ; and they added them either to the indicative mood of the verb, or to the 
 past tense. — But their most usual method of speech was to employ the past tense 
 itself, without part icipializi/ig it, or making a participle of it, by the addition of 
 ed or en. So likewise they commonly used their substantives without adjectiving 
 them, or employing those adjectives which (in imitation of some other lan- 
 guages, and by adoption from them,) we now employ. 
 
 By adding ed to the indicative, they had the participle . . Heaved. 
 
 By changing d to t, mere matter of pronunciation .... Heaf't.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 
 
 119 
 
 By adding en, they had the participle Heaven. 
 
 Their regular past tense was (JJaj:, ]3op) Hove. 
 
 By adding ed to it, they had the participle Moved. 
 
 By adding en, they had the participle Hoven. 
 
 And all these they used indifferently. The ship (or any thing else) was — 
 
 Heaved or Heavd. 
 
 Heaft. 
 
 Heaven. 
 
 Hove. 
 
 Hoved or Hov'd. 
 Hoven. 
 
 And these have left be- 
 hind them in our mo- 
 dern language the sup- 
 posed substantives, but 
 really unsuspected par- 
 ticiples, 
 
 fHead. 
 Heft. 
 Heaven. 
 
 Hoof, Huff, and the 
 diminutive Hovel. 
 Howve or Hood. 
 Hat, Hut. 
 Haven, Oven. 
 
 This past tense Haj:, Hof, Hove, was variously written, as Heff, Hafe, 
 Howve. 
 
 And of this Tooke produces examples from Gower and Chaucer. 
 
 Head, (T.) then, means that part (of the body, or any thing else,) which is 
 heaved, raised, or lifted up, above the rest. 
 
 In Edward the Third's time it was written Heved. 
 
 Heaven, (subaud. some place, any place,) lieav-en, or Heav-ed. — 
 
 Tooke leaves the rest to the reader as a wholesome exercise ; and now, as an 
 exercise, not quite so wholesome perhaps, but equally necessary, I must present 
 him with the labours of Johnson. 
 Head, n.s. (heajzob, heap's, Saxon; hoofd, Dutch; heved. Old English; whence, 
 by contraction. Head.') 1. The part of the animal that contains the brain or the 
 organ of sensation or thought. 
 
 Such is the primitive meaning of Head, according to Johnson, though JJeapoS, 
 Saxon, Johnson's own etymology, is the past participle of peapan, and means 
 merely Heav'd, (subaud. aliquid) " Elevatum, sc corporis pars sublimior et ma- 
 gis elevata." Lye. Johnson has thirty-one divisions of meaning. Heft he derives 
 from Heave. 
 Heaven, n. s. (heojron, which seems to be derived from heopb, the places over 
 head, Saxon.) 1. The regions above, the expanse of the sky: — and five other 
 meanings. 
 
 Skinner says, " Heaven, ab A. S. hepen, ^Ifrico heojren, caelum utr. a verbo 
 heajzian, elevare."
 
 120 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Hoof, n. s. (hop, Saxon ; hoe/, Dutch.) The hard, horny substance on the feet of 
 graminivorus animals. 
 
 Huff, n. s. (from hove, or koven, swelled ; he is huffed up by distempers. So in 
 some provinces we still say the bread huffs up, when it begins to heave or ferment. 
 Huff, therefore, may be ferment. To be in a huff is, then, to be in a ferment, as 
 we now speak.) 1. A swell of sudden auger or arrogance. 
 
 Hood, n.s. (hob, Saxon, probably from hepob, head.) 1. The upper covering of a 
 
 woman's head. — And three other explanations. 
 Hat, n. s. (hser, Saxon ; hatf, German.) A cover for the head. 
 Hut, n. s. (hucce, Saxon ; hufe, French.) A poor cottage. 
 
 Skinner would derive the two last words from the Teutonick huten, custodire. 
 Hovel, (Johnson says,) is the diminutive of hope, house, Saxon, and means — 
 
 1. A shed open on the sides, and covered over head. 
 
 2. A mean habitation, or cottage. 
 
 This etymology belongs to Dr. Thomas Hickes. Skinner will not swear that 
 Hovel is not from the Latin Caveola. It is well he did not swear that it was. 
 Haven, n.s. (^haven, Dutch; havre, French.) 1. A port, a harbour; a safe station 
 for ships. 
 2. A shelter, an asylum. 
 
 Here follow two of Johnson's examples ; let the reader guess to which explana- 
 tion: if he permit his own common sense to influence his decision, he will probably 
 decide wrong. 
 
 " Love was threatened and promised to him, and so to his cousin, as both the 
 tempest and haven of their best years." Sidney, B. II. 
 
 " [All near approaches threaten death,] 
 
 We may be shipwreck'd by her breath : 
 
 Love favour'd once with that sweet gale 
 
 Doubles his haste and fills his sail. 
 
 Till he arrive, where she must prove 
 
 The haven, or the rock of love." Waller. Night Piece. 
 
 " All places, that the eye of heaven visits. 
 
 Are to a wise man ports and happy havens." Shakspeare. Richard II. 
 
 I must farther caution the reader not to imagine that the three examples are pro- 
 duced under the same explanation. 
 Oven, n. s. (Open, Saxon.) An arched cavity, heated with fire to bake bread.
 
 HILL, 
 
 HALE, 
 
 WHOLE, 
 
 HALL, 
 
 HULL, 
 
 HOLE, 
 
 HOLT, 
 
 > 
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 121 
 
 " He loudly bray'd, the like was never heard, 
 And fiom his wide devouring oven sent 
 
 A fluke of (ire, that flashing on his beard. 
 Him all amaz'd " Fairy Queen, 
 
 This " arched cavity heated with fire to bake bread," was the mouth of the 
 "Old Dragon," with whom the "faithful knight of the fair Uua," is engaged iu 
 his first day's combat. B. L c. xi. s. 26. 
 HELL, "1 To the reader who is so unfortunate as to be yet unacquainted with (he 
 HEEL, Diversions of Purley, such an assemblage of words so differently applied 
 
 will be a source of no inconsiderable surprize. " They are all," says 
 Tooke, " merely the same past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb pelan, 
 tegere ; in Old English, to heie, to heal, or to hil." 
 Hell, (T.) any place or some place covered over. 
 Hell, n.s. (helle, Saxon.) 1. The place of the Devil and wicked souls. 
 2. The place of separate souls, good or bad. 3. Temporal death. 4. The 
 place at a running play to which those who are caught are carried. 
 HOLD. J 5. The place into which the tailor throws his shreds. 6. The infernal 
 powers. 
 
 Johnson's arrangement of these explanations should not pass unobserved. 
 " Hell ab A. S. pelle, &c. mallem ab A. S. JJelan, tegere." Skinner. 
 Junius says, that it received its name from Holl, Antrum, and for the origin of 
 Holl we are referred by Lye to Hole, and there we are told by Junius that some 
 derive Hole from pelan, celare. 
 
 Heel, (T.) that part of the foot which is covered by the leg. 
 Johnson says, it is " that part of the foot that protuberates behind ;" i. e. beyond 
 the part covered by the leg ; and, of course, is uncovered by it. 
 
 Hill, (T.) any heap of earth or stone, &c. by which the plain or level surface 
 of the earth is covered. 
 Hill, n. s. (hil, Saxon.) An elevation of ground less than a mountain. 
 
 " My sheep are thoughts, which I both guide and serve ; 
 
 Their pasture is fair /«//« q/'yntj</cj.$ love." Sidney, B. H. 
 
 Hale, (T.) i. e. healed or whole. 
 Hale, adj. (This should rather be written Hail, from heel, health.) Healthy, sound ; 
 hearty; well complexioned. 
 
 Whole, (T.) the same as Hale, i. e. covered. It was formerly written Hole, 
 without the w; as a wound or sore is healed or tchole ; that is, covered over by 
 
 R
 
 122 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 the skin. Which manner of expression will not seem extraordinary, if we con- 
 sider our use of the word re-cover. 
 
 Under Heal, Skinner says, " Ab A. S. ]7elan tegere, quia sc. quae a chirurgis 
 sanantur, cicatrice clauduntur et obteguniur." And again : " Quod euim sana- 
 tur, prius laceratum aut divulsum, ad pristinam integritatem reducitur." 
 Whole, adj. ( lUalj, Saxon; heal, Dutch.) I. All; total; containing all. 2. Un- 
 injured ; unimpaired. 3. Well of any hurt or sickness. 
 
 Hall, (T.) a covered building, where persons assemble, or where goods are 
 protected from the weather. 
 Hall, w..s. (hal, Saxon; halle, Dutch.) 1. A court of justice. 2. A manor-house, 
 so called, because in it were held courts for the tenants. 3. The public room of a 
 corporation. 4. The first large room of a house. 
 
 Hull, (T.) of a nut, &c. that by which the nut is covered. 
 Hull, (T.) of a ship, that part which is covered in the water. 
 Hull, n.s. (huljan, Gothic, to cover.) 1. The husk or integument of any thing ; 
 the outer covering ; as the hull of a nut covers the shell. {Hide, Scottish.) 2. The 
 body of a ship, the hulk. Hull and Hulk are now confounded, but hulk seems 
 origmallij to have signified not merely the body or hull, but a whole ship of bur- 
 then, heavy and bulky. 
 
 Hole, (T.) some place covered over. 
 Hole, n. s. {hoi, Dutch ; hole, Saxon.) 1. A cavity narrow and long, (i. e, it must 
 by no means be round or square,) either perpendicular or horizontal, (i. e. by no 
 means oblique.) 
 
 There are four other explanations. — We have already seen what Junius says of 
 the etymology of Hole. 
 
 Holt, (T.) Holed, Hol'd, Holt, a rising ground or knole covered with trees. 
 Holt is not in Johnson ; though it is in both Junius and Skinner. " Holt," (says 
 Skinner,) " Nemus sen arborura quarumvis densius consitarum multitudinem de- 
 signat." 
 
 Hold, (T.) as the hold of a ship : in w^hich things are covered ; or the covered 
 part of a ship. 
 
 Hold, Johnson derives from the verb to hold, and Hold of a ship is placed as 
 the seventh explanation. Thus : " all that part which lies between the keelson 
 and the lower deck." 
 HELP, (T.) the past participle of )?ylpan, adjuvare : which Minshew derives from 
 ExTTi; ; and Junius from " a-v>.>.a<S£tv, sibilo tantum modo in aspiratam commutato." 
 Skinner from pelpan, Anglo-Saxon ; and Johnson after him. 
 HIGHT, (This is an imperfect verb, and only in the preterite tense with a passive
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 123 
 
 signification, hacan, to call, Saxon ; hessen, to be called, German.) It is some- 
 times used as a participle passive. 
 
 Mr. Tyrwhitt says, " It is difficult to determine precisely what part of speech 
 it is ; but, upon the whole, I am inclined to consider it as a word of a very singu- 
 lar form, a verb active with a passive signification." 
 
 Lye says, " Hight, in Old English, means vocatus, norainatus, proraissus, 
 Anglo-Saxon paean ; Goth, haitan." 
 
 And Tooke concludes that it is the past tense, and, therefore, past participle of 
 the Anglo-Saxon and Goth, verbs, and has the same meaning as Hit or It, (the 
 pronoun,) viz. nominatum. 
 HILDING, U.S. (hilfe, Saxon, signifies a lord ; perhaps liilding means a little lord in 
 contempt, for a man that has only the delicacy or bad qualities of high rank ; or 
 a term of reproach abbreviated from hinderling, degenerate. Hughes's Spenser.) 
 
 Steevens, (Shakspeare, 1813, Vol. VIII. p. 323,) "A /i/Za?mg is a paltry, cow- 
 ardly fellow." 
 
 Johnson, (Shakspeare, 1813, Vol. IX. p. 72.) " The word Hilding or Hinder- 
 ling is a low wretch ; it is applied to Katharine for the coarseness of her beha- 
 viour." This "low wretch," Johnson repeats in Vol. XII. p. 446. 
 
 Reed, (Vol. XII. p. 13.) " Hilderiing, degener ; vox adhuc agro Devon, fami- 
 liaris. Spelman." 
 
 Malone, (Vol. XVIII. p. 482.) "A hilding for a livery.] A low fellow, only 
 fit to wear a livery." 
 
 And in Beaumont and Fletcher, (Weber's edit. Vol. XIII. p. 80,) we are told in 
 a note that " Hilding is a common term of contempt from hilderiing, which is 
 still common in some counties." 
 
 After all this, I believe we shall remain in quite as much ignorance as the edi- 
 tors themselves were, unless we accept the better aid which Tooke affords us. 
 
 Jjylbinj, (T.) (like coward,') is either the past participle of the verb J?ylban, 
 inclinare, curvare, to bend down, to crouch, or to cower ; (and then it should be 
 written Hilden,') or it is the present participle J^ylbuij (pylbanb) of the same 
 verb. 
 
 Some have supposed Hilding to mean Hinderling, (if ever there was such a 
 word,) and some Hilderiing ; which Spelman says is familiar in Devonshire. It 
 is true, that ):iylbeji is a term of reproach in the Anglo-Saxon, furnished by the 
 same verb, and means — a croucher or covserer. — 
 
 pyltoinj is interpreted by Lye, " Inclinatio, declinatio, curvatura." 
 HILT, n. s. (hilr, Saxon, from h^alfcan, to hold.) The handle of any thing, particu- 
 larly of a sword. 
 
 R 2
 
 124 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Hilt, (T.) is Held, llelt. Hilt. The hilt of a sword is the held part, the part 
 which is held. 
 HOARD, ^ Hoard, (T.) Haurd, (Goth.) J^opb, (Sax.) is the past participle of 
 HERD, V pyjifcan, custodire. 
 
 HURDLE, J Herd is the same past participle, and is applied both to that which is 
 guarded or kept, and to him by whom it is guarded and kept. We use it both for 
 Grex aud Pastor. 
 
 Hurdle, pypbel, is the diminutive of the same participle hyjib ; for the past 
 tense of Jjypbau was written either pojiti, pypb, or pepb. — 
 Hoard, n. s. (hopb, Saxon.) A store laid up in secret ; a hidden stock ; a trea- 
 sure. 
 Herd, n. s. (heojib, Saxon.) 1. A number of beasts together. It is peculiarly ap- 
 plied to black cattle. Flocks and herds are sheep and oxen, or kine. 
 
 2. A company of men, in contempt or detestation. 
 
 3. It anciently signified a keeper of cattle, and in Scotland it is still used : (hypb, 
 Saxon,) A sense still retained in composition ; as, Goat-herd. 
 
 Hurdle, n. s. (hypbel, Saxon,) A texture of sticks woven together ; a crate. 
 
 It was not likely that Junius should be ignorant of this pypban, custodire ; and 
 we find him writing thus strangely under Heard, Grex — Pastor. " Quod si quis 
 taraen pypban, curare, custodire, primo de cura pastorali, postea vero de quavis 
 alia cura putet intellectum, is fortasse contendet )Jypban dici quasi pypbelan, ab 
 JlJypbel crates ; quod, &c." 
 HONE, n. s. (This word M. Casaubon derives from okov^ ; Junius from hogsaen, 
 Welsh ; Skinner, who is always rational, from haen, Saxon, a stone ; haenan, to 
 stone.) A whetstone /or a razor. 
 
 " A hove and a arcr, to pare away the glass." Tusser's Husband. 
 
 A razor, Johnson says, is " A knife with a thick blade and fine edge, used in 
 
 shaving." The compliment to Skinner invites an unseasonable comparison. A 
 
 knife, he tells us, is an instrument edged and pointed, wherewith meat is cut, aud 
 
 animals killed. 
 
 Hone, (T.) (petrified wood.) The past participle of J^seuan, lapidescere. 
 
 HOWL,^ 
 
 OWL, >- (T.) The past participle of Iryllan, Iriellan, ululare, to yell. 
 
 YELL. S 
 
 Howl, v. ji. {huglen, Dutch; ululo, Latin.) 1. To cry as a wolf or dog. 2. To 
 
 utter cries in distress. 3. To speak with a belluine cry or tone. 4. It is used 
 
 poetically of many noises loud and horrid.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 125 
 
 And the substantive he derives from the verb. 
 
 Skinner, after enumerating all the similar words he can collect, says, " Omnia 
 a sono ficta." 
 Owl, ^ra.s. (ule, Saxon ; hulote, French and Scotch.) A bird that flies about in 
 Owlet, J the night, and catches mice. 
 
 Thus, then. Owl is derived from one language, and its diminutive, Owlet, from 
 another. 
 
 Skinner and Junius are inclined to give the same origin to Howl and Owl. 
 HUNGER, (T.) the past participle of j^ynjpian, esurire. 
 
 And from this verb Skinner derives the English verb ; but Johnson derives the 
 English verb from the noun, and the noun from hunjeji, Saxon ; fionger, Dutch. 
 HURT, n. s. ("from the verb.) 
 
 Hurt, v. a. (hype, wounded, Saxon ; heurter, to strike, French.) 
 
 " Si Grsecus essem," says Skinner, " deflecterem ab alaa, vulnero." 
 Hurt, (T.) the past participle of pyjxlpmn, injuria aflicere, vexare. 
 
 I. 
 
 ICE, n. s. (Ij-, Saxon ; eijse, Dutch.) I. Water or other liquid made solid by cold. 
 2. Concreted sugar. 
 
 " Thou art all uc, thy kindness freezes." Shaksp. Richard III. 
 
 ICY, adj. (from ice.) 1. Full of ice; covered with ice ; cold ; frosty. 2. Cold; free 
 from passion. 
 
 " But my poor heart first set free, 
 
 Bound in these ici/ chains by thee." Shaksp. Meas./or Meas. 
 
 " Tliou would'st have never learn'd 
 
 The ici/ precepts of respect." Shaksp. Timon. 
 
 I leave the reader to assort the examples with the explanations. 
 And again, Johnson explains — 
 JEWEL, Any ornament of great value, used commonly of such as are adorned with 
 precious stones. One example is — 
 
 " The jeivel, life. 
 
 By some damn'd hand was robb'd and ta'en away." Shakspeare.
 
 126 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 IF, conjunction, (jej:, Saxon.) 1. Suppose that, allowiug that. A hypothetical par- 
 ticle. Edit. 1755. 
 
 1. Suppose it to be, or it were so, that. A hyp. &c. Ed. 1805. 
 
 2. Whether or no. Both Ed. 
 
 3. Though I doubt whether ; suppose it be granted that. Ed. 1755. 
 
 4. Allowing that, suppose, drc. Ed. 1805. 
 
 Johnson, it is manifest, was aware that his explanations of this word were in 
 need of improvement, yet did he continue to close his understanding to the light 
 which even Skinner and Lye might have cast upon it. 
 
 Skinner says, " If in agro, Line. Gif ab A. S. Dij:, si hoc a verbo I^ipan, dare, 
 
 q. d. dato." And this is quoted with approbation by Lye, in his edition of 
 
 Junius. 
 
 Gif, (T.) is to be found not only, as Skinner says, in Lincolnshire, but in all 
 our old writers. G. Douglas almost always used gif : once or twice he has used 
 if ; once he uses Geiee, and once Giffis, and sometimes in case, and in cais FOR 
 Gif 
 
 The Glossarist to Douglas says, " Giffis, Give, Date." 
 
 And in the instance quoted by Tooke from Douglas it does not appear to be 
 used conjunctively; as Dr. Jamieson has justly observed; — at the same time he 
 erroneously ascribes to Tooke the assertion, that Douglas uses Giffis in the sense 
 oilf. 
 
 If (T.) is the imperative Eri]:, of the verb Lipan, to Give. 
 
 After the observations above quoted respecting Douglas, and the examples in sup- 
 port of them, Tooke informs us, that " Chaucer commonly uses If ; sometimes 
 Yeue, Yef, Yf. And it is to be observed, that in Chaucer, and in other old wri- 
 ters, the verb to give suffers the same variations in the manner of writing and pro- 
 nouncing it, whether used conjunctively or otherwise, as does also the noun de- 
 rived from it. 
 
 Ray says, " Gin, Gif, in old Saxon, is Gif; from whence the word ?/ is made 
 per aphaeresin literse G. Gif, from the verb Gifan, dare, and is as much as Dato." 
 
 Hue dato is of equal conjunctive value in a sentence with Da hoc. — 
 
 IMP, U.S. {imp, Welsh; a shoot, a sprout, a sprig.) 1. A son; the offspring; pro- 
 geny. 2. A subaltern devil, a puny devil. In this sense it is still retained. 
 To Imp, v. a. {impio, to engraff, Welsh.) To lengthen or enlarge with any thing 
 adscititious. It is originally a term used by falconers, who repair a hawk's wing 
 with adscititious feathers. 
 
 Tooke sufficiently notices the explanations which the commentators on Shak- 
 speare attempt, and then adds, " Imp is the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon 
 verb Impan, to plant, to graft,"
 
 OF THE DICTIONAUY OF DR. JOHNSON. 127 
 
 The editors of Massinger and Beaumont and Fletcher think this etymology be- 
 neath their notice, or are ignorant of its existence ; and continue to infer a mean- 
 ing from the application of the word to falconry. " To ?7n/)," says the compiler 
 of Falconer's Dictionary, " is to insert a feather into the wing of a hawk or other 
 bird, in the place of one that is broken." To this practice our old writers, who 
 seem to have been, in the language of the present day, keen sportsmen, perpetu- 
 ally allude." Mass. Vol. II. p. 230. 
 
 Lye, in his Dictionary, says, " Impan, inipian, to imp. Plantare, inserere. 
 Impod, plantatus." 
 
 And Junius, though he first refers to the Welsh, also mentions the Anglo-Saxon 
 Impian. 
 IMPROVE, V. a. {'m and probus. Quasi probum facere. Skinner.) 1. To advance 
 any thing nearer to perfection ; to raise from good to better. We amend a bad, 
 but improve a good thing. 
 2. {In und prove ; improuter, French; improbo, Latin.) To disprove. 
 
 To Improve, (says Tooke,) i. e. to censure, to impeach, to blame, to reprove. 
 A word perpetually used by the authors about Shakspeare's time, and especially 
 in religious controversy. 
 
 The expression in Hamlet, (Act I, sc. i.) " of zmimproved mettle hot and full," 
 ought not to have given Shakspeare's commentators any trouble, for unimproved 
 means ummpeacked ; though Warburton thinks it means " unrefined ;" Edwards 
 " unproved;" and Johnson, (with the approbation of Malone,) " no< regulated nor 
 " guided by knowledge or experience ;" and in his Dictionary he explains it to be, 
 " not taught, not meliorated by instruction." — 
 IN. Johnson is moderate. He gives ten explanations, only, of the preposition, and 
 six of the adverb. 
 
 In (T.) the Gothic and Anglo-Saxon luna, means uterus, viscera, venter, inte- 
 rior pars corporis. (Inna, inne, is also in a secondary sense used for Cave, Cell, 
 Cavern.) And there are some etymological reasons which make it not improbable 
 that Out derives from a word originally meaning skin. I am inclined to believe 
 that In and Out came originally from two nouns, meaning those two parts of the 
 body. 
 
 INHABIT, Shakspeare, Macbeth, fo. 142: 
 
 " Or be aliue iigaine, 
 
 And dare me to the desart with thy sworde; 
 If trembling 1 inhabit then, protest mee 
 The baby of a girle "
 
 128 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Upon this, Johnson remarks, " Inhabit is the original reading, which Mr. Pope 
 changed to inhibit, which inhibit Dr. Warburton interprets refuse. The old read- 
 ing may stand, at least as well as the emendation." 
 
 Henley says, " Inhabit is the original reading; and it needs no alteration. The 
 obvious meaning is, — Should you challenge me to encounter you in the desert, 
 and I, through fear, remain trembling in my castle, then protest me," &c. 
 
 Upon which Mr. Steevens acknowledges that " It is not impossible that by in- 
 habit, our author capriciously meant — stay jcithin doors. If when you have chal- 
 lenged me to the desart, I skulk in my house, do not hesitate to protest my 
 cowardice." 
 
 Upon the correction of Pope, Steevens had built another ; and changed Then 
 into Thee. " Both which insipid corrections Malone (says Tooke,) with his usual 
 judgment, inserts in his text. And there it stands — 
 
 " If trembling I inhibit thee." 
 
 But for these tasteless commentators, one can hardly suppose that any reader of 
 Shakspeare could have found a difficulty ; the original text is so plain, easy, and 
 clear, and so much in the author's accustomed manner : — 
 
 " Dare me to the desart with thy sworde, 
 
 If I inhabit then, i.e. If, then, I do not meet thee there: if trembling I slay at 
 home, or within doors, or under any roof, or within any habitatioji : If, when you 
 call me to the desart, I then house me, or through fear hide myself from thee in 
 any dwelling ; 
 
 " If trembling I do house me then. 
 Protest nie," &c. 
 
 INSTEAD OF, prej:>. (A word formed by the coalition of in and stead.') 
 Stead, n. s. (Sceb, Saxon.) 1. Place. Obsolete. 
 
 So says Johnson, and then proceeds to produce examples of its use, under this 
 and other explanations, from Spenser, Hooker, Butler, Dryden, Locke, and 
 Atterbury. 
 
 Instead, says Tooke, is from the Anglo-Saxon On jrebe. In stead, i. e. In place. 
 In the Latin it is vice and loco. 
 
 Our oldest English writers more rarely used the French word, place, but most 
 commonly the Gothic and Anglo-Saxon word, Stads, Sreto, Scebe.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 129 
 
 " ^ep, in composition," says Johnson, " signifies one who is related only by- 
 marriage. (Sreop, Saxon, from Scepan, to deprive, to make an orphan ; for the 
 Saxons not only said a step-mother, but a step-daughter, or step-son ; to which it, 
 indeed, according to this etymology, more properly belongs : but as it is now sel- 
 dom applied but to the mother, it seems to mean, in the mind of those who use it, 
 a woman who has stepped into the vacant place of the true mother.)" 
 
 " One easy corruption (says Tooke) of the word Sted, in composition, has 
 much puzzled all our etymologists ;" and Johnson, he thinks, instead of discover- 
 ing an etymology, has produced a pun. 
 
 lu the Danish collateral languages, he continues, the compounds remain uncor- 
 rupted, and there they are, with a clear and unforced meaning applicable to all : 
 Sted/ader, Stedmoder, Stedhroder, Stedsoster, Stedbarn, Stedson, Steddotter ; i. e. 
 vice, loco, in the place of, instead of a father, a mother, a brother, &c. — 
 IRON, n. s. 1. A metal common to all parts of the world. 
 
 2. Any instrument or utensil made of iron ; as a flat iron ; a box iron. 
 
 " thou ! whose captain I account myself; 
 
 T.ook on my forces with a gracious eye : 
 
 Put in their hands tin/ bruising irons of wrath," &c. 
 
 Shakspeare, Ridiard III. A. V. sc. li. 
 
 IT, pron. (Jpit, Saxon.) 1. The neutral demonstrative used in speaking of things. 
 
 Thus it stands in the first edition. 
 
 In the ninth is this addition: — " For it, our ancestors used he, as the neutral 
 pronoun ; and for its they used his. Thus, in the Accidence, a noun adjective is 
 that which cannot stand by himself, but requireth another word to be joined with 
 him to shew his signification." 
 
 It, (T.) anciently written p\v, pyt, and paec, is the past participle of the (G.) 
 verb Haitan, (S.) psetan, nominare : and this meaning, viz. nominatum, i. e. the 
 said, perfectly corresponds with every use of the word It in our language. 
 
 Mr. Malone says, that in many of our old chronicles he had found //// printed 
 instead of It : and hence infers, that it was a mistake in the first folio, in the 
 following passages : 
 
 " He blushes, and 'tis Hit." All's well l/iat ends iccll, p. 253. 
 
 " Stop up th' accesse and passage to remorse. 
 That no coni|)unctious visitings of nature 
 Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace hetween 
 
 Th' effect and Ilil " Macbeth, p. 134. 
 
 S
 
 130 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Mr. Malone's discovery of the word Hit in the old chronicles ought to hare led 
 him to an inference very different from the supposition of a mistake. 
 
 It, (continues Tooke,) or the said, is (like all our other participles) as much mas- 
 culine as feminine, and as plurally applicable as singularly. Not only in all 
 the old chronicles, but in all our English authors, down to the reign of Queen 
 Elizabeth, the word was written Hit. 
 
 It, Mr. Tyrwhitt says, is used instead of He and She • — 
 
 « What, wlio art there." It am I, Absolon." Miller's Talc, v. 37C4. 
 
 " I am your daughter Custance (qd. she) 
 
 That whilom )e ban sent into Surrie 
 
 It am I father, that in the salt see 
 
 Was quite alone, and dampned for to die." Man of Lawe's Tale, v. 5529. 
 
 " Qui e!,t la," quod he — " Peter, It am I," 
 
 Quod she " Sliipmamie' s Tale, 13,144. 
 
 JUST, adj. {juste, French; Justus, Latin.) Upright; incorrupt; equitable in the 
 distribution of justice. 
 
 Johnson originally gave ten other divisions of meaning, the last of which was 
 supported by a quotation from his own poem on the Vanity of Human Wishes. 
 11. Exact in retribution, 
 
 " See nations slowly wise, and meanly _;u«/. 
 To bury'd merit raise the tardy bust." 
 
 This was subsequently omitted ; and now there are twelve explanations. 
 
 Just (T.) is the past participle of the xerh jubere. 
 
 A right and just action is, such a one as is ordered and commanded. 
 
 Ajiist man, is such as he is commanded to be — qui leges juraque servat — who 
 observes and obeys the things laid doiion and commanded — the things ordered, com- 
 manded, or laid down by God, human nature, or the constitution of the govern- 
 ment. But more of this hereafter.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OB DR. JOHNSON. 131 
 
 K. 
 
 KNAVE, n.s. (Cnajra, Saxon.) 1. A boy; a male child. 2. A servant. Both these 
 are obsolete. 3. A petty rascal ; a scoundrel ; a dishonest fellow. 4. J card with 
 a soldier painted on it. 
 
 Johnson also preserves this latter mode of interpretation in " King ;" viz. " A 
 card with the picture of a king:" but not being very careful to observe uniformity, 
 he neglects to inform us that a Queen is " A card with the picture of a queen." 
 Clubs and spades he also informs us are suits of cards, but disowns the hearts and 
 the diamonds. Surely the Rape of the Lock would have furnished him with 
 couplets for the two rejected, as well as for the two chosen, suits. 
 
 Knave, (T.) (A. S. Cnaj:a,) was probably Najra^, i. e. Ne-haj:a^, Denaj:a^, 
 
 qui nihil habet : the third person singular of Nabban, i. e. Ne-haban. — Nequam 
 
 is held by the Latin etymologists to mean Ne-quicquam, i. e. one who hath 
 
 nothing ; neither goods nor good qualities. 
 
 KNEE, ^ I believe (T.) the Gothic Hnaiwyan, Hneiwan, and the Anglo- 
 
 NECK, f Saxon JJnigan, which have all the same meaning ; viz. incurvare, 
 
 KNUCKLE,C inclinare, to bow, to bend, to incline, to be the same verb; though 
 
 NOD. ^ something differently pronounced ; and I suppose Kniw, (G.) Cneo)', 
 
 QS.) and our English Knee, to be the past tense of the verb. 
 
 Neck, in the Anglo-Saxon pnecc, (or pnejj,) may perhaps also be the past tense 
 of JJnijan. 
 
 Knuckle, in Anglo-Saxon Cuucl, (perhaps formerly pnujel,) I suppose to be 
 the diminutive of J^nuj, which may likewise have been the regular past tense of 
 JJnijan. 
 
 I olfer the foregoing to you barely as conjecture. But we know that pnah is 
 
 perpetually used in the Anglo-Saxon as the past tense of j3nijan : by adding to it 
 
 the participial termination, we have pnaheb, )7nah't), (A broad); from which, I 
 
 doubt not, we have our English Nod, i. e. an inclination of the head.— ^ ■; 
 
 Knee, n.s. (Cneoji, Saxon ; Knee, Dutch.) 1. The joint of the leg, where the leg 
 
 is joined to the thigh. 
 Neck, n.s. (pneca, Saxon ; Neck, Dutch.) 1. The part between the head and the 
 
 body. 
 Knuckle, n.s. (Cnucle, ^&xon ■,Knockle, Dutch.) 1. The joints of the fingers 
 protuberant when the fingers close. 
 
 S 2
 
 132 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 To Knuckle, v. n. (from the noun.) To submit. I suppose from an odd custom 
 of striking the underside of the table with the knuckles, in confession of an argu- 
 mental defeat. 
 Nod, n. s. (from the verb.) I. A quick declination of the head. 
 To Nod, v. a. (of uncertain derivation, wu, Greek ; nuto, Latin ; amneidio, Welsh.) 
 To decline the head with a quick motion. 
 
 Knee, according to Skinner and Junius, is from the Latin genu ; the Greek yoiu ; 
 and the former adds, Traja to £15 ym wueiv. 
 
 Knuckle, Skinner is inclined to derive from Knock, because when men fight 
 they knock with the knuckles. 
 
 Neck, Junius and Skinner derive from the Teutonick Nicken, " prorsum retror- 
 .sumque obvertere, et in ornnes partes facili motu circumagere :" and this Nicken 
 Junius says is from veuw, vtviima. 
 KNOLL, > Knell, n.s.(cnil, Welsh, a funeral pile; cnyllan, to ring, Saxon.) The 
 KNELL, > sound of a bell rung at a funeral. 
 
 " When he was brought again to tlie bar, to hear 
 
 His knell rung out, his judgment, he was stirr'd 
 
 With such an agony, he sweat extreamly ;" 
 
 [And something sipoke in choler, ill and hasty.] Sharsp. Henry VIII. 
 
 To Knoll, Johnson derives from Knell. 
 
 In (T.) the Anglo-Saxon, Cnole, Cnyll, is the past participle of Cnyllan, to 
 strike a bell. 
 KNOT, ^ Are (T.) the past participle of Cnytcan, to knit, nectere, alligare, 
 KNIGHT, C attacher. 
 
 NET, 3 Knight, is Cnyt, Saxon, un attache. Net, is (subaud. something) 
 
 knitted. 
 
 For Knot, n. s. Johnson gives the Saxon, German, Dutch, and Erse similar 
 words, without noticing Skinner's reference to Cnyccan, nectere, ligare: and he 
 says that it means — " 1. A complication of a cord or string, not easily to be dis- 
 entangled. 
 
 " He found that reasotCs self new reasons found 
 
 To fasten knots, which /anci/ first had bound." Sidney. 
 
 " Tir'd with the walk, she laid her down to rest 
 And to the winds exposed her glowing breast,
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 133 
 
 To take the freshness of the morning air. 
 
 And gathered in a knot her Jlowing hair." Addison. 
 
 Knight, Johnson, after Skinner, derives from Cnihc, Saxon; Knecht, German^ 
 a servant. 
 Net, n. s. {Nati, Gothic ; Nee, Saxon.) A texture woven with large interstices or 
 meshes, used commonly as a snare for animals. 
 
 Net, Minshew and Junius derive from the Greek vnSw, and Skinner from the 
 Latin rete. 
 
 Johnson's explanation oi Network '\s yveW known: "Any thing reticulated or 
 decussated, at equal distances, with interstices between the intersections." 
 
 Let the reader, who may like such an amusement, substitute the explanation 
 of each term for the term explained ; and let him not be surprized if he should 
 receive at the outset such an accession to his knowledge as this : — " That Network 
 is any thing made of network." 
 To Knit. I. To make or unite by texture without a loom. 
 
 " Sleep, that knits up," &c. 
 
 L. 
 
 LACE, 1 Lace, n. s. (^Lacet, French ; Laqueces, Latin.) A string, a cord. 
 
 LATCH, 
 
 «' There the fond fly entangled, struggled long, 
 
 i Himself to flee thereout; but all in vain: 
 
 I 
 
 For striving more, the more in laces strong 
 
 Himself he tied, and wrapt his winges twain 
 
 In lim}' snares, the subtil loops among." Spenser. 
 
 LATCHET, 
 LUCK, 
 CLUTCH, 
 CLUTCHES.J 
 
 His authority is from the last stanza but one of the Muiopotmos ; and is nothing 
 more than the description of a fly entangled in the web of a spider. 
 A Cord, Johnson says, is a Rope; and a Rope, of course, is a cord. 
 Latch, n. s. (leise, Dutch ; laccio, Italian.) A catch of a door moved by a string 
 
 or handle. 
 Latchet, n. s. (lacet, French.) The string that fastens the shoe. 
 To Clutch, v. a. (of uncertain etymology.) 
 Clutch, n. s. (from i/ie verb.) 1. The gripe ; grasp ; seizure.
 
 134 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 2. Generally, iu the plural, the paws, the talons. 
 
 3. Hands, iu a sense of rapacity or cruelty. 
 
 Luck, n.s. (^Geluck, Dutch.) 1. Chance; accident; fortune, &c. 
 
 The opinions of Junius, Skinner, and Minshew are sufBciently detailed by Mr. 
 Tooke. 
 
 Lace (T.) and Latch, are the past tense and past participle Lseccan, Leecjan, 
 Lseccean, prehendere, apprehendere. 
 
 The Latch of a door, or that by which the door is caught, latched, or held, is 
 often called a Catch. 
 
 Luck (good or bad) is merely the same participle, and means (something, an}' 
 thing,) caught. Instead of saying that a person has had good Luck, it is not un- 
 commou to say, he has had a good Catch. 
 
 Clutch is, also, the past participle of Irelaeccean, capere, arripere. So Clutches, 
 i.e. Clutchers, {Gelatcliers) : as. Fangs and Fingers, from Fenjan, and Hand, 
 from JJencan. — 
 LAMENT, Johnson considers as a verb neuter and a verb active. To lament/or 
 Josiah ; to lament King Henry's corse. In the first expression it is, according 
 to him, neuter ; and in the latter, (where there is merely an ellipsis oi for, the 
 cause,) a verb active. 
 LASH, (T.) {French, Lasclie,) of a whip, i. e. that part of it which is let loose, let go, 
 cast out, thrown out ; the past participle of French Lascher ; Ital. Lasciare. 
 Lash, n. s. (The most probable etymology of this word seems to be that of Skinner, 
 from Schlagen, Dutch, to strike ; whence Slash and Lash.) 1. A stroke with any 
 thing pliant and tough ; and three other. 
 LAST, ? (T.) in the Anglo-Saxon JJlsej-ce, and Be-hlsej-te, are the past participle* 
 
 BALLAST, J of J^laej-can, Be-hlaej-tan, onerare." 
 
 Skinner. " Last, ponderis apud nos genus, ab Anglo-Saxon J:'laej-rau, Be-lhaejran, 
 onerare." 
 
 ■ " Ballast, saburra, fort, ab A. S. Be-hlaej-cau, plasytan, &c." 
 
 Junius. " Last, origo vocabuli petenda est ab A. S. pleej-tan, et Be-hlaej-can, 
 onerare." 
 
 So say Johnson's authorities. What says he himself? 
 Last, n.s. (Laej-r, Saxon.) 
 
 1. The mould on which shoes are formed. 
 
 2. (^Last, German.) A load ; a certain weight or measure. 
 Ballast, n. s. {Ballaste, Dutch.) 
 
 1. Something put at the bottom of the ship, to keep it steady to the centre of 
 gravity.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OP DR. JOHNSON. 135 
 
 LATTICE. Of this word Johnson supplies an etymology peculiarly his own. " I 
 have sometimes derived it from let and eye; let-eyes, that which lets the eye :" and 
 he calls it a reticulated window. 
 LAUGH. Skinner had no doubt of there being such a word as plapan, though he 
 could not find it in Somner. Johnson has no scruples, and boldly gives J3lapan as 
 the etymology of Laugh. 
 
 Had Skinner (says Tooke) been aware of the regular change of the charac- 
 teristic letter in all the Anglo-Saxon verbs, he would have been well contented 
 with JJlihan. — Laugh is the regular past tense and past participle of the Anglo- 
 Saxon verb phhan, ridere ; viz. JJlah, which we write Laugh. 
 
 Johnson says that Laugh, the noun, means " The convulsion caused by merri- 
 ment; an inarticulate expression of sudden merriment;" and Merriment means 
 " Gaiety, ehearfulness," &c. 
 
 " Si quemadraodura oris habitus cernitur oculis, inquit (Annibal), sic animus 
 intus cerni posset, facile vobis appareret, non Icnti, sed prope amentis malis cordis 
 hunc, quem increpatis, risum esse." Liv. xxx. 44. 
 LAW, -\ In (T.) our ancient books it was written Laugh, Lagh, Lage, and Ley ; as 
 LOG, > Inlaugh, Ullage, Himdred-lagh, &c. 
 
 LOAD. 3 It is merely the past tense and past participle Laj or Laej, of the Gothic 
 and Anglo-Saxon verb Laj-yan, Lecgan, ponere : and it means (something or any 
 thing. Chose, Cosa, Aliquid,) Laid down — as a rule of conduct. 
 
 Laj (a broad, and retaining the sound of the j.) Loj, from the Anglo-Saxon, 
 corresponds with Post, from the Latin. We say indifferently, " To stand like a 
 post," or " To stand like a log," in our way. Lag-ed, or Lag'd, (dismissing the 
 sound of the g,) becomes Lad (a broad) or Load. And you will not fail to ob- 
 serve, that, though weight is subaud. and therefore implied in the word Load ; 
 yet weight is not Load, until cuivis imposiUim. — 
 
 Johnson barely refers to the Saxon Laja, for Laio ; and Skinner believes Law 
 to be from the Latin Lex; which Lex, (i. e. Legs,} is, in Tooke's opinion no 
 other than the Anglo-Saxon past participle, Lae-^. 
 Log, n. s. (The original of this word is not known. Skinner derives it from Ligjan, 
 Saxon, to lie ; Junius from logge, Dutch, sluggish. Perhaps the Latin lignum 
 is the true original.) A shapeless bulky piece of wood. 
 Load, n. s. (platie, Saxon.) A burthen ; freight ; lading. 
 LAY, > Lay, n. s. {lay, French. It is said originally to signify sorrow or complaint, 
 LEWD. ^ and then to have been transferred to poems written to express sorro?£j. It 
 is derived by the French from Lessus, Latin, & funeral song : but it is found like- 
 wise in the Teutonick dialect ; Ley, Leo's, Saxon; leey, Danish.)
 
 136 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Such is Johnsou's account of the etymological meaning of the word Lay ; and 
 then he gives, as the first meaning, " A song, a poem." Resolved to outrage 
 consistency still more grossly, this is the first example which he produces: 
 
 " To the maiden's sounding timbrels sung, 
 
 111 well attuned notes, a. joyous lay" Spenser. 
 
 Nor has any one of his seven other examples any application to any thing sor- 
 rowful. 
 Lay, adj. (laicus, Latin ; xao;.) Not clerical ; regarding or belonging to the people 
 as distinct from the clergy. 
 
 Skinner w^ould, at least, give this adjective and substantive the same origin. 
 Junius seems to think that he can discover Lay, Cantus, in Kvjie, tXimov. But though 
 Johnson derives the adjective Lay from the Latin and Greek ; Lewd he takes from 
 LffiJ'etoe, Saxon, and explains it — 
 
 1. Lay, not clerical. 
 
 2. Wicked ; bad ; naughty. 
 
 Mr. Tyrwhitt explains Lewd to mean ignorant, unlearned, lascivious. 
 
 " Leude (says Junius) Chaucero plerumque est stolidus atque imperitus." And 
 yet every example that he quotes will coufirm the etymology of Mr. Tooke, which 
 is this : — 
 
 Lewd, in Anglo-Saxon L8e|)eb, is almost equivalent to wicked; except that it 
 includes uo agency of infernal spirits : it means misled, led astray, deluded, im- 
 posed upon, betrayed into error. Lew'd is the past participle, and Lay is the past 
 tense, and, therefore, the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Laejan, pro- 
 dere, tradere, to delude, to mislead. 
 
 Lewd, in its modern application, is confined to those who are betrayed or misled 
 by one particular passion : it was anciently applied to the j]rofanum vulgus at 
 large, too often misled through ignorance. — 
 LEAVEN, (T.) is from the French Lever, to raise ; i. e. That by which the dough is 
 raised So the Anglo-Saxons called it pa;:en, the past participle of their own 
 verb peajian, to raise. — (See Dough.) 
 Leaven, n. s. (levain, French ; levare, Latin.) Ferment mixed with any body to 
 make it light ; particularly used of sour dough mixed in a mass of bread. 
 LEFT. (T.) The left hand is that which is Leaved, Leav'd, Left; or which we are 
 taught to leave out of use. 
 
 Left, according to Johnson, is, 1st, the participle preter of Leave; and, 2nd, 
 an adjective, from lufte, Dutch ; Icevus, Latin ; and this latter means, " Sinistrous, 
 not right."
 
 OF THE DICTIONAllY OP DR. JOHNSON. 137 
 
 LEGEND, (T.) That which ought to be read, is, from the early misapplication of the 
 term by impostors, now used by us as if it meant — That which ought to be laughed 
 at. 
 Legend, n.s. Qegenda, Latin.) 1. A chronicle or register of the lives of saints. 
 2. Any memorial or relation. 3. An incredible unauthentick narrative. 4. Any 
 ' inscription ; particularly on medals or coins. 
 LENGTH, n. s. (from lenj, Saxon,) — from the Latin longus. Skinner adds. 
 Long, adj. (Jong, French ; longus, Latin.) 
 
 Length (T.) is the third person singular Lenje'S, of the indicative of Lenjian, 
 extendere ; of which Long is the past participle. Nor can any other derivation 
 be found for the Latin Longus. 
 LID, ~)Liir)' "■ *• (P''^5 Saxon; lied, German.) 
 LOT, / 1. A cover, &c. 
 
 BLOT, /Lot, n.s.(hlauf, Gothic; plor, Saxon; lot, Dutch.) 
 GLADE, \ 1. Fortune, state assigned. 
 
 CLOUD. -' These words (T.) have all but one meaning, — covered, hidden. And 
 their only difference is in their modern distinct application or different sub- 
 audition. 
 
 pWo and plor, are the regular past tense and past participle of phtian, 
 tegere, operire, to cover. The Anglo-Saxon participle plib, suppressing the aspi- 
 rate, is the English Lid; i.e. that by which any thing '{vessel, box, &c.) is 
 covered. 
 
 The Anglo-Saxon participle ]:'loti or plor, suppressing the aspirate, is the Eng- 
 lish Lot, i. e. (something) covered or hidden. 
 
 " Witches, in foretime named Zo^-tellers," i. e. tellers of covered or hidden things. — 
 Blot, n. s. (from the verb.) The verb from blotlir, French, to hide. 
 1. An obliteration of something written. 
 
 Indifferently (T.) with plifean our ancestors used Be-hlifcan and Ge-lhiban ; and 
 of Be-hliban, tegere, the regular past tense and past participle is Be-hlob or Be- 
 hloc, which is become our English Blot ; and a blot upon any thing extends just 
 as far as that thing is covered, and no farther. 
 Glade, n. s. (from Erlo}'an, to be hot, or to shine : whence the Danish, Gled, and 
 the obsolete English &7eef/, a red hot coal.) A lawn or opening in a wood. Lacus.— 
 Johnson should have added, — a non lucendo. 
 
 Ire-hlyb, Fre-lhib, Ije-lhob, Fre-lhab, (T.) is tlie regular past tense and past 
 participle of Le-Ihiban ; and Hre-lhab is become the English Glade, applied to a 
 spot covered or hidden with trees or boughs. 
 CliOUD, n.s. (The derivation is not known. Miushew derives it from claudo, to 
 
 T
 
 138 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 shut; Somner from cZoqJ; Casaubon from «xM/j, darkness; Skiuner from kladde, 
 
 Dutch, a spot.) 
 1. The dark collection of vapours in the air. 
 3. Any state of obscurity or darkness. 
 
 " Now are the clouds that lower'd upon our house 
 
 In the deep bosom of the ocean buried." Shakspeare. 
 
 Do not imagine this example to be to the third explanation 
 
 From the same participle, I suppose, says Tooke, is formed our English word 
 Cloud — Gehlod, Gehloud, Gloud, Cloud. As Nubes from Nubere to cover. Quia 
 coelum Nubit, i.e. operit ; says Varro. And Nupta, (i. e. Ntibiia, Nubta,) is Femvw 
 couverte. 
 
 LIEF, adj. (leoy:, Saxon; lief, Dutch.) Dear, beloved. Obsolete. 
 
 Lief, (T.) Liever, Lievest, Leoj:, Leofjie, Leo]:ej-r. 
 
 Leoj:, (for Leojreb or Lufab, or Lupob or Lup,") is the past participle of Lu- 
 pian, to love, and always means beloved. 
 LIMB, Johnson derives from lim, Saxon; and lem, Danish: and when so derived 
 means, " A member, a jointed or articulated part of animals." 
 
 But it also means " An edge, a border ;" and then it is " a philosophical word," 
 and owes its origin to limbe, French ; limbus, Latin. 
 Limb, the verb, means, first, to supply with limbs; but this verb also has a second 
 meaning, which is, " to dismember ;^' i. e. " to divide member from member." — 
 Johnson, however, produces no example for this latter meaning. 
 
 Limb, Limho, (T.") in A. S. written Lim and Lirnb, b being written for p. It 
 is the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Limpian, pertinere ; and it means, 
 quod pertiuet, or, quod pertiiuiit ; — what belongeth or hath belonged to some- 
 thing : Limb of the body ; limb of the law ; limb of an argument. 
 
 Hence also Limbus and Lembus. 
 LO, interj. (la, Saxon.) Look ; see ; behold. It is a word used to recal the atten- 
 tion generally to some object of sight ; sometimes to something heard, but not 
 properly ; often to something to be understood. 
 
 Lo (T.) the imperative of Look. So the common people say corruptly " Lo' 
 you there now — La you there." 
 
 Where we now employ sometimes Look and sometimes Lo, with discrimination : 
 our old English writers used indifferently Lo, Loke, Loketk, for this imperative. — 
 And that they did so, Mr. Tooke produces examples.
 
 OP THE DICTIONARY OF DU. JOHNSON. 139 
 
 LOAF, ^LOAF, n. s. (from J^lajr, or laj:, Saxon.) A mass of bread as it is formed by 
 .LORD,/ the baker ; a loaf is thicker than a cake. 
 
 LADy,VLoRD, n. s. (plajrojib, Saxoo.) I. Monarch; ruler; governor. And eight 
 LIFT, \ other explanations. 
 LOFT, ''Lady, n. s. (J^lsejibiq, Saxon.) 1. A woman of high rank, &c. 
 
 Lift, n. s. (from the verb.) And the verb from /ifta, Swedish ; lofier, Danish. Lift 
 
 means, 1. The act of lifting ; the manner of lifting. 
 2. In Scottish, the sky ; for in a starry night they say. How clear the Lift is. 
 Loft, n. s. (Lloft, Welsh ; or from lift.) 1. J floor. 2. The higher floor. 3. Rooms 
 on high. 
 
 Such are the derivations and explanations of Johnson ; and true it is that his 
 • authorities, Junius and Skinner, supply him with nothing better. We must lesort 
 to H. Tooke. 
 
 Loaf, in Anglo-Saxon J^laj:, (a broad,) is the past participle of plijrian, to raise; 
 and means, merely, raised. So in the Maeso-Gothic, Hlaibs is Loaf, which is the 
 past participle of Hleibyan, to raise, or to lift up. 
 
 Lye says, Hleibyan is perhaps from Hleibs, i. e. the verb from the participle. 
 Lord, (T.) i. e. plajropb, is a compound word of plaj:, [raised or exalted,) and 
 Opt, ortus, source, origin, birth. Lord, therefore, means high born, or of an ex- 
 alted origtji. 
 
 Lady, i. e. Lajrbij, signifies and is, merely, Lofty ; i.e. raised or e.valfed : her 
 birth being entirely out of the question ; the wife following the condition of the 
 husband. 
 
 plap, J:?laj:ob, plap'b, JJlapbij, omitting the incipient H, is Laf, Lafed, Laf'd, 
 Lafd-y. 
 
 If the / is retained in the word, the immediately subsequent d is, as usual, 
 changed to t ; and the word will be Lafty, (a broad,) or Lofty. 
 
 If the/ is suppressed, no cause remains for changing the d, and the word will 
 be Lady. — 
 
 Of Lift and Lqfi enough has already been said under Aloft, q. v. 
 LOAM, n. s. Fat, unctuous, tenacious earth. 
 
 " The purest treasure 
 
 Is spotless reputation, that awiiy 
 
 Men are but gilded foam or painted clay." .Shakspeark. 
 
 } In Anglo-Saxon (T.) Loc, Beloc, 
 I, J Lycan, Be-lycan, obserare, clandere. 
 
 LOCK, } In Anglo-Saxon (T.) Loc, Beloc, are the regular past participles of 
 BLOCK, 
 
 T 2
 
 \ 
 140 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 To Block up, says Skinner, Dr. Th. Hickes deflectit ab A. S. Be-luccan, clau- 
 dere, v. Lock. And, 
 
 Lock, ab Anglo-Saxon hoc, sera, Belucan ; Belg. Locken, Luycken, claudere, 
 obserare. And in Junius, Block-up, Belucan, A. S. obserare, ex Be and Loc. sera. 
 Lock, Johnson says, is from Loc, in both se?ises. 
 Block, the noun, from block, Dutch ; bloc, French. And, 
 Block, the verb, from hlocquier, French. 
 And his explanations are as good as his etymologies. 
 LOUD, adj. says Johnson, and attempts no etymology. 
 
 Skinner derives it from the Anglo-Saxon )?lub; and not knowing whence |?lub, 
 he thinks it better to write Loud than Lowd. But the word is the past participle 
 of the verb to Low or to Bellow, (ploj<a.n, Be-hloJ'an,) Lowed, Low'd. And it 
 was written LoKj'c? formerly ; of which Tooke produces instances from the first 
 folio of Shakspeare. 
 LOW, ^ Low, adj. says Johnson, and again attempts no etymology. His first expla- 
 LOWN,> nation is a palpable truism — " Not high." 
 
 LOWT. 5 LowN, n. s. [Hun, Irish ; loen, Dutch, a stupid drone) A scoundrel ; a 
 rascal. Not in use. 
 LoDT, n. s. (Joele, old Dutch, Mr. Lye.) A mean awkward fellow ; a bumpkin ; 
 a clown. 
 
 But though the noun is from the old Dutch, not so the verb : — 
 To Lout, v. n. (]:lutan, to bend, Saxon.) To pay obeisance ; to bend ; to bow. 
 Obsolete. It was used in a good sense. In Scotland they say, A fellow with low- 
 tan or luttan shoulders ; that is, one who bends forwards his shoulders or back. 
 To Lout, v. a. This word seems in Shakspeare to signify, to overpower. 
 
 " I am lowted by a traitor villain 
 And cannot help the noble Chevalier." 
 
 Shakspeare. Henry VI. Act IV. sc. iii. 
 
 The commentators upon this passage demand a hearing. 
 
 To lowt may signify to depress, to lower, to dishonour ; but I do not remember 
 it so used. We might read — I am flouted, I am mocked, and treated with con- 
 tempt. Johnson. 
 
 To lout, in Chaucer, signifies to submit. To submit is to let down. So, 
 Dryden : — 
 
 '? Sometime the hill submits itself a while 
 In small descents," &c.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 141 
 
 To lout and underlout, in Gawin Douglas's version of the ^neid, signifies to be 
 subdued, vanquished. Steevens. 
 
 A lowt is a country fellow^, a clown. He means, — that Somerset treated him like 
 a hind. Ritson. 
 
 I believe the meaning is : I am treated with contempt like a lowt; or low coun- 
 try fellow. Malone. 
 
 Mr. Malone's explanation of the word — lowted, (says Mr. Steevens, with his 
 usual candour,) is strongly countenanced by the following passage in an ancient 
 libel upon priests, intitled, " I playne Piers which cannot flatter, a Ploweman 
 Men me call," &c. 
 
 " No christen booke 
 May thou on looke 
 
 Yf thou be an English stnint ; 
 k Thus doth alyens us lowtte 
 
 By that ye spread aboute 
 
 After that old sorte and wonte." 
 
 Again, in the last poem, in a collection called " The Phoenix Nest," 4to. 1593 : 
 " So love was touted :" 
 
 i. e. bafBed. Again, in Arthur Hall's translation of the first book of Homer, 4to. 
 1581 :— 
 
 " You wel shal know of all these folke I wil not be the lout." 
 
 Agamemnon is the speaker. Steevens. 
 
 A slight aid from etymology will disperse all obscurity. 
 
 Low, (T.) (in Dutch laag,] is the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon Licjan, ja- 
 cere, cubare. 
 
 Of this past tense (according to their common custom) our ancestors made the 
 verb to low, or to make loro. 
 
 Of this verb to loiv, the past participle is indifferently either Low-en, Low'n, 
 Lown : or Low-ed, Low'd, Lowt, (t for «/.) 
 
 Of this participle, Lowt, we have again made another verb, viz. To Lowt, to do, 
 or to bear one'self, as the lowed person, i. e. the lowt does. — 
 LUST. Johnson gives the particular application, " to carnal desire," as the first mean- 
 ing ; and even in his more general explanation Ue confines it to violent or irregular 
 desire.
 
 142 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Lust (T.) is the past tense and past participle of the verb Lyj-tan, ciipere, to 
 list. It was not formerly, as now, confined only to a desire of one kind, but was 
 applied generally to any thing wished or desired or liked. 
 
 M. 
 
 MAD, ? Johnson derives Mad from the Italian Matio; and Junius derives the 
 MATTO. ^ Italian from the Greek ^alaioj ; to which Mr. Tooke objects, that the Greek 
 derivatives, which are to be found in the Italian, proceed to it through the Latin, 
 and in the Latin there is nothing which resembles Matto. 
 
 Mad, (says Tooke,) is merely OOsecc, ClQseb, ((/ for t,) the past tense and past 
 participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb ClQetan, somniare, to mete, to dream. 
 
 Matto is the same Anglo-Saxon participle OOserc, with the Italian terminating 
 vowel. 
 
 The verb to mete was formerly in common use — 
 
 " And whan that he in chambre was alone 
 
 He downe on his beddes fete him sette, 
 
 And first he gan to sike, and efte to groiie 
 
 And thought aye on her so withouten lette, 
 
 That as he satte and woke, his spirite Mele 
 
 That he her saugh " Troylus, Boke I. fol. 159, p. 1, col. 1. 
 
 " As he satte and woke, his spirite mete that he her saugh — " this (con- 
 tinues Tooke) I take to be a clear, though not a physiological, description of 
 madness. 
 MANY. Johnson offers no etymology for this word; but he informs us, that it is re- 
 markable for its frequent use in the Saxon, being written with twenty variations ; 
 and these he transcribes from Lye. 
 
 Many (T.) is merely the past participle of CDenjan, miscere, to mingle : it means 
 mixed, or associated, (for this is the effect of mixing,) subaud. company, or any 
 uncertain and unspecified number of any things. 
 
 In Gawin Douglas is found the expression — " ane/ew menye." 
 
 In the expression, — Many a message, — the a is a corruption for of. It should
 
 OP THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 143 
 
 be, — a many of messages. Ye spend a great ineany of wordes in vayne — I have 
 spoken a many of wordes. Such is the language of Bishop Gardiner. 
 
 Skinner, after mentioning the similar words in the collateral languages, says, 
 
 " Omnia credo ab A. S. Eremenjan ; Teut. Mengen, miscere : Ubi enim multi sunt 
 
 est quaedam horainum Miscela." And of this, let it be observed, Johnson takes 
 
 no notice. 
 
 MEAD, ? (T.) Anglo-Saxon ClQseb, (i. e. ODaJjeb,) Mowed, the past participle of 
 
 MEADOW. > n:a>an, metere. 
 
 And from this verb Skinner derives our English substantives, which again is 
 wholly unnoticed by Johnson. — Junius from the Teutonick Mayen, metere. — 
 Minshew ab antiquo B. Maeden, metere. 
 
 Johnson explains the word to mean, — " Ground somewhat watery, not ploughed, 
 but covered with grass and flowers." 
 MEAT, -^ Meat, 71. s. [met, French.) 1. Flesh to be eaten. 2. Food in general. 
 MOUTH, C Mouth, n.s. (ClOu^, Saxon,) we are told means, 1. The aperture in the 
 MOTH. 3 head of any animal at which the food is received ; and, 3. The instrumeni 
 of speaking. 
 Moth, n. s. (GQo^, Saxon.) A small winged creature, that eats cloths and hangings. 
 Johnson's etymologies are the best which he could find in Skinner and Junius. 
 Meat, (T.) in Anglo-Saxon CDaet, (whatever is eaten,) is the past participle of 
 the verb Matyan, flOecian, edere, to eat. 
 
 Mouth, that which eateth. Moth, the name of an insect that eateth ; the third 
 person singular of the same word. 
 MEMORANDUM, n. s. (T.atin.) A note to help the memory. 
 
 That (T.) which ought to be remembered. 
 MESS, n.s. [mes, old French; messo, Italian; missus, Latin; me.?, Gothick, O^ej-e, 
 Saxon, a dish.) A dish; a quantity of food sent to table together. 
 
 " [The oaks bear mast, the briars scarlet hips :] 
 
 The bounteous huswife, nature, on each bush 
 
 Laj's her full »nMs before you." Shakspeare. Timon of Alliens. 
 
 I have supplied the first line, that nature^s dish might be better understood. 
 
 ./ dish, according to Johnson, is, 1. A broad wide vessel, &c. 2. A deep hol- 
 low vessel. And, 3. The meat served in such vessel. 
 
 Mess (T.) is the past participle of COecj-ian, cibare, to furnish meat or food. In 
 French Mets ; in Italian Messo, from the same verb. 
 
 MESSENGER, n. s. (messager, French.) One leho carries an errand ; one who comes
 
 144 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 from another to a third ; one who brings an account or foretoken of any thing ; a 
 harbinger, a forerunner. 
 
 A harbinger is a forerunner, and a forerunner a harbinger. 
 
 This settled, take two examples to the same explanation : — 
 
 " Yon grey lines 
 
 That fret the clouds, are messengers of daj'." Shakspeare. 
 
 " The earl dispatched messengers one after another to the king, with an account 
 of what he heard and believed he saw, and yet thought not fit to stay for an 
 answer." Clarendon. 
 
 iVIIGHT. Johnson merely gives the same word in Saxon. Junius says that it is from 
 the Anglo-Saxon verb CIDagan, posse ; and Tooke that it is the third person 
 singular of the indicative of this CDajan, posse, valere ; which the Anglo-Saxons 
 
 wrote ClOaeje^, or ClQsejSe, i.e. What one maijeth. Quantum potest aut valet 
 
 aliquis. 
 
 MILK, ? (T.) One and the same word differently pronounced, (either ck or k,) 
 
 MILCH, 5 is the past participle of the verb ClOelcan, mulgere. 
 
 Skinner writes Meolcian. Johnson merely cites the Saxon and Dutch similar 
 words. His explanations and examples demand a moment's pause. 
 MlIiK means, — " 1. The liquor with which animals feed their young from the 
 breast." His first animal is a woman, Lady Macbeth ; his second, Macbeth him- 
 self. These are the lines : — 
 
 " I fear thy nature ; 
 
 It is too full o'the ?Hi[k of human kindness 
 
 To catch the nearest way." SuAKSP. Macbeth. (Act I. sc. v.) 
 
 His third animal is a sheep ! 
 
 " To fold, my flock ! when mifk is dried with heat. 
 In vain the milk-maid tugs an empty teat." 
 
 All these animals, however, feed their young with this " liquor from the breast." — 
 Where, then, (to say nothing of the Lady and the milky Thane,) where is the 
 breast of the silly sheep ? It is between the fore legs. Johnson declares, (and who 
 will gainsay ?) that the breast is " That part of a beast that is under the neck, 
 between the fore legs." And thence, of course, the young of animals are supplied 
 with milk.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DH. JOHNSON. 145 
 
 MINT, > Mint, n.s. (munte, Dutch ; CDynecian, to coin.) 1. A place where money 
 MONEY. ^ is coined. 2. Any place of invention. 
 Money, n. s. (monnoye, French ; juoneta, Latin.) 
 
 Mint and Money (T.) are the past participle of OOynejian, 00ynj;iau, notave, to 
 mark, or to coin, Mineyed, Minyed, MirCd, Mint : and Money, merely by chang- 
 ing the characteristic y to o. — The Latin vioneta, is the past participle of the same 
 Anglo-Saxon verb. 
 MIRTH, V Mirth, (ji. s. (ODyph^e, Saxon.) Merriment ; jollity ; gaiety; laugh- 
 MURTHER,i ter. 
 
 MORROW, > For Merry, Johnson gives no etymology. 
 
 MORN, V Murder, n.s. (CDoji^oji, GDopfeep, Saxon; murdrum, Latin. The 
 
 MORNING. •' etymology requires that it should be written, as it anciently often 
 was, murther ; but of late the word itself has commonly, and its derivatives uni- 
 versally, been written with d.) The act of killing a man unlawfully ; the act of 
 killiug criminally. 
 
 Mirth (T.) that which dissipateth, viz. care, sorrow, melancholy, &c. the third 
 person singular of the indicative of CQyjijian, to dissipate, to disperse, to spread 
 abroad, to scatter. 
 
 The Anglo-Saxons likewise used ClOop'S, CDoji^e, Mors, i. e. Quod dissipat (sub- 
 aud. Vitam,') the third person of the same verb, CQyppan, to mar, «&c. and having 
 itself the same meaning as Mirth ; but a different application and subaudition. — 
 Hence, from GOoji^e, Murther, the French Meurtre, and the Latin Mors. — 
 
 Chaucer uses the past participle Mirthed : " Every company is mirthed by their 
 present being." Test, of Love, B. II. p. 298, col. i. Speght. 1698. 
 Morrow, n. s. (flOopjen, Saxon ; morghen, Dutch. The original meaning of mor* 
 row seems to have been morning, which being often referred to on the preceding 
 day, was understood in time to signify the whole day next following.) 
 
 Consistently with this, Johnson gives, as the primitive meaning, " The day after 
 the present day." 
 
 And consistently with this explanation are given the following examples : — 
 
 " I would not buy 
 
 Their mercy at the price of one fair word : 
 
 To have't with saying, Good morroic." Shaksp. Coriolanus. 
 
 " Peace, good reader, do not weep ; 
 Peace, the lovers are asleep ; 
 They, sweet turtles, folded lie. 
 In the last knot that love could tie ; 
 
 u
 
 146* A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Let theiu sleep, let them sleep on, 
 
 Till this stormy night be gone. 
 
 And the eternal niorrow dawn. 
 
 Then the curtains will be drawn, 
 
 And they waken with the light. 
 
 Whose day shall never sleep in night." Ckash4W. 
 
 To-morrow, (this is an idiom of the same kind, supposing morrow to mean origi- 
 nally morning : as to night; to day :) On the day after this current day. 
 
 MoR\, n. s. (COajine, Saxon.) The first part of the day ; the morning. Morn is not 
 used but by the poets. 
 
 Morning, n. s. (^morgen, Teutonick ; but our morning seems, rather, to come from 
 morn.) The first part of the day, from the first appearance of light to the end of 
 the first fourth part of the sun's daily course. 
 
 " One master Brook hath sent your worship a morning's draught of sack." — 
 Shakspeare, Merry Wives of Windsor. 
 
 " Let us go down to the Philistines by night, and spoil them until the morning 
 light." (i. e. until the first appearance of &c. &c. to the end of «&c.) 1 Sam. 
 xiv. 36. 
 
 " All night they stem the liquid way. 
 
 And end the voyage with the morning ray." Pope's Odyssey, 
 
 Such are some of Johnson's examples ; and if the reader will take the trouble 
 to substitute the explanation for the word explained, he will be astonished at the 
 strange absurdity of giving such an explanation of the word ; — when applied to 
 the draught of Sir John Falstaff, — the period at which the threatened expedition of 
 Saul was to terminate, — and the time of the arrival of Telemachus on the shores 
 of Pylos 
 
 From Morrow, (T.) Morn, and Morning, we have traced the words back as far 
 as we can go in what is called English, to Morew, Morewn, Morewende. In the 
 next stage backward of the same language, called Anglo-Saxon, they were writ- 
 ten CDepien, ClOejijen, OOepne; or GOapjen, CDajine ; or CDopja, ClOopjen, GQojan. And 
 I believe them to be the past tense and past participle of the Gothic and Anglo- 
 Saxon verb Meryan, CDeppan, (IDippan, OQyjipan ; to dissipate, &c. 
 
 The regular past tense of CDyppan, (by the accustomed change of y to o,) is 
 Morr ; which, (in order to express the latter r,) might well be pronounced and 
 written Morew, as we have seen it was ; and afterwards Morowe and Morrow. 
 By adding the participial termination en to the past tense, we have CDepgen, OQe-
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 147 
 
 jiien, CDeji'n : CDajijen, 'CDajin ; OQopjen, ClQopn ; or Morewen, Morew'n, Mor'n ; 
 according to the accustomed contraction of all other participles in our lan- 
 guage. 
 
 Morrow, therefore, and Jlforn, (the former being the past tense of CDyppan, 
 without the participial termination en; and the latter being the same past 
 tense with the addition of the participial termination en,) have both the same 
 meaning, viz. dissipated, dispersed. And whenever either of these words is used 
 by us, clouds or darkness are subaud. Whose dispersion (or the time when they 
 are dispersed') it expresses. 
 
 GDyjipenbe is the regular present participle of GOyppan ; for which we had for- 
 merly Morewende. The present participial termination ende is, in modern Eng- 
 lish, always converted to ing. Hence Morewing, Morwing, (and by an easy 
 corruption,) Morning. — 
 MIST, n. s. (GDij-r, Saxon.) I. A low, thin cloud ; a small thin rain not perceived in 
 single drops. 
 
 " Old Chaucer, like the morning star, 
 
 To us discovers day from far ; 
 
 His lights those mists and clouds dissolv'd 
 
 Which our dark nation long involv'd." DenHaM. 
 
 2. Any thing that dims or darkens. 
 
 Skinner derives Mist from the Anglo-Saxon verb (IDij-cian, caligare, which Tooke 
 ought to have acknowledged ; though Skinner does not fix upon the part of the 
 verb, viz. the past participle. 
 MISTRESS, n. s. A woman, who governs. 
 
 And the first woman is the moon ; and another is a lily ; another Paris Louvre ; 
 another Rome ; and, again, the moon. 
 MIXEN, n. s. (CDixen, Saxon.) A dunghill ; a laystal. 
 
 Mixen (T.) means the same as Mixed, and is equivalent to compost.—'' Quia 
 est (as Skinner truly says,) miscela omnium alimentorum." 
 MONTH, n. s. " Moneth ab A. S. CDona^, &c. &c. omnia a nom. Moon," says Skin- 
 ner, of which Johnson takes no notice, though he writes too much for me to copy. 
 
 Moon (says Tooke) was formerly written Mone ; and Month was written Mo- 
 neth. It means the period in which that planet Moneth, or completeth its orbit. 
 Moon, n. s. (iuwh ; mena, Gothic ; GQena, Saxon ; mona, Islandick ; maane, Danish; 
 mane, German ; maen, Dutch.) 1. The changing luminary of the night, called 
 by poets Cynthia or Phebe. 
 MOUNT. Let those, who are curious to observe an extraordinary instance oftheextra- 
 
 U 2
 
 148 
 
 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 vagance into which Johnson, by his mode of explanation aud illustration, is plunged, 
 
 refer to this verb {v. n.) and compare his third explanation with the example. 
 
 MUCH, ^ Much and MoTe are, according to Johnson, adjective, adverb, and sub- 
 
 MORE, > stantive. Most is adjective, adverb, and a kind of substantive: and the 
 
 MOST. 3 reason why it is a kind of substantive is, because it is, " according to its 
 
 signification, singular or plural." 
 
 " Though there appears to be, (says Tooke,) there is in reality no irregularity in 
 muck, more, most; nor, indeed, is there any such thing as capricious irregularity 
 in any part of language. 
 
 In the Anglo-Saxon the verb (TOaJ'an, metere, makes regularly the preterperfect 
 CDo]), or CDojje, (as the preterperfect of Slagan is Sloh,) and the past participle 
 Mowen, or CQso\>en, by the addition of the participial termination en, to the pre- 
 terperfect. Omit the participial termination en, (which omission was, and still is, 
 a common practice through the whole language, with the Anglo-Saxon writers, 
 the old English writers, and the moderns,) and there will remain OOoj'e or Mow ; 
 which gives us the Anglo-Saxon n0oj)e, and our modern English word Moxo ; 
 which words mean simply — that which is mowed or mown. And as the hay, &c. 
 which was mown, was put together in a heap, hence, figurativehj, OOoJ^e was used 
 in Anglo-Saxon to denote any heap ; although in modern English we now confine 
 the application of it to country produce, such as hay-mow, barley-mow, &c. This 
 participle or substantive, (call it which you please, for, however classed, it is 
 still the same word, and has the same signification,) Mote) or Heap, was pronounced 
 (iind therefore written) with some variety, COa, CDffi, ClOo, ClOowe, Mow; which, 
 being regularly compared, give — 
 
 OQa . . . Maer (i. e. flOape) . . . Maest (i. e. GQeej-c.) 
 ClQae . . . Mceer (i. e. GOeepe) . . . Mce-est (i. e. TOsej-c.) 
 ClQojie . . il/om-er (i. e. OOope) . . . Mojces/ (i. e. CDoj-C.) 
 Mo . . . Mo-er (i. e. More) . . . Mo-est (i. e. Most.) 
 
 Mo, (GOoJje, acervus, heap,) which was constantly used by all our English 
 authors, has with the moderns given place to Much; which has not (as Junius, 
 Wormius, and Skinner imagined of Mickle,') been borrowed from /UEya^oj ; but is 
 merely the diminutive of Mo, passing through the gradual changes of Mokel, 
 Mykel, Mochil, Muchel, (still retained in Scotland,) Moche, Much." 
 MUCK, n.s. (ClQeox, Saxon ; myer, Islandick.) 1. Dung for manure of grounds. 
 
 Muck (T.) is the past tense, and, therefore, past participle of fOicjan, meiere, 
 mingere. Hence the common saying, " As wet as muck." So the hay and 
 straw, &c. which have been staled on by the cattle, make the Muck heap, or heap 
 of materials which have been staled upon by the cattle. 
 
 Junius and Skinner confounded Muck with Mixen, q. v.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 149 
 
 N. 
 
 NARROW, ^ Naji]', (T.) Neajiji, Neap];e, the past participle of Nypjiian, coarc- 
 NEAR, > tare, comprimere, contrahere, to draw together, to compress, to con- 
 NORTH. ^ tract. 
 
 North, i. e. NyjiJ^e^, or NypJ>^, the third person singular. 
 
 In the Anglo-Saxon NipJ^?!, or NyjiJ^'S, is also the name for a prison, or any 
 place which narrowelh or closely confines a person. — 
 
 " Narrow, angustus, arctus, A. S. Neapu estarctus, Nypj^an, coangustare," says 
 Junius ; but of this verb Johnson takes no account. 
 Narrow, adj. (Neapu, Saxon, from Nyp, near.) Not broad, &c. 
 North, is from Nop^, Saxon, and means — the point opposite to the sun in the me- 
 ridian. 
 
 Nigh, (T) Near, is the Anglo-Saxon adjective Nih, Neh, Neah, Neahj, vici- 
 nus. And Next is the Anglo-Saxon superlative, Neahjej-c, Nehj-t:. Next means 
 simply the nighest, and never implies either following or preceding ; as, To sit 
 next. 
 
 Near, the prep., according to Johnson, means Nigh; and Nigh the adj. means 
 Near: but he appears not to have any idea of their being the same word, though 
 Junius has " Nigh, Neah, Near, Neer." 
 
 Johnson says, that " sometimes it is doubtful whether near be an adjective or 
 adverb." 
 Next, adj. (Nexr, Saxon, by a colloquial change from Nehj-c, or Nyhj-r, the su- 
 perlative of Neh, or Nyh ; neest, Scottish.) 1. Nearest iu place; immediately 
 succeeding in order. 
 
 In one of his examples it is not even applied to succession ; i. e. according to 
 himself, " To consecution ; the series of one person or thing following another." 
 
 " The queen already sat 
 
 High on a golden bed ; her princely guest 
 
 Was next her side, in order sat the rest." Dryd. Virg. JEn. 
 
 NOSE, n.s. 1. The prominence on the face, which is the organ of scent, and the 
 emunctory of the brain. 
 
 " Our decrees, * 
 
 Dead to infliction, to themselves are dead ; 
 
 And liberty plucks justice by the nose.'' Shaksp. Merch. of Venice.
 
 150 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 And the emunctories are " Those parts of the body where any thing excrementi- 
 tious is separated and collected to be in readiness for ejectment." 
 NEED, >Need, n.s. (Neob, Saxon; nood, Dutch.) 1. Exigency; pressing dif- 
 NEEDLE. > ficulty ; necessity. 
 
 Needle, n.s. (Nae&l, Saxon.) 1. A small instrument pointed at one end to pierce 
 cloth, and perforated at the other to receive the thread used in sewing. 
 
 Need, Nyftbe, (T.) the past tense and past participle of Nytoian, cogere, com- 
 pellere, adigere. 
 
 Needle, (the diminutive of Need,') a small instrument, pushed or driven. 
 To K7iead, is merely lie-nyfcan, (Irnyban,) pronounced Dneban, — K for G. — 
 Knead, v. a. (Cnaeban, Saxon ; kneden, Dutch.) To beat or mingle any stuff or 
 substance. 
 NESH,?Nesh, ac(/. (Nej-c, Saxon.) Soft, tender, easily hurt. Skinner. 
 NICE. > Nice, adj. (Nej-c, Saxon, soft.) 
 
 But though soft is the etymological meaning of Nice, it is not the primitive 
 meaning; for Johnson's first explanation is, " 1. Accurate in judgment to minute 
 exactness ; superfluously exact. It is often used to express a culpable delicacy." 
 
 But Skinner has something a little more to the purpose than Johnson' produces 
 from him. He says — r 
 
 " Nesh, vox agro Wigorniensi et vicinis usitatissima, idem quod Nice, (i. e.) 
 delicatulus. 
 
 " Nice, Wigorn. dial. Nesh, delicatus. Ab A. S. Nej-c, mollis, 35hnej-cian, 
 
 emollire." 
 
 Nesh, however, is not confined to Worcestershire and the neighbouring coun- 
 ties. It occurs in Chaucer, and in Fabian ; and in the translation of Peter of 
 Langtoft by Robert of Brunne. 
 
 Nesh and Nice (T.) are merely the Anglo-Saxon )?ne}-c, differently pronounced 
 and written, and is the past participle of J7nej-cian, mollire. 
 NOTCH, \NoTCH, n. s. (jiocchia, Italian.) A nick ; a hollow cut in any thing. 
 NOCK, #NocK, n. s. (jiocchia, Italian.) A slit ; a nick ; a notch. 
 NOOK, VNoOK, n.s. (Jrom een koeck, German.) A corner ; a covert made by an 
 NICHE, L angle or intersection. 
 NICK. iNicHE, n.s. (French.) A hollow in which a statue may be placed. 
 
 Nick, n.s. (nicke, Teutonick, the twinkling of an eye.) I. Exact point of time, at 
 which there is necessity or convenience. 
 
 2. A notch cut in any thing, (corrupted from nock or notch.) 
 
 3. A score or reckoning. 
 
 4. A winning throw, (jiiche, French, a ludicrous trick.)
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 151 
 
 All these words, (T.) which vary respectively in sound only by the immaterial 
 difference of ch or ck, have all one common meaning ; and I believe them to be 
 the past participle of the verb To Nick, incidere. 
 NUMB, > The word (T.) was formerly written Num. — It is the past tense and 
 
 NUMSKULL. > past participle of Niman, capere, eripere, to Nim. 
 
 Skinner says truly, — " Eodera fere sensu, quo Lat. dicitur membris captus : i. e. 
 membrorum usu, sc. motu et sensu privatus." 
 
 Skinner derives Nu7n from this verb — Nimau, but Johnson from Benumen, Be- 
 numeb, Saxon. 
 
 Numskull, (T.) in Italian mentecatto. Animo captus. 
 Numskull, n.s. (probably from wm7«6, dull, torpid, insensible; and skull.) 1. A dul- 
 lard ; a dunce ; a dolt ; a blockhead. 
 
 " Or toes and fingers, in this case. 
 
 Of mimskulVs self should take the place." Prior. 
 
 2. The head. In burlesque. 
 
 " They have talked like numskulls." Arb. and Pope. 
 
 Thus it stood in the first edition ; i. e. the Doctor's examples were pasted in the 
 wrong places. I do not know when they were removed to their proper places. 
 
 o. 
 
 ODD, Johnson says, is from udda, Swedish ; and means, " Not even." 
 
 Odd (T.) is the participle Owed, Oiad. Thus, when we are counting by cou- 
 ples, or by pairs, we say — One pair, two pairs, &c. and one Owed, Ow'd, to make 
 up another pair. It has the same meaning when we say — An odd man or an odd 
 action; it still relates to pamwg'; and we mean — Without a fellow, unmatched, 
 not such another ; one oiced to make up another. 
 
 OF. I imagine (says Tooke) that Of, (in the Gothic and Anglo-Saxon Af and A]:,) 
 is a fragment of the Gothic and Anglo-Saxon Afara, posteritas, &c. Sjropa, proles, 
 &c. That it is a noun substantive, and means always consequence, offspring, 
 successor, follower, &c. 
 
 And I think it not unworthy of remark, that whilst the old patronymical termi- 
 nation of our northern ancestors was Son, the Sclavonic and Russian patronymic 
 was Of. Thus, whom the English and Swedes named Peterson, the Russians
 
 152 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 called Peterhof. And as a polite foreign affectation afterwards induced some of our 
 ancestors to assume Fils or Fitz, (i.e. Fils or Filius,') instead ot So7i ; so the Rus- 
 sian affectation in more modern times changed Of to Vitch, (i. e. Fifz, Fils, or 
 Filius,') and Peterhof became Pefrovitch or Petromitz. — 
 
 Now as to J^jropa, (the Cyclopeedist declares,) it is nothing but the Greek ^ofov, 
 produce, from (pe^oi ; and the meaning of Of is quite the reverse of Consequence, &c. 
 Thus in the phrase rays of the sun. Of points to the sun as the origin of rays. It 
 means, therefore, source, origin, &c. And he revives the old etymology of Min-- 
 shew — d'Tto. 
 
 To this it may be a sutficient answer, That, in the phrase — Rays of the sun, — Of 
 does not point to the sun as the origin of the rays, but it points to the rays as the 
 Consequence, Offspring of the sun ; and that, in the phrase — Bays from the sun, — 
 From points to the sun, as the beginning, source, origin of the rays. The fol- 
 lowing observations deserve the attention of the reader, aud are, I think, of force 
 sufficient to make an impression, (may I venture to say it?) even upon the Cyclo- 
 paedist. 
 
 " The Dutch are supposed to use Van in two meanings; because it supplies in- 
 differently the places both of our Of and From. Notwithstanding which. Van 
 has always one aud the same single meaning, viz. beginning. And its use both for 
 of and from is to be explained by its different apposition. When it supplies the 
 place oi from. Van is put in apposition to the same term to which from is put in 
 apposition. But when it supplies the place of of, it is not put in appo.sition to the 
 same term to which of is put in apposition, but to its correlative. And between 
 two correlative terms, it is quite indifferent to the meaning, which of the tsyo cor- 
 relations is expressed." 
 
 Scaliger, under the head Appositio, (cap. clxxvii. de Causis,) says, " Caussa 
 
 propter quam duo substantiva non ponuntur sine copula, e philosophia petenda 
 est. Si aliqua substantia ejusmodi est, ut ex ea et alia, unum intelligi queat ; 
 earum duarum substantiarum totidem notae (id est nomina] in oratione sine con- 
 junctione cohserere poterunt." 
 
 " And this is the case with all those prepositions (as they are called) which are 
 really substantives. Each of these— ejusmodi est, ut ex ea et alia (to which it is 
 prefixed, postfixed, or by any manner attached,') unum intelligi queat." 
 OLD, \ (T.) The past tense and past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Ylfcan, 
 ELD, 3 Ilban, to remain, to stay, to continue, to last, to endure, to delay, to defer. 
 And this verb was commonly used in the Anglo-Saxon with that meaning, without 
 any denotation of long antiquity. As we now say — A week old. Two days old, 
 A minute old.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 153 
 
 Johnson says, — 
 Eld, n.s. (Galft, Saxon; eld, Scottish.) 1. Old age, decrepitude. 
 2. Old people, &c. 
 
 Old is from the same Galb, Saxon ; but disclaims kindred with Eld, Scotch, and 
 courts the alliance of Alt, German. 
 
 Old, according to Johnson, has ten different meanings. His sixth explanation is, 
 " Of any specified duration." And he produces examples in which there occur 
 these expressions: — "How old art thou?" — "Two hours old." — "Nine years 
 old," &c. 
 ONCE, adj. (from one.) 1. Onetime. 2. A single time. 3. The sa?ne time. And 
 four other distinctions just as judicious. To which is added this philological re- 
 flection — • 
 Once seems to be rather a noun than an adverb, when it has at before it, and when 
 it is joined with an adjective : as, this once, that once. 
 
 Once, (T.) anciently written Anes, Anis, Anys, Ones, Onys, is merely the 
 genitive of Sue, 35n ; i. e. One, (the substantive time, turn, &c. omitted.) 
 OPE, ^ Ope (T.) is the regular past tense of Yppan, aperire, pandere. Open, 
 OPEN, d the regular past participle. 
 
 GAP, r Gap and Gape, the regular past tense and past participle of Ije-yppan. 
 GAPE, / From which — 
 
 CHAP, m Chap and Chaps vary only by pronouncing Ch instead of G. But the 
 CHAPS, y meaning and etymology are the same. — 
 
 Ope and Open, the verb, Johnson derives (but without the circumspection of Ju- 
 nius,) from OTTJ), a hole. 
 Ope, j adj. (Ope is scarcely used but by old authors, and by them in the primitive 
 Open, f and not figurative sense.) 
 
 And for this adjective Johnson gives ten explanations, 
 Gap is from Gape, and Gape from Ireapan, Saxon. 
 
 Gape has twelve explanations. The first is, " To open the mouth wide ;" and 
 the last, " To stare irreverently ;" i. e. " To look with fixed eyes." — But the ex- 
 ample to this last explanation — 
 
 " They have gaped upon me with their mouth." Job. 
 
 Another explanation is — " 9. To make a noise with open throat." And the 
 example is — 
 
 " And, if my muse can through past ages see, 
 
 That noisy, nauseous, gaping fool is he." Roscommon.
 
 154 
 
 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 ORTS, 71. s. seldom with a singular. (This word is derived bj Skinner from Ort, Ger- 
 man, the fourth parf of' any thing; by Lye, more reasonably, fiom Orda, Irish, a 
 fragment. In Anglo-Saxon, 0]\b signifies the beginning ; whence, in some pro- 
 vinces, Odds and Ends, for Ords and Ends, signify remnants, scattered pieces, 
 refuse. From Ord thus used probably came Ort.^ 
 
 Ort. (T.) This word is commonly used in the plural, only because it is usually 
 spoken of many vile things together. Shakspeare, with excellent propriety for his 
 different purposes, uses it both in the singular and plural. 
 
 Oris is, throughout all England, one of the most common words in our lan- 
 guage, which has adopted nothing from the Irish, though we use two or three of 
 their words, as Irish. Oris is merely the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon 
 Operran, turpare, vilefacere, detnrpare. Oret, Ort, means (any thing, something) 
 made vile or worthless. — 
 
 Hence it is plain, that the reasonable derivation of Lye, (as Johnson calls it,) 
 explains nothing at all :— that Ort is not applicable to every part or portion of a 
 thing ; that every fragment is not an Ort. 
 
 PACK, 
 PATCH, 
 PAGE, 
 PAGEANT, I 
 PISH, I 
 
 PSHAW, j 
 
 ^ Pack, n. s. {pack, Dutch.) 
 To Pack, v. n. To tie up goods. 
 
 V 
 
 " The marigold (whose courtier's face 
 
 Echoes the sun, and doth unlace 
 
 Her at his rise, at his full stop 
 
 Packs and shuts up her gaudy shop,) 
 
 [Mistakes her clue, and doth display : 
 
 Thus Phillis antedates the day."] Cleaveland, (1687, p. 14.) 
 
 Patch, n.s. (Pezzo, Itahan.) 1. A piece sewed on to cover a hole. 5. A paltry 
 
 fellow. Obsolete. 
 Page, n.s. (Page, French.) 1. One side of the leaf of a book. 
 2. {Page, French.) A young boy attending on a great person. 
 
 •< Prosperity be thy page." Shaksp. Coriolmus. 
 
 Pageant, n.s. (Of this word the etymologists give us no satisfactory account. It
 
 OF THE DICTlONAllY OV DK. JOHNSON. 155 
 
 may perhaps be Payen Geant, a Pagan Giant; a representation of triumph used 
 at return from holy wars ; as we have yet the Saracen's Head. 
 Pish, interj. A contemptuous exclamation. This is sometimes spoken and written 
 Pshaw. I know not their etymology, and imagine them/o?7«eQ? by chance. — 
 
 The opinions of the different commentators on Shakspeare respecting the word 
 Patch are fully stated by Tooke, and among them that of Warton, who imagined 
 this opprobrious term, viz. Patch, " to have taken its rise from Patch, Cardinal 
 Wolsey's fool." To which Mr. Tooke replies, by producing an instance of the 
 use of the word in the reign of Henry the Seventh, " before Wolsey was a Car- 
 dinal, or had a fool." 
 
 The editor of Massinger, however, continues to repeat, " That Patch was the 
 cant name of a fool kept by Cardinal Wolsey, and that he has had the honour of 
 transmitting his appellation to a very numerous body of descendants : he being, (as 
 Wilson observes in his Art of Rhetorique, 1553,) a notable fool in his time." — 
 Mass. Vol. III. p. 563, n. 
 
 Pack (T.') m\A Patch, in both its applications, (viz. to men or to clothes,) and 
 Page, are the same past participle Pac, (differently pronounced, and, therefore, 
 differently written with k, ch, or ge,) of the Anglo-Saxon verb Peecan, Paeccean, 
 to deceive by false appearances, imitation, resemblance, semblance, or representa- 
 tion ; to counterfeit ; to delude ; to illude ; to dissemble, to impose upon. And 
 that Pageant is (by a small variation of pronunciation) merely the present parti- 
 ciple Psecceanto, of the same verb, — Pacheand, Pacheant, Pageant. 
 
 The ejaculations Pish and Pshaw, are the Anglo-Saxon Psec, Paeca ; pronounced 
 Pesh, Pesha, (a broad,) and are equivalent to the ejaculation — Trumpery! i.e. 
 Tromperie, from Tromper. As servants were contemptuously called Harlot, 
 Varlet, Valet, and Knave, so were they called Pack, Patch, Page. And from 
 the same source is the French Page and the Italian Paggio. — ■ 
 PAIN, n. s. (Peine, French; Pin, Saxon; Poena, Latin.) 1. Punishment de- 
 nounced. 
 
 This is Johnson's first explanation. His etymologies are from Skinner; but 
 Skinner also has the Anglo-Saxon Pinian, punire. " Omnia," he adds, " a Lat. 
 Poena, Gr. Horn." 
 
 We need not, however, says Tooke, have recourse to Poena and Horn. It is the 
 past participle of our own Anglo-Saxon verb Pinian, cruciare. 
 PATH, (T.) The past tense and participle of Pe'S^ian, conculcare, pedibus obterere. 
 Johnson is satisfied with the Anglo-Saxon Pa^ ; and classes the Path to the 
 house of darkness and to the town of St. Marino under one and the same expla- 
 nation ; having first informed his readers that the word '* in conversation is used 
 
 X 2
 
 156 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 of a narrow way to be passed on foot ; but that iu solemn language it means any 
 
 passage." 
 PIT, >PlT, n. s. (Pit, Saxon.) 1. A hole in the ground. 2. Abyss; profundity. 
 POT. 3 3. The grave. 4. The area on which cocks fight. 5. The middle part of the 
 
 theatre. 
 
 We have yet two more explanations ; to the first of which is prefixed a new 
 
 etymology : — 
 
 6. (P?s, Peis, old French, from Pectus, Latin.) Any hollow of the body; as the 
 pit of the stomach, the arm pit. 
 
 7. A dint made by the finger. 
 
 Pot, n. s. {Pot, French, in alt the senses, and Dutch ; Potte, Islandick.) 1. A vessel 
 in which meat is boiled on the fire. 2 Vessel to hold liquids. 3. Vessel made of 
 earth. 4. A small cup. 5. To go to pot. To be destroyed or devoured ; a low 
 phrase. 
 
 And it is a low phrase, whether applied to the farms of John Bull or the Dic- 
 tionary of S. Johnson ; and— 
 To Pot, v. a. (from the noun.) 1. To preserve seasoned in pots. 
 
 Pit, qT.) Pot, aie the past tense and past participle of the verb to Pit, i. e. To 
 excavate, to sink into a hollow. 
 PLOUGH, (T.) (Anglo-Saxon Ploj and PloJ),) is the past participle of Plejjan, in- 
 cumbere. — Our English word to ply, is no other than Plejjan. 
 
 Johnson produces the Saxon, Danish, and Dutch similar words for Plough, and 
 he gives the authority of Skinner and Junius for deriving the verb TO ply from the 
 old Dutch plien; yet in Junius we find it said — 
 
 " Plie his books, studere, libris sedulo incumbere. — Plie manifeste videtuV fac- 
 tum ex A. S. Plegjan. T^c ple^je on his bocum — sed libris incumbat." The whole 
 passage from the Can. sub. Edg. as quoted by Tooke, is given by Junius. Under 
 the word Plough, Junius also refers to what he had already said, under " Plie his 
 books," of the Danish Ploye, incumbere aratro. 
 PLOT, (T.) i. e. Plighted. A plighted agreement ; any agreement to the performance 
 of which the parties have plighted their faith to each other. 
 
 Pledge, i. e. Pleght, the past participle of the same verb to plight. The thing 
 plighted; from the Anglo-Saxon verb Plihtan, exponere vel objicere periculo, 
 spondere, oppignerare. — 
 
 I beg the reader's patient attention to Doctor Johnson. 
 Plot, n.s. (Plot, Saxon. See Plat.) 1. A small extent of ground. 
 
 2. A plantation laid out. 
 
 3. A form ; a scheme ; a plan.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 
 
 157 
 
 4. (^ Imagined by Skinner to be derived from Platform, but evidently derived from 
 Complot, French.) A conspiracy ; a secret design formed against another. 
 
 5. An intrigue ; an afifair complicated, involved and embarrassed; the story of a 
 play, comprizing an artful involution of affairs, unravelled at least by some unex- 
 pected means. 
 
 6. Stratagem ; secret combination to any ill end. 
 
 7. Contrivance ; deep reach of thought. — 
 
 " Who says he was not 
 
 A man of much plot," &c. 
 
 For Plight, the verb, we have two explanations, and a separate etymology for 
 each. For Plight, the noun, we have five explanations, and three different ety- 
 mologies. 
 POINT. Of this word Johnson furnishes twenty explanations. The first is, " The 
 sharp end of any instrument :" and the first example is — 
 
 " The thorny point 
 
 Of liare distress hath ta'en from me the show 
 
 Of smooth fidelit)- " Shaksp. As you like it. 
 
 Poke and Pock, (T.) the regular past tense and past participle of the An- 
 glo-Saxon Pykan, to pike, or to peck. 
 
 Pock is so applied as we use it; because where the pustules have been, 
 the face is usually marked as if it had been picked or pecked. We therefore 
 say pitied with the small pocks (or pox.) — 
 Pox, n. s. (properly Pocks, which originally signified small bags ox pustules ; of the 
 same original, perhaps, with Powke or Pouch. We still use Pock for a single pus- 
 tule ; Poccaj-, Saxon; Pocken, Dutch.) 
 
 Such is Johnson's etymology ; now take his explanation : — 
 Pustules ; efflorencies ; exanlhematous eruptions. 
 
 Johnson also informs us, that a " Pustule is a small swelling," and that " To 
 pit," is " to mark with small hollows, as by the small Pox," i. e. " by a small 
 swelling." 
 
 POND, jPoND, n.s. (supposed.to be the same Vi'iih pound ; Pinban, Saxon, to shut 
 up.) A small pool or lake of water ; a basin ; water not running or 
 emitting any stream. 
 
 Skinner supplied this etymology ; and a reason for the application of 
 the word, which Johnson wholly disregards : — " Tum quia in eo pisces. 
 
 1. 
 
 POUND, 
 PEN, 
 PIN, 
 BINN.
 
 lo8 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 tanquam in carcere, includuntur ; turn quia vivarium agro vel horto inclu- 
 ditur." 
 
 Lye also says, that Pond has the same etymon as Pound: — " In hoc differuut, 
 quod alterum bestias terrenas, alteram aquaticas includit." 
 
 Of Pound, Johnsou has three explanations and two etymologies : the word in its 
 two first significations, is, according to him, from Pondo, Latin ; and only in its third, 
 viz. " A prison in which beasts are inclosed ;" from the Saxon Pmfcan, includere. 
 
 The beast, however, whom he exhibits thus inclosed, is a minister of state ; 
 Harley, perhaps, " The nation's great support." 
 
 " I hurry 
 
 Not thinking it is levee-day. 
 And find his honour in a pound, 
 Hemm'd by a triple circle round." 
 
 Swift's Miscel. (Imitation of Horace, b, ii. s. 6.) ' 
 
 But though the substantive Pound, a prison, is from Pyntoan, yet the verb to 
 Pound, to imprison, is from the Saxon Puman, (pinsere, conterere.) 
 Pen, }i. s. is first from the Latin Penna ; and under this etymon there are three 
 explanations ; and then from Pennan, Saxon, with one explanation. 
 Skinner derives a Pen for sheep from Pynban, includere. 
 
 To Pen is from Pennan or Pinban, Saxon, with one explanation ; and then, 
 " from the noun :" but whether from the noun derived from Penna, or Pennan, 
 the reader must discover for himself. 
 PIN, n. s. (espingle, French ; spina, spinula, Latin ; spilla, Italian ; rather , from 
 pennum. Low Latin. Isidore.) 
 1. A short wire with a sharp point, and round head, used by women to fasten their 
 clothes. 
 
 Skinner supplied Johnson with his French, Latin, and Italian etymologies for 
 Pin, acicula, only. Johnson has ten explanations, and adheres to these etymolo- 
 gies throughout. The reader shall have an opportunity of observing his blindness 
 to the information which Skinner contains : — 
 3. Any thing driven to hold parts together ; a peg ; a bolt. 
 
 Skinner. — " A Pin, impages lignea seu ferrea. — Verisimilius ab A. S. Pynban, 
 includere." 
 5. That which locks the wheel to the axle ; a linch pin. 
 
 In this application it is also derived by Skinner from the same Anglo-Saxon verb. 
 7. The pegs by which ujusiciaus intend or relax their strings.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 159 
 
 Skinner. — " A. pin of a musical instrument — Vel ab A. S. Pynftan, inciudere, quia 
 suis alveis, sen foraminibus inseruntur et clauduntur." 
 9. A horny induration of the membranes of the eye. Hanmer. 
 
 Skinner seems likewise to say the same. I should rather think it an inflamma- 
 tion, which causes a pain like that of a pointed body piercing the eye. — 
 
 As Skinner was himself a physician, perhaps he knew better than Doctor 
 Johnson to what affection of the eye this word was properly applied. These are 
 his words: — 
 
 " A Pin or Web in the eye, potius Pterygium sen unguis credo ab A. S. 
 
 Pynban, inciudere, sic dictum quia totum oculum claudit et circumvestit." 
 Bin, n. s. (Binne, Saxon.) A place where bread, or corn, or wine is reposited. 
 
 Again, Skinner says, " Binn — Mallem deducere ab A. S. Pynfean, inciudere." 
 
 The (T.) modern English verb to Pin or to Pen, is the Anglo-Saxon verb Pyn- 
 ban, inciudere ; whose past participle is Pond, Pound, Penn, Pin, Bin ; and the 
 old Latin Benna, a close carriage. 
 PROOF, though used as an adjective, (says Johnson,) is only elliptically put for of 
 Proof : but Tooke declares it to be the regular past participle of the old English 
 verb to preve. 
 PROUD, (T.) (Anglo-Saxon, Pj\uc.) The past participle of Pjiycian, superbire. 
 
 Skinner. — " Proud, ab A.S. Ppuc, superbus, Pryde, superbia, tumor, Prutian, 
 supeibire." 
 
 Proud, adj. (Pput> or Pjiuc, Saxon.) 1. Too much pleased with himself — and 
 eight others. 
 PROMPTER, n. s. (from prompt.) 1. One who helps a publick speaker, by suggesting 
 the word to him when he falters. 
 
 •' Were it my cue tofght, I should have known it 
 
 Whhoat a prompter." Shaksp. Olftello. 
 
 Such is Johnson's first example to his first explanation ; and yet he proceeds — 
 2. An admonisher, a reminder. 
 PUMP, (T.) An engine by which water, or any other fluid, is obtained or procured. It 
 is the past participle of the verb to Pimp, i. e. To procure or obtain. 
 PCMP, n.s. (^Pompe, Dutch, and French,) 1. An engine by which water is drawn 
 
 up from wells ; its operation is performed by the pressure of the air. 
 2. A shoe, with a thin sole and low heel. 
 PUDDLE, } (T.) Puddle was anciently written Podell. It is the regular past tense 
 POOL. 3 and past participle of the verb to piddle. — Pool is merely the contraction 
 of Podel, Poodle, Pool.
 
 160 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Mr. Tooke acknowledges, that he cannot produce any Anglo-Saxon or ancient 
 authority for the use of to piddle ; yet he conceives that it cannot be of very mo- 
 dern introduction, since it long ago furnished a name for one of our rivers. Dray- 
 ton, Polyolbiou, Song ii. p. 244. 
 
 Of Piddle, Johnson acknowledges the etymology to be obscure. " Perhaps (he 
 adds,) it comes from Peddle, for S]k'mnev gives for its primitive signification to deal 
 in little things." Respecting the etymology of PEDDLE, however, he offers not a 
 word. 
 
 Pdddle, n. s. (from Puteolus, Latin, Skinner ; from Poil, dirt, old Bavarian, Ju- 
 nius ; hence Pool.) A small muddy lake, a dirty plash. 
 
 Pool, n. s. (Pul, Saxon ; Poel, Dutch.) A lake of standing water. 
 
 " Love oft to virtuous acts inflames the mind, 
 
 Awakes the sleepy vigour of the soul. 
 
 And brushing o'er, adds vigour to the poo/." Dryden. 
 
 PURSUIVANT, U.S. {Poursuivant, French.) A state messenger ; an attendant on the 
 heralds. 
 
 " Tliese grey locks, the pursuivants of Deatli, 
 
 Argue the end of Edmund Mortimer." Shakspeare. 
 
 Q. 
 
 QUARRY, Ti.s. {quarre, French.) I. A square. 
 
 2. [Quadreau, French.) An arrow, with a square head. 
 
 3. (from Querir, to seek, French, Skinner; from carry, Kennet.) Game flown at 
 by a hawk. 
 
 To pass the common absurdity of the Dictionary, viz. the assigning of different 
 etymologies for different explanations of the same word, this third explanation and 
 its attendant examples demand a moment's pause. 
 
 Game, according to Johnson, means "Animals pursued in the fiejd ; animals 
 appropriated to legal sportsmen." 
 
 A Hawk is " a bird of prey used much anciently in sport to catch other birds." 
 
 This premised, mark his examples ; and you will find, that we have successively,
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. l6l 
 
 as birds of prey, the friend of Macduff; Death; some English ships; the great 
 fire of London; Gens humana ; Deus arcitenens; and Reason. 
 
 Then, as " the animals pursued in the field," — Macduff's children ; " the mortal 
 change on earth ;" some Spanish ships ; the remaining half of London ; Vetitum 
 ■ nefas ; et te quoque, maxime Python. 
 
 QUICK, (T.) The past participle of CJjiccian, vivificare. 
 
 Quickly, Quicklike, from cj^ic, c])icu, cjiicob, vivus, (as we still oppose the 
 quick to the dead.') Quickly means, in a life-like or lively manner ; iii the manner 
 of a creature that has life. — 
 
 Quick, adj. (cjjic, Saxon.) I. Living, not dead. 
 To Quicken, v. a. (cjjiccan, Saxon.) 1. To make alive. 
 Quickly, adv. (from quick.) Nimbly ; &c. 
 QUOTH, V. imperf. (This is only part of Cwo^an, Saxon, retained in English, and 
 is now only used in ludicrous language. It is used by Sidney irregularly in the 
 second person.) 
 
 Johnson does not say what part of the verb he considers it lo be. Mr. Tooke 
 affirms, that it is the past tense of CJje^an, and that Quoth I, is strictly accurate 
 for Said I. 
 
 RACK, n. s. (racke, Dutch ; from racken, to stretch.) 
 
 1. An engine to torture. 
 
 " Vex not his ghost ; O let him pass ! he hates him 
 
 Tiiat would, upon the rack of this rough world, 
 
 Stretch him out longer." Shakspeare. King Lear, 
 
 Such are Johnson's first explanation and first example. 
 
 2. Torture ; extreme pain. 
 
 3. Any instrument by which extension is performed. 
 
 4. A distaff; commonly a portable distaff, from which they spin by twirling a ball : 
 it is commonly written and spoken Rock. 
 
 .5. (^Racke, Dutch, a track.) The clouds as they are driven by the winds. 
 6. (ppacca, the occiput, Saxon; racca, Islandick, hinges or joints.) A neck of 
 mutton cut for the table. 
 
 Y
 
 162 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 7. A grate ; the grate ou which bacon is laid. — (The two last explanations stand 
 without examples.) 
 
 8. A wooden grate, in which hay is placed for cattle. 
 
 Johnson has here managed to confound four words of very different origin, and 
 of as different meaning: — 
 
 1. Rack, from lUpican, persequi, &c. 
 
 2. Rack, from Uljujan, tegere. 
 
 3. Rack, from Recan, exhalare. 
 
 4. Rack, from Ricjan, congerere. 
 
 I. Rack, Wreck, Wretch, Wretched. lUjiac, Ulpsec, lUpec, (T.) the past participle 
 of VUpican, (Goth, and Sax.) persequi, afBigere, punire, vindicare, ulcisci, Isedere, 
 perdere. The different pronunciation of ch or ck, (common throughout the lan- 
 guage,) is the only difference in these words. They have all one meaning. And 
 though, by the modern fashion, they are now differently applied and differently 
 written, the same distinction was not anciently made. 
 
 Johnson's three first explanations belong to this word : he had no idea that 
 Wreck, &c. had any relationship to Rack. He says — 
 Wreck, n. s. (UJpecce, Saxon, a miserable person ; Wracke, Dutch, a ship broken.) 
 1. Destruction, by being driven on rocks or shallows by sea; destruction by sea. 
 To Wreck, v. a. (from the noun.) 
 1 . To destroy, by dashing on rocks or sands. 
 
 Wrack, n. s. (^Wrack, Dutch; lUpaecce, Saxon, a wretch ; the poets use wraek or 
 wreck indifferently, as the rhyme requires : the later writers of prose commonly 
 Wreck. See Wreck.) 
 1. Destruction of a ship by winds or rocks. 
 To Wrack, v. a. (from the noun.) 
 1. To destroy in the water; to wreck. 
 
 After this attempt to settle that the primitive meaning of this word includes 
 within it a particular means of destruction, viz. rocks or shallows, or seas, or wind 
 or water, the reader must not be surprized to fuid such examples as the following : 
 
 " Like those that see their wreck 
 
 E'en in the rocks of death ; and yet tliey strain 
 
 That death may not them idly find t' attend 
 
 To tlieir uncertain task, but work to meet their end." 
 
 Daniel, {On the Civil IVars, B. III.)
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 163 
 
 Have there been any more such tempests, wherein she hath wretchedly been 
 wrecked?" Spenser on Ireland, Works, fo. 1679, p. 207. 
 
 The tempest here alluded to was the attack upon Ireland by Edward, brother 
 of Robert le Bruce, " wherein she (i.e. Ireland,) had wretchedly been wracked" 
 
 II. Rack, (which Johnson says is most commonly written and spoken Rock,') is 
 from UJjiijan, tegere. See Rogue. 
 
 III. Rack, which means (T.) merely that which is Reeked. And whether writ- 
 ten Rak, Wraik, Reck, Reik, Roik, or Reeke, is the same word different!)' pro- 
 nounced and spelled. It is merely the past tense, and, therefore, past participle, 
 Reac, Rec, of the Anglo-Saxon verb Recan, exhalare, to reek; and is surely the 
 most appropriate term that could be employed by Shakspeare in the Tempest ; to 
 represent to us, that the dissolution and annihilation of the globe, and all which 
 it inherit should be so total and complete, — they should so " melt into ayre, into 
 thin ayre," — as not to leave behind them even a Vapour, a Steam, or iin Exhala- 
 tion, to give the slightest notice that such things had ever been. 
 
 Johnson, in support of his explanation that the Rack means the clouds as the)' 
 are driven by the winds, produces, among others, the two following examples: 
 
 " We often see against some storm 
 
 A silence in the heavens, the rack stand still. 
 
 The bold winds speechless, and the orb below 
 
 As hush as death " Shakspeare, Hamlet. 
 
 " As wintry winds contendin<r in the sky, 
 
 With equal force of lungs their titles try ; 
 
 They rage, they roar ; the doubtful rack of heaven 
 
 Stands without 7nolion, and the tide undriv'n." Dkyden. 
 
 IV. Rack. A Rack of hay, (T.) and a Rick of hay, are the past participle of 
 theGothic Ricyan, congerere, colligere, to collect, to draw together, to ra^-e together. 
 
 A Rake, the same past participle, it being the tool or instrument by which the 
 hay is collected. 
 
 Rich and Riches are the same participle. Throughout the language different pro- 
 nunciation of ch and ck is not to be regarded. Thus, what we pronounce Rich and 
 Riches, (tch,') the French pronounce Riche and Richesse, (sh,) and the Italians — 
 Ricco and Richezza. (Jc.) But it is the same word in the three languages ; and it 
 applies equally to any things, collected, accumulated , heaped, or (as we frequently 
 express it,) raked together, whether to money, cattle, lands, knowledge, &c. — 
 
 Whether Johnson meant lo derive his Rack, a grate, a wooden grate, iVoin tlu 
 
 Y 2
 
 164 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 occiput, I will neither afCrm nor deny: but it will be proper to exhibit some por- 
 tion of what he has said respecting Rake, Rick, Rich, and Riches. 
 Rake, n. s. (rastrum, Latin ; pace, Saxon ; racc/ie, Dutch.) 
 
 1. An instrument with teeth, by which the ground is divided, or light bodies are 
 gathered up. 
 
 2. QRacaille, French, the low rabble ; or rekel, Dutch, a worthless cur dog.) A 
 loose, disorderly, vicious, wild, gay, thoughtless /eZto?© ; a jwaw addicted to plea- 
 
 _^ure. — 
 
 " But every woman Is at lieiut a rake." Pope. 
 
 To Rake, v. a. (from the noun.) 
 1. To gather with a rake. 
 
 " Harrows iron teeth shall every where 
 
 Rake helmets up " May's Virgil's Georgicks. 
 
 But there would be no end to the task of pointing out the inconsistencies be- 
 tween Johnson's explanations and examples. 
 Rick, n. s. See Reek. 
 
 1. A pile of corn or hay regularly heaped up in the open field, and sheltered from wet. 
 
 2. A heap of corn or hay piled up by the gatherer. 
 
 In obedience to Johnson let us see Reek. 
 Reek, n. s. (peck, Saxon; reake, Dutch.) 
 
 1. Smoke; steam; vapour. 
 
 2. (^Reke, German, any thing piled up.) A pile of corn or hay, commonly 'pro- 
 nounced Rick. 
 
 A reference to this " Reek" would have had some propriety after the fifth ex- 
 planation of " Rack ;" but here it serves no other purpose than to bring before our 
 view an old and perpetually repeated absurdity of the Dictionary. 
 
 Rich is from riche, French ; ricco, Italian ; pica, Saxon : and Riches from ri- 
 chess, French. 
 RAFT, -\ As Rift is (T.) Rived, Riv'd, Rift, the past participle of To Rive, so 
 RIFT, > Raft, (^Rafed,) is the past participle of Rejian, Reajrian, rapere, To Rive, 
 ROUGH. ^ to reave or bereave, to tear away. 
 
 Rough, (Rop,) and Riff-raff, are the same past participle. 
 Raft, n. s. (probably from ratis, Latin.) A frame or float made by laying pieces 
 
 of timber cross each other. 
 Raft, past participle of reave or raff, Spenser. Torn ; rent.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 
 
 165 
 
 Rafter, n.s. (jia^cep, Saxon ; rafter, Dutch; corrupted, says Junius, from roof - 
 tree.) The secondary timbers of the house ; the timbers which are let into the 
 great beam. 
 
 " The rafters of my hody, — hone. 
 Being still with j-ou, the muscle, sinew, and vein. 
 Which tile this house, will coine aj^ain," 
 
 not 
 
 Donne. 
 
 Rift, n. s. (from rive.) A cleft ; a breach ; au opening. 
 
 Rough is from the Saxon J7puhje, and the Dutch rouw, and means, - 
 
 smooth." 
 
 Eive, Skinner says, is perhaps from the Anglo-Saxon Reajrian, rapere. Johnson 
 
 that it is from Jiy^r, broken, Saxon ; rij'ven, Dutch ; river, French, to drive. 
 Riff-raff, (which is not in the first folio,) Johnson derives from the Latin Recre- 
 
 mentum. Skinner, perhaps from theTeut. Raffen. 
 
 All these, says Tooke, are the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon 
 verb lUjiijan, tegere, to Wrine, to iVrie, to cover, to cloak. 
 To Wrine, or to Wrie, was formerly a common English verb. — 
 It was too old for Johnson. Lye, in Junius, says, " Wrie, Wrien, te- 
 gere, velare. Anglo-Saxon UJpeon, lUjiyon, lUpijan." 
 
 The disuse of this verb, continues Tooke, UJjiigan, has, I believe, 
 caused the darkness and difficulty of all our etymologists, concerning 
 y the branches of this word which are left in our language. And yet, I 
 think, this should not have happened to them ; for the verb lUpijan is 
 not so intirely lost to the language, but that it has still left behind it the 
 verb to Rig, with the same meaning ; which Johnson (with his wonted 
 sagacity) derives from Ridge, the back. Because, forsooth, " clothes 
 are proverbially said to be for the back, and victuals for the belly." 
 
 Rogue, (according to the usual change of the characteristick i,) is 
 the past tense, and, therefore, past participle, of UJpijan, and means 
 covered, cloaked; most aptly applied to the character designated by that term. 
 
 It happens to this verb, as to the others, that the change of the characteristic 
 i was not only to o, but to a. What we call Rogue, Douglas therefore calls Ray, 
 g being softened to y. — 
 ROG0E, n. s. (of uncertain etymology.) 
 
 1. A wandering beggar; a vagrant; a vagabond. 
 
 2. A knave ; a dishonest fellow ; a villain ; a thief. 
 
 3. A name of slight tenderness and endearment. 
 
 4. A wag. 
 
 ROGUE, 
 
 ROCK, 
 
 ROCHE, 
 
 ROCHET, 
 
 ROCKET, 
 
 RUG, 
 
 RUCK, 
 
 ARRAY, 
 
 RAIL, 
 
 RAILS, 
 
 RIG, 
 
 RIGGING, 
 
 RIGEL, 
 
 RILLING, 
 
 RAY.
 
 166 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 A Rock (T) {k instead of g) is the covered part of the machine which spin- 
 sters use ; I meau covered by the wool to be spun. It was formerly written Rok, 
 c before k being always superfluoi s. 
 
 We have already seen that Johnson classes this Rock as the fifth explanation of 
 Rack ; but he also places it as the third explanation of Rock, a mass of stone, 
 with a different set of etymologies, an explanation not exactly the same, and 
 ■with three different examples. Thus : 
 Rock, n. s. [roc, rocke, French ; rocca, Italian ) 
 
 1. A vast mass of stone fixed in the earth. 
 
 2. Protection ; defence. A scriptural sense. 
 
 S. (Rock, Danish ; rocca, Italian ; rucca, Spanish; spinrock, Dutch.) A distaff held 
 in the hand, from which the wool was spun by twirling a ball below. 
 
 Johnson's authority for his scriptural sense is taken, oddly enough, from King 
 Charles : — the words " fixed in the earth," in the first explanalir-u, are an improve- 
 ment upon the first edition. 
 
 Rocket, or Rochet, (T.) part of the dress of a bishop, and formerly of women, is 
 the diminutive of the Anglo-Saxon Roc, exterior vestis, (the same participle,) 
 or that with which a person is covered. 
 Rochet, n. s. i^rochet, French ; rochetum, from roccus, low Latin, a coat.) 
 1. A surplice ; the icliite upper garment of the priest officiating. 
 
 Rug, (T.) in the Anglo-Saxon, pooc, indumentum, is also the same past participle 
 of VUjxijan ; the characteristic i, as usual, being changed also to oo and u. 
 Rug, 71. s. {rugget, rough, Swedish.) 
 
 1. A coarse, nappy, woollen cloth. 
 
 2. A coarse, nappy coverlet, used for mean beds. 
 S. A rough woolley dog. 
 
 Ruck, (T.) also, (a very common English word, especially amongst females, 
 though I find it not in any English collection,) is the same participle as jiooc, and 
 means covered. It is commonly used when some part of silk, linen, «fec. is folded 
 over, or covers some other part, when the whole should lie smooth or even. 
 
 We may notice in passing, that the old English words to Rouk and to Ruck, 
 are likewise formed from the past tense of lUjiigan, and meau (not as Junius sup- 
 poses) to lie quiet or in atnbush, but simply to lie covered. — 
 Mr. Tyrwhitt says, " Rouk, v. Saxon, to lie close." 
 Ray, used by Douglas for Rogue, is likewise used for Array. Ray for Array, Spen- 
 ser, (says Johnson.) 
 Array, n.s. (arroy, French; arreo, Spanish; arredo, Italian; from reye, Teut.
 
 OP THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 167 
 
 order. It was adopted into the middle Latin, — raille homiuum arraitorum. — 
 Knighton.) 
 1. Order, chiefly of war. 2. Dress. 
 
 Array (T.) means covered, dressed ; and is applied by us both to the dressing 
 of the body of an individual, and to the dressing of a body of armed men. — 
 Arayne is the foresaid past tense Aray, with the addition of the participial termi- 
 nation en. Arayen, Aray'n, — clothed, dressed, covered. 
 
 A woman's nighl-xaW, in the Anglo-Saxon Roejel, is the diminutive of Reej, or 
 Hay, the past tense of UJjugan. 
 
 As Rochet, so Rail means thinly or slenderly covered. 
 
 Rails, by which any area, court-yard, or other place is thinly (i. e. not closely, 
 but with small intervals) covered, is the same word Rsejel. 
 
 Rilling, (for Rillen, as Railing for RaiLen,] that with which the feet are co- 
 vered. — Not in Johnson. 
 Rail, n. s. (riegel, German.) 
 
 1. A cross beam fixed at the ends in two upright posts. 
 
 2. A series of posts connected with beams, by which any thing is inclosed : a pale is 
 a series of small upright posts rising above the cross beam, by which they are con- 
 nected ; a rail is a series of cross beams supported with posts, which do not rise 
 much above it. 
 
 Johnson would puzzle any carpenter in England. 
 4. (Rsejle, Saxon.) A wr man's upper garment. This is preserved only in night 
 rail. 
 
 Hig, (T.) Rigel, Rigil, Rigsie, is a male (horse or other animal) who has escaped 
 with a partial castration, because some part of his testicle was covered, and so hid 
 from the operator's view. 
 
 Not in Johnson. — Mr. Weber says, " A rigel or ridgling is a ram, half castrated." 
 B. and F. Vol. IX. p. ;^09. 
 Rigging, n. s. (from Rig.) The sails or tackling of a ship. 
 
 Rigging, (T.) (written, I suppose, corruptly for Riggen, i. e. Ulpi^jen,) is 
 that with which a ship, or any thing else, is Rigged, (i. e. Ulpijjeb,) or covered. 
 
 It is not necessary (continues Tooke) to shew what I think of Rock in the sea ; 
 or of Sky-TOC^e^ ; or of Raiment, Arraiment, to Rail, and to Rally; the real 
 meaning of all which, I believe, the etymologist will find no where but in 
 UJpijan. — 
 
 Skinner and Junius present nothing worthy of notice. 
 RAIN, v.n. (penian, Saxon; regenen, Dutch.) 
 1. To fall in drops from the clouds.
 
 168 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 " [III bears the sex a youthful lover's fate, 
 
 When just approaching to the nu))tial state ;] 
 
 But, like a low hung cloud, it rains so fast. 
 
 That all at once it falls, and cannot last." Dryden. 
 
 I have prefixed the first couplet to Johnson's example, that the reader might 
 have an opportunity of judging of its propriety. Perhaps it is pasted in the wrong 
 place, and was intended for the second explanation, which is — 
 2. To fall as rain. 
 
 " They sat them down to weep ; not only tears 
 
 iJam'rf at their eyes, but high winds rose within." Milton. 
 
 Skinner derives Rain from Reman, and Junius from ^nywfu. 
 
 Rain, (T.) in the Anglo-Saxon Rsegu, is the past participle of Gothic Rignyan 
 pluere. As the Latin Pluvia is the unsuspected past participle formed from Pluvi, 
 the antient past tense of Pluere. 
 RATH, adj. (Ra'S, Saxon, quickly.) Early, coming before the time. 
 
 Rather, adv. (This is a comparative of Rath ; Ra^, Saxon, soon. Now out of use. 
 One may still say, by the same form of speaking, I will sooner rfo this than that; 
 that is, / like better to do this.) 
 1. More willingly ; with better liking. 2. Preferably to the other; with better rea- 
 son. 3. In a greater degree than otherwise. 4. More properly. 5. Especially. 
 6. To have rather. (This is, I think, a barbarous expression of late intrusion into 
 our language, for which it is better to say, will rather.) To desire in preference. 
 
 In English (T.) we have, Rath, Rather, Rathest, which are simply the Anglo- 
 Saxon Ra?!, RaSep, Ra^oj-C, celer. velox. 
 
 After noticing the opinions of Skinner, Menage, and Minshew, and also of John- 
 son and the commentators on Milton, Tooke proceeds: — 
 
 By the quotations of Johnson, Newton, and Warton, {rom Spenser, Ma.y, Bolton, 
 Davison, and Bastard, a reader would imagine that the word Rathe was very 
 little authorized in the language; and that it was necessary to hunt diligently in 
 obscure holes and corners for an authority. 
 
 He then produces ten instances of Rathe from Chaucer, and four from Douglas, 
 (who writes it Raith,') and eighteen of Rather and Rathest, from Gower and 
 Chaucer ; many of which would have supplied such a Lexicographer as Johnson 
 with neic meanings. 
 RIGHT, Johnson considers to be an adjective, and an interjection, and an adverb, and 
 a noun, and a verb.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSOX. l69 
 
 I must content myself with stating here, Mr. Tooke's opinions respecting thit 
 Word, without comment. 
 
 Right is no other than Reci-um (^Reg-iiuin,^ the past participle of the Latin 
 
 verb Regere. Whence, in Italian, you have Riito ; and from Dirigere, Diritto, 
 
 Dritto; whence the French have their ancient Droict, and their modern Droit. 
 
 The Italian Dritto, and the French Droit, being no other than the past participle 
 
 ■ Directum. 
 
 Thus, when a man demands his right, he asks only that which it is ordered that 
 he shall have. 
 
 A right conduct is, that which is ordered. 
 
 A right reckoning is, that which is ordered. 
 
 A right line is, that which is ordered or directed, (not a random extension, but) 
 the shortest between two points. 
 
 The right road is, that ordered or directed to be pursued (for the object you 
 have in view.) 
 
 To do right, is to do that which is ordered to be done. 
 
 To be in the right, is, to be in such situation or circumstances as are ordered. 
 
 To have right or law on one's side, is, to have in on«'s favour that which is 
 ordered or laid down. 
 
 A right and just action is, such a one as is ordered and commanded. 
 
 A right hand is, that which custom and those who have brought us up have 
 ordered or directed us to use in preference, when one hand only is employed. — 
 See Left. 
 RIPE, adj. (ripe, Saxon ; rij'p, Dutch.) 
 
 \. Brought to perfection in growth ; mature, 
 
 " .Macbeth 
 
 Jg ripe for shaking, and the powers above 
 
 Put on their instruments " Sh AKSPeare, 
 
 *' The time was the time of the first ripe grapes." Numb. xiii. 
 
 And yet his second explanation is " Resembling the ripeness of fruit ;" which 
 might have saved him from the folly of classing " Macbeth and the grapes" under 
 the same application of this word. 
 
 Skinner derives Ripe from the Anglo-Saxon Ripian, maturescere; and of that 
 verb, Tooke considers it to be the past participle. 
 ROAD, n. s. (rade, French ; route, French : ro7jte is via trita.') 
 1 , Large way ; path. 
 
 Z
 
 170 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 As examples we have, first, the road on which we ride ; then the road to God's 
 eternal house ; then the road to error ; then the road by which the " stupid atoms" 
 might proceed ; and then the road to the republick of St. Marino. 
 
 2. (^Rade, French.) Ground where ships may anchor. 
 
 3. Inroad, incursion. 
 
 4. Journey. The word seems^ in this sense at least, to be derived from Rode, the 
 preterite of Ride; as we say, a short ride; an easy ride. 
 
 It is quite a principle with Johnson to seek a difiFerent etymology for the same 
 word, whenever he imagines it to have a different application. 
 
 Road, (T.) i. e. Any place ridden over. This supposed substantive, Road, 
 though now so written, (perhaps for distinction sake, to correspond with the received 
 false notions of language,) was formerly written exactly as the past tense. Shak- 
 speare, as well as others, so wrote it. — (And that not only in the instances pro- 
 duced by Tooke, but in the very example given by Johnson to his second ex- 
 planation.) 
 ROOF, (T.) in the Anglo-Saxon pjiop, the past participle of )?ji8B}:nan, sustinere. 
 
 Minshew, Skinner, and Junius derive it from the Greek Ofo^of. Johnson is con- 
 tent with ppop, Saxon. 
 ROOM,^ (T.) Are the past participle of Ryman, Be-pyman, dilatare, amplificare, 
 RIM, > extendere. 
 BRIM, J Room means dilatum, extended, place, space, extent. 
 
 Rim, (of Ryman,) is the utmost extent in breadth of any thing. 
 Brim, (of Be-pyman,) is also the extent of the capacity of any vessel. 
 Large Brimm'd, (or Be-pym'&,) is widely extended in breadth. 
 Roomih, (in the Anglo-Saxon Rym^e,) the third person singular of Ryman,, is 
 the favourite term of Drayton. — 
 Room, n. s. (Rum, Saxou ; rums, Gothic.) 1. Space, extent of place; and five 
 
 others. 
 Rim, «. s. (Rima, Saxon.) LA border, a margin. 2. That which encircles some- 
 thing else. 
 Brim, n.s. (brim, Icelandish.) 1. The edge of any thing. 2. The upper edge of 
 any vessel. 3. The top of any liquor. 4. The bank of a fountain. 
 RUTH, (T.) the third person of To rue, J?py|)ian, misereri. 
 RcTH, n.s. (from rue.) Mercy; pity; tenderness; sorrow for the misery of an- 
 other.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 1/1 
 
 s. 
 
 SAFE, adj. (sauf, French ; salvus, Latin.) 
 
 Johnson's fourth explanation is, " No longer dangerous ; reposited out of the 
 power of doing harm." 
 
 " Banquo's safe," i. e. " Reposited out of the power of doing harm ;" which 
 means here, — murdered and thrown into a ditch ; — " with twenty trenched gashes 
 on his head." 
 
 5'q/'e, (T.) formerly written Saffe ; the past participle of the verb To save. 
 SAW, (T.) (Any thing, something) soAd. The past tense and past participle of Saejan, 
 Sei^an, Secjan, dicere, to say. 
 
 Of the word Saw, Johnson gives two explanations, with each its separate ety- 
 mology. 
 
 1. A dentated instrument, by the attrition of which wood or metal is cut. 
 
 2. A saying ; a sentence ; a proverb. 
 
 Skinner and Junius had set him the example of considering Saw, serra, and 
 Saw, dictum, as two different words of different origin ; and had traced the latter 
 to the Anglo-Saxon verb Saejan ; yet does Johnson class them as a first and second 
 meaning of the same word, deriving them, nevertheless, from separate sources. 
 SCRAP, n. s. (from scrape, a thing scraped or rubbed off.) And — 
 
 It is (T.) the past participle of Scpeopan, scalpere, radere, to scrape. It means 
 (any thing, something) scraped off. 
 SCUM, n. s. {escuine, French ; schiuma, Italian ; skume, Danish ; schuym, Dutch.) 
 This etymology is from Skinner. 
 
 1 . That which rises to the top of any liquor. 
 
 2. The dross ; the refuse ; the recrement ; that part which is to be thrown away. 
 
 Lye — " Videntur esse a skim." 
 
 Scum, (T.) that which is skimmed off; the past participle of the verb To 
 skim. — Hence the Italian Schiuma, and the French Escume, Ecume. 
 A SHADE, ^ (T.) Which our etymologists unnecessarily derive from the Greek 
 A SHADOW,r oKia, mean, (something, any thing) secluded, separated, retired; or 
 A SHAW, y (something) by which we are separated from the weather, the sua, 
 A SHED, y &c. They are the past tense, and, therefore, the past participle of 
 SHEATH, -^ Sceaban, separare, segregare, dividere. And of this word Sheath i« 
 the third person singular indicative. 
 
 Z 2
 
 172 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Shade, n.s. (Scafeu, Saxon ; schade, Dutch.) 1. The cloud or opacity made by in- 
 terception of the light. And nine other explanations. 
 Shadow, 71. s. (Scabu, Saxon; schadowe, Dutch.) 1. The representation of a body 
 
 by which the light is intercepted. And nine other explanations. 
 Shaw, n. s. (Scua, Saxon ; schawe, Dutch ; siugga, Islandick.) A thicket ; a small 
 
 wood. A tuft of trees near Lichfield is called Gentle Shaw. 
 Shed, n.s. (supposed by Skinner to be corrupted from Shade.) 1. A slight tempo- 
 rary building. 
 
 And of this meaning it was thought necessary to produce eight examples ; and 
 subsequently a ninth was added. 
 2. In composition, Effusion, as hlooA-shed. 
 
 To Shed, Skinner derives from Sceaban, separare, and so does Johnson ; and 
 instantly explains it, " To effuse, to pour out, to spill." 
 
 Of Shed, the noun. Skinner says, " Parum deflexo sensu a shadow, q. d. um- 
 braculum ;" which Johnson translates " Corrupted from shade." 
 
 Lye — "A. S. Sceaban est separare, dirimere, disjungere. — G. Douglas more sue 
 scribit Sched, Schede. Hinc Chaucerianum Shede, et A. B. to Shead, distinguere, 
 ut et no Shed, nulla differentia." 
 
 Sheath, Johnson says, "is the case of any thing," and merely refers to the An- 
 glo-Saxon Scae^e ; Lye, " Fortasse ab A. S. Scelan, separare." 
 SHARP, (T.) the past participle of Scyjipan, acuere. 
 
 Skinner — " Ab A. S. Sceajip, acutus, Scyppan, acuere. 
 
 Junius — " Ex ffka^ipo; — stipula. Notum est illud Senecae, Ep. 72. 'Nihil est 
 acutius arista'." 
 Sharp, adj. (j-ceapp, Saxon; scherpe, Dutch.) 1. Keen, piercing; having a keen 
 edge; having an acute point; not blunt. And fifteen other explanations. 
 SHEAF } Sheaf, (T.) (Anglo-Saxon j-ceap ; Dutch, schoof,) is the past participle 
 SHAFT,' j'ceap, (or j-ceapob,) from the verb j-cupian ; which past participle in mo- 
 dern English we write shove, or shoved. 
 
 Shaft, (Anglo-Saxon j-ceapt,) is the same past participle j-ceajrob, j-ceapb, 
 j-ceapr. — Shaft, as well as Sheaf, means that which is shoved. 
 Sheaf, n.s. (j-ceap, Saxon; schoof, Dutch.) 1. A bundle of stalks of corn bound, 
 together, that the ears may dry. 
 Take his first example : — 
 
 " These be the sheaves, that honour's harvest bears. 
 
 The seed thy valiant acts, the world the tield." FaikfaXv
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 173 
 
 Shaft, 7i. s. (j-ceajrc, Saxon.) 
 
 1. An arrow, a missive weapon. 
 
 2. [Shaft, Dutch.) A narrow, deep, perpendicular pit. 
 
 3. Any thing straight ; the spire of a church. 
 
 SHEEN, adj. (This was probably only the old pronunciation of Shine.) Bright ; 
 
 glittering ; shewy. A word now not in use. 
 
 Sheen — " Ita Damnonii pronuntiant Shine, fulgere." Lye. 
 
 Skinner omits the word Sheen, in his Et. Gen., but in his Onomasticon he has — 
 
 Shene nunc Richmond — a splendore sic dicta v. Shine. 
 
 " Shine, ab A. S. Scinan, — splendere, fulgere." And of this Anglo-Saxon verb 
 
 Tooke thinks it to be the past participle. 
 SHEER, 
 SHERD, 
 SHRED, 
 
 SHORE and SCORE, 
 SHORT, 
 
 SHORN, Y amples 
 
 SHOWER, 
 SHARE and SCAR, 
 SHARD, 
 SHIRE, 
 
 (T.) All these, so variously written and pronounced, and 
 now so differently and distinctly applied, are yet merely the 
 past participle of Scijian, io shear, to cut, to divide, to sepa- 
 rate. And they were formerly used indifferently. 
 
 And of this indifferent usage Mr. Tooke supplies ex- 
 
 Sherd, (T.) is Shered, Sher'd. 
 Shred, is Shered, SKred. 
 
 Sheer, as we now use it, means separated from every thing 
 else. As when we say " Sheer ignorance," i. e. separated 
 SHIRT and SKIRT, j from any the smallest mixture of information ; or separated 
 from any other motive. In the instaace from Beaumont and Fletcher — 
 
 " I hiid my feather shot i^aer away ;" Vol. H. p. 65. 
 
 it means that the feather was so separated by the shot, as not to leave the smallest 
 particle behind. — 
 
 The modern editors chuse to write it Sheer. Johnson says, — 
 Shred, (from the verb.) 1. A small piece cut off. 2. A fragment. 
 
 The verb he derives from Scpeaban, Saxon. 
 
 Skinner tells him,—" Vel a verb. To sliear." 
 Sherd, n. s. (j-ceajib, Saxon.) The fragment of broken earthen ware. 
 
 Skinner — " Satis autem manifestum est A. S. ;-ceapb, et Fr. escharde, orta 
 esse, ab A. S. j-ceapan, scindere." 
 
 Skinner writes it Sheard; which Johnson says is " now written Shard, and ap- 
 plied only to fragments of earthen ware," and yet he proposes a separate etymology 
 for this same word differently written.
 
 174 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Of Shardborn, Johnson says, " Born or produced among broken pots or stones. 
 Perhaps Shard, in Shakspeare, may signify the sheaths of the wings of insects." 
 The commentators on Shakspeare have furnished two pages of lucubration upon 
 this word ; and the reader will find a fresh reason to regret that Mr. Steevens was 
 not an etymologist, and at the same time to admire his good sense. 
 
 Sheer, adj. (fcyp, Saxon.) Pure ; clear ; unmingled. 
 
 Sheer, adv. (from the adjective.) Clean ; quick ; at once. 
 
 Shore, (T.) as the sen-shore, or .'ihore of a river, (which latter expression Dr. 
 Johnson, without any reason, calls " a licentious use" of the word,) is the placs 
 where the continuity of the land is interrupted or separated by the sea or river. — 
 Observe, that shore is not any determined spot, it is of no size, shape, nor dimen- 
 sions, but relates merely to the separation of land from land. 
 
 Shore, (j-cope, Saxon.) 1. The coast of the sea. 
 
 2. The bank of a river. ^ licentious use. 
 
 Shored, (T.) Shofd, Short, (or, as Douglas has written it, Schorit,) cut off, is 
 opposed to Long, which means extended. 
 
 Short, adj. (j-ceopc, Saxon.) 1. Not long; comraoaly not long enough. And 
 thirteen other explanations ; the last of which is, " not bending." 
 
 Short, n. s. (from the adjective.) A summary account. 
 
 Short, adv. (It is, I think, only used in composition.) Not long. 
 
 Shirt (T.) and Skirt, (i. e. j-cijaeb,) is the same participle, differently pronounced, 
 written, and applied. 
 Shirt, n. s. (j-hiejic, j-cypc, j-cypic, Saxon.) The under linen garment of a man. 
 Skirt, n. s. (^skiorte, Swedish.) 
 
 1. The loose edge of a garment; that part which hangs loose below the waist. 
 
 2. The edge of any part of the dress. 
 
 3. Edge ; margin ; border ; extreme part. 
 
 Shower, (T.) (in Anglo-Saxon j-cyup and j'cup,) means merely broken, divided, 
 separated: (subaud. Clouds.) 
 
 Junius says, — " B. Scheure, vel Regen-scheure est vehemens pluvia, guttee ple- 
 niores nubis disrupt(B." 
 
 Skinner — " B. Scheure, ruptura, significat pluviam violentam ; q. d. Eruptionein 
 aquarura, seu nubium." 
 
 Shower, n.s. {scheme, Dutch.) 1. Rain, either moderate or violent. 
 
 And Rain means, " The moisture that falls from the clouds." Of this first ex- 
 planation here is the first example : —
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 175 
 
 ■ " If the boy have not a woman's gift, 
 To rain a shower of commanded tears. 
 An onion will|^o well for such a shift." Shakspeare. 
 
 3. Storm of any thing falling thick. 
 3. Any very liberal distribution. 
 
 To Shower, v. a. (from the noun.) 1. To wet or drown with rain. 
 (The reader must recollect the meaning of the word Rain.) 
 
 " Caesar's favour. 
 
 That showers down greatness on his friends. 
 
 Will raise me to Rome's first honours." Addison's Cata. 
 
 So it stood in the first edition ; but subsequently this example was removed to 
 the third explanation, which is, " To distribute or scatter with great liberality." 
 And thus could I produce, (if I stood in need of it,) Johnson's ovyn authority, 
 which is of little value, except against himself, for his own condemnation in all in- 
 stances of the same description as that which he has here attempted to correct. 
 
 Score, (T.) when used for the number twenty, has been well and rationally ac- 
 counted for, by supposing that our unlearned ancestors, to avoid the embarrass- 
 ment of large numbers, when they had made twice ten notches, cut ofif the piece 
 or talley (iagiie) containing them ; and afterwards counted the scores or pieces 
 cut off; and reckoned by the number of separated pieces, or by score. 
 
 Score, for account or reckoning, is well explained, and in the same manner ; 
 from the time when divisions, marks, or notches, cut in pieces of stick or wood, 
 were used instead of those Arabian figures we now employ. — 
 Score, n. s. {skora, Islandick, a mark, a cut, a notch.) 
 
 1. A notch of long incision. 
 
 2. A line drawn. 
 
 3. An account ; which, when our writing was less common, was kept by marks or 
 tallies, or by lines of chalk. 
 
 After four other meanings, we come at last to this :~ 
 %. Twenty. I suppose, because twenty, being a round number, was distinguished 
 on tallies by a long score. 
 
 But, though the primary meaning of Score, the noun, is a " Notch of long in- 
 cision," yet the primary meaning of the verb is " to set down as a debt." 
 
 Share, (T.) Shire, Scar, one and the same past participle, mean separated, 
 divided. — Share, any separated part or portion. — S/iire, a separated part or portion 
 of this realm. And though we now apply Scar only to a cicatrix, or the remaining 
 mark of separation, it was formerly applied to any separated part.
 
 176 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION f^ ''" 
 
 Gower says, " A littel Share upon a banke that lets in the stream." In Ray's 
 North Country words, what we now call Potsherds, or Pot-shards, are likewise 
 called Pot-scars, or Pot-shreds. In Ray's Proverbs, Stso, Sco7-e is used where we 
 now use Scar, with the same meaning : " Slander leaves a score behind it." So 
 the Ciiffie of a rocke (i. e. the cleaved part of it,) as Ray informs us, is still called 
 a " Scarre." Douglas calls it " ane Schore rolkis syde." — 
 
 Now let the reader observe the extent of Johnson's information, and the clear- 
 ness of his discernment. 
 To Share, v. n. (j-ceapan, fcypan, Saxon.) 
 
 1. To divide; to part among many. 
 
 2. To partake with others, to seize or possess jointly with another. 
 
 3. To cut ; to separate ; to sheer ; (from fceap, Saxon.) 
 Share, n.s. (from the verb.) 
 
 1. Part; allotment; dividend. 
 
 2. A part. 
 
 3. (Sceap, Saxon.) The blade of the plough that cuts the ground. 
 
 Shire, n.s. (j"cip, from j-cypan, to divide, Saxon; skyre, Erse.) A division of the 
 
 kingdom ; a county ; so much of the kingdom as is under one sheriff. 
 Scar, n. s. (from eschar, escare, French ; cffx^^a.) A mark made by a hurt or fire ; 
 a cicatrix. 
 
 Share-hone (T.) is so called, because it is placed where the body is separated or 
 divided. 
 
 Johnson, with his usual partiality for the ignotum per ignotius, tells us, that the 
 Share-bone {share and bone) is the os pubis. 
 
 Plough-A-Aare (T.) is a plough-sheerer, contracted to avoid the repetition er, 
 er. A pair of sheers, a pair of sheerers. 
 Plough-share, n. s. [plough and share.) The part of the plough that is perpendi- 
 cular to the coulter. 
 
 And the coulter he says is — " perpendicular to the share." 
 
 Shear, }n. e. (from the verb.) It is seldom used in the singular, but is found once 
 
 Shears, > in Dryden. 
 
 I. An instrument to cut, consisting of two blades moving on a pin, between which 
 
 the thing cut (he means to be cut,) is intercepted. 
 Shears are large, and Scissars a smaller instrument of the same kind. 
 
 " W'hy do you bend such solemn brows on me .' 
 
 Think you I bear the shears of destiny .'' 
 
 Have I commandment on the pulse of hfe ?" Shakspeare.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 177 
 
 " The fetes prepar'd their sharpen'd sheers."' Dryden, 
 
 " That people live and die, I knew. 
 
 An hour ago as well as you ; 
 
 And if fate spins us longer years, 
 
 Or is in haste to take the sheers, 
 
 I know, we must both fortunes try, 
 
 And bear our evils, wet or diy." Prior. 
 
 Among these examples are intermixed others, in which the word is applied to 
 sheep-sheering, clipping a bird's wings, &c. Then we have — 
 
 2. The denomination of the age of sheep. And then — 
 
 3. Any thing in the form of the blades of sheers ; — without examples. And then — 
 
 4. Wings, in Spenser. 
 
 SHOCK, (T.) the past participle of j-cacan, to shake. 
 Shock, w.s. (choc, French; schocken, Dutch.) 
 
 Skinner — " Shock, a Belg. &c. &c. v. Shake." Lye the same. 
 SHOP, ■\ (T.) The past tense, and, therefore, past participle of the Anglo-Saxon 
 SHAPE, >- verb j-cyppan, to fashion, to form, to prepare, to adapt. 
 SHIP, J A Shop—formatum aliquid, (in contradistinction from a stall,) for the 
 purpose of containing merchandize for sale, protected from the weather. — 
 Shop, n. s. (j-ceop, Saxon, a magazine ; eschoppe, French ; shopa, low Latin. 
 Ainsworth.) 
 
 1. A place where any thing is sold. 
 
 2. A room in which manufactures are carried on. 
 
 And the first roojii in which, &c. is that of " Your most grave belly." 
 A Ship— for matum aliquid, (in contradistinction from a raft,) for the purpose 
 of conveying merchandize, &c. by water, protected from the water and the wea- 
 ther. 
 Ship, n.s. (fcip, Saxon ; schippen, Dutch.) A ship may be defined a large hollow 
 
 building, made to pass over the sea with sails. 
 To Ship, v. a. means, 1. To put into a ship. 2. To transport in a ship, 
 
 " Andronicus, would thou wert shipt to hell 
 
 Rather than rob me of the people's hearts." Shakspeabe. 
 
 To Shipwreck, is nicely distinguished into three separate significations. The 
 la'^t is " to throw by loss of the vessel ;" and the example is — 
 
 " Sliipwreclc'd upon a kingdom, where no pity. 
 
 No friends, no hope ! no kindred weep for me." Shakspeare. 
 
 A a
 
 178 
 
 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 The words are spoken by the luckless consort of Henry VIII. , and would not 
 have been very inapplicable to the condition of a luckless consort of the present day. 
 
 SHOT, 
 
 SHOTTEN, 
 
 SHUT, 
 
 SHUTTLE, 
 
 SHUTTLEcor,^, 
 
 SHOOT, 
 
 SHOUT, 
 
 SHITTLE, 
 
 SHEET, 
 
 SCOT, 
 
 SCOUT, 
 
 SCATES, 
 
 SKIT, 
 
 SKITTISH, 
 
 SKETCH, 
 
 (T.) Are all the past participle Sceac, of the Anglo-Saxou 
 and English verb j-cican, j-cycan, projicere, dejicere, to throw, 
 to cast forth, to throw out. 
 
 A Shot from a gun, or bow, or other machine, means some- 
 thing cast or thrown forth. 
 
 A shot window means a projected window, thrown out beyond 
 the rest of the house ; what we now call a bow window. — Mr. 
 j> Tyrwhitt says, a shot window is, I suppose, a window that was 
 shut. 
 
 For one shot of five pence ; i. e. For five pence cast down, for 
 one cast of five pence, &c. — 
 
 Shot, 71. s. (^schot, Dutch ; from shoot.) 
 
 1. The act of shooting. 
 
 2. The missive jceapon emitted by any instrument. 
 
 " I shall here abide the hourly stiot 
 Of angry eyes." 
 
 3. The flight of a shot. 
 
 4. (^Escot, French.) A sum charged ; a reckoning. 
 
 A shotten herring, (T.) is a herring which has cast or thrown forth its spawn. 
 
 Johnson seems to imagine that shotten can only be applied to the herring, for he 
 explains the word to mean, " Having ejected its spawn ;" and supports his expla- 
 nation by examples, in which it is applied to the herring. 
 
 Mason (Beaumont and Fletcher, Vol. II. p. 69, Weber's edit.) says, " A shotten 
 fish is one that has spent his roe." 
 
 A shoot (T.) of a tree is, that which the tree has ca,st forth or thrown forth. 
 
 Johnson derives the verb To Shoot from Scebran, Saxon ; and the noun in two 
 significations from the verb : but in the third signification he derives it from scheu- 
 ten, Dutch. — " Branches issuing from the main stock." 
 Branch — is " The shoot of a tree from one of the main boughs." 
 Bough — is " An arm or large shoot of a tree, bigger than a branch." 
 
 Thus, according to his own authority, a branch never does issue from the main 
 stock. Shoots, however, may issue from bough, branch, or stock, as any gardener 
 knows. 
 
 A Shout (T.) is no other than the same participle differently spelled, and ap- 
 plied to the sound thrown from the mouth.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DB. JOHNSON. 179 
 
 Shout, v. h. (A word of which no etymology is known.) To cry in triumph or 
 exhortation. 
 
 " They shouted thrice ; tchat was the last cry for ?" Shakspeare. 
 
 " There had been nothing but howlings and shotitings of poor naked men, belabouring one 
 another with snagged sticks." More. 
 
 " All clad in skins of beasts the jav'lin bear. 
 
 And shrieks and s/iouting.s rend the suffering air." Dryden. 
 
 Shout, n. s. {from the verb.) A loud and vehement cry of triumph or exhortation. 
 
 " The Rhodians, seeing the enenij' turn their backs, gave a great shout in derision." — 
 Kuolles's Histor)' of the Turks. 
 
 With such admirable propriety does Johnson adapt his examples to his expla- 
 nations. 
 
 Skinner thinks that Shout may be from Shoot, q. d. Vocis contentfp ejaculatio. 
 
 To shut (T.) the door, which the common people generally pronounce — more 
 properly and nearly to the original verb, to shet the door, — means, to throw or 
 cast the door to. 
 To Shut, v. a. (j-cittan, Saxon; schotten, Dutch.) 1. To close, so as to prohibit 
 ingress or regress ; to make not open. 
 
 His first example is — 
 
 " Kings shall shut their mouths at him." Isaiah liii. 15, 
 
 1. e. Shall " close so as to prohibit ingress or regress." 
 
 He has four other explanations. 
 
 To get (T.) shut of a thing, means, To get a thing thrown off or cast from us. 
 
 Shut, participial adjective,— Rid; clear; free. 
 
 A weaver's (T.) shuttle or shiitle, (shut-del, shit-del,) means a small instrument 
 shot, I. e. throw7i or cast. 
 Shuttle, n. s. (schutspoele, Dutch ; skutul, Islandick.) The instrument with which 
 the weaver shoots the cross threads. 
 
 " I know life is a stiuttle." ShakspeAre. 
 
 A shuttle-cork or shiUle-coxk, i. e. A cork ihroimi or cast (backward and forward.) 
 Shittlecock, n. s. (commonly and perhaps as properly Shuttlecock. Of Shittle or 
 Shuttle the etymology is doubtful. Skinner derives it from schutteln, German, to 
 shake ; or j-ceatan, Saxon, to throw. He thinks it is called a cock from its fea- 
 
 Aa 2
 
 180 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 thers. Perhaps it is properly Shtitflecork, a cork driven to and fro, like the in- 
 strument in weaving, and softened by frequent and rapid utterance from Cork to 
 Cock.') A cork stuck with feathers, and driven by players from one to another 
 with battledores. 
 
 Junius says — " Shuttle, Skittle, manifeste est ex A. S. j-ceoran et j"cyran." 
 
 Sheet, (T.) ^whether a sheet for a bed, a sheet of water, a sheet of lightning, a 
 sheet anchor, &c.) is also the same participle j-ceac. — What we now write sheet an- 
 chor, was formerly written shot anchor. 
 Sheet, according to Johnson, is A broad and large piece of linen ; and. The linen 
 of a bed ; and, As much paper, &c. &c. 
 
 As (T.) the Anglo-Saxon j-c was pronounced both as sh and sk, the participle 
 of Sciran, has given us Scot, Scout, Scale, and Skit. 
 
 Scot and Shot are mutually interchangeable. Scot free, Scot and lot, Rome-sco^, 
 &c. are the same as Shot free, Shot and lot, Rome shot, &c. 
 Scot, n.s. (^ecot, French.) 1. Shot, payment. 2. Scot and lot; parish payments. 
 
 A Scout (T.) means (subaud. some one, any one,) se?it out ; say before an 
 army, to collect intelligence by any means ; and to give notice of the position, &c. 
 of an enemy. Sent out is equivalent to thrown or cast. Send, in old English, is 
 used indifferently for throw or cast. 
 
 Johnson after Skinner, supposes Scout to belong to the verb ecouter, escouter, 
 auscultare, to listen; "merely," says Tooke, " because of a resemblance in the 
 sound and letters of that verb. But is listening the usual business of a scout? 
 Are his ears all, and his eyes nothing? Is he no good scout who returns with in- 
 telligence of what he has seen of the enemy, unless he has likewise overheard their 
 deliberations ? Is an outscout at cricket sent to a distance, that he may the better 
 listen to what is passing?" 
 
 Skit (T.) means (subaud. something) cast or thrown. The word is now used for 
 some jest or gibe or covered imputation thrown or cast upon any one. The same 
 
 thing is called nfiing. The adjective skittish, applied to a horse or jade of any 
 
 kind, is common enough. 
 
 Skit is not in Johnson, and Tooke acknowledges that he cannot recollect an in- 
 stance of its use in liberal writings. 
 Skittish, adj. {skye, Danish ; schew, Dutch.) 
 
 1. Shy ; easily frighted. 
 
 2. Wanton ; volatile ; hasty ; precipitate. 
 
 3. Changeable ; fickle. 
 
 Our (T.) English word Sketch, the Dutch schets ; the Italian schizzo; and 
 (though farther removed) the French esquisse, are all the same participle.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 181 
 
 And so in Tooke's opinion are also the Italian scotfo, the French escot, ecot, the 
 Italian schiotia, the Dutch scheet, and the Latin, sagitia. 
 SHROWD, } Shroud (T.) in Anglo-Saxon j-cjm>5, vestitus, though now applied 
 SHROWDS. 3 only to that with which the dead are clothed, is the past participle of 
 j-cribau, vestire; and was formerly a general term for any sort of clothing whatever. 
 The Shrowds are any things with which the masts of ships are dressed or clothed. 
 Shroud, n. s. (j-cjiub, Saxon.) 
 
 1. A shelter ; a cover. 
 
 2. The dress of the dead ; a winding sheet. 
 
 3. The sail ropes. It seems to be taken sometimes for the sails. 
 
 As the fourth meaning of the verb To shroud, Johnson says, " To clothe, to 
 dress ;" but produces no authority. 
 
 Skinner — " Shroud ab A. S. j-c]\ub, vestitus, j-cjiyban, vestire." 
 
 Junius — " Shroud, amiculum ferale, manifeste ex A. S. j'cjiub, vestis, et j-cjiyban, 
 indui." 
 SHROVE, (T.) Shrovetide ; i. e. The time when persons are shrived or shriven. — 
 Shrift is Shrived, Shriv'd, Shrift. 
 
 Of Shrift, Johnson says, " Confession made to a priest." Out of use. 
 
 To Shrive, " To hear at confession." 
 
 Shrovetide, " The time of confession." 
 
 In Chaucer's Dreams, (Speght's edit. fo. 366, 1698,) — 
 
 " Fairest of faire, and goodliest on live 
 All my secret to you I plaine, and shrive." 
 
 i. e. confess, not hear at confession. 
 SHRUB. (T.) By an easy corruption of y to h, Syrop becomes Shrop, Shrup, Shrub. 
 Johuson calls it a cant word, meaning, " Spirit, acid, and sugar mi.xed." 
 
 SKILL, 
 
 SCALE, 
 
 SCALD, 
 
 SHALE, 
 
 SHELL, 
 
 SHOAL, 
 
 SCOWL, 
 
 SCULL, 
 
 SHOULDER, 
 
 SHILLING, 
 
 SLATE. 
 
 (T.) At first sight these words may seem to have nothing in com- 
 mon with each other ; little, at least, in the sound, and less in the 
 meaning. Yet are they all the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon 
 verb )-cylan, to divide, to separate, to make a difference, to discern, 
 to skill; and have all one common meaning. 
 
 This English verb. To skill, though now obsolete, has not been 
 long lost to the language ; but continued in good and common use 
 down to the reign of Charles the First. 
 
 Skill, as now commonly used, is manifestly discernment ; that 
 faculty by which things are properly divided aud separated one from 
 another. —
 
 182 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Skill, n. s. [skil, Islnndick.) 
 
 1. Knowledge of any practice or art; readiness in any practice; knowledge; dex- 
 terity ; artfulness. 
 
 2. Any particular art. 
 
 To Skill, v. n. {skilia, Islandick.) 
 
 1. To be knowing in ; to be dextrous at : with of. 
 
 2. QS/cilia, Islandick, signifies to distinguish.) To differ; to make difference; to 
 interest ; to matter. Not in use. 
 
 Scale, (T.) in all its various applications, as well as Shale, Shell, Shoal or Shole, 
 Scowl, and Scidl, will be found to be merely the past participle of j-cylan, by the 
 usual changes of the characteristick. 
 
 *o^ 
 
 " Now here he fights on Galathe his horse, 
 
 And there lacks worke ; anon he's there a foote. 
 
 And there they flye or dye, like scaled sculs 
 
 Before the belching whale ." Troilus and Cressida, p. 103, if paged. 
 
 The fishes come in shoals, sholes, or sculs ; that is, they come in separate divi- 
 sions or parts divided from the main body ; and any one of these divisions, [shoals 
 or sculs,') may very well again be scaled, i. e. divided or separated by the belch- 
 ing whale. 
 
 " By this your brother is saued, your honour untainted, the poore Mariana ad- 
 vantaged, and the corrupt deputy scaled." Meas. for Meas. p. 72. 
 
 The corrupt deputy was scaled (or shaled) by separating from him or stripping 
 off his covering of hypocrisy. , 
 
 " I shall tell you 
 
 A pretty tale, it may be you haue heard it, 
 
 But, since it semes ray purpose, I will venture 
 
 To scale't a little more. Coriolanus, Act I. sc. i. fo. 1. 
 
 The tale of Menenius was " scaled a little more," by being divided more into par- 
 ticulars and degrees ; told more circumstantially, and at length. 
 
 " Holinshed," (says Mr. Steevens,) " Vol. II. p. 499, speaking of the retreat of 
 the Welshmen, during the absence of Richard II., says, they would no longer 
 abide, but scaled and departed away ;" i. e. says Tooke, separated and departed. 
 
 In the Historie of Clyomen, 
 
 " The hugie heapes of cares th.it lodged in my minde. 
 
 Are skaled from their nestling place, and pleasure's passage find."
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 183 
 
 i. e. Separated from their nestling place. 
 
 «' The Tyriane menye skalis wyde quhare, 
 
 And all the gallaiidis of Troy fled here and there." 
 
 Douglas, Booke IV. p. 105. 
 i. e. separated themselves wide quhare. 
 
 In Ray's Scottish Proverbs, p. 280, " An old seek is ay skailing:" i. e. parting, 
 dividing, separating, breaking. 
 
 We have, (continues Tooke,) Scale, a ladder. And thence — 
 Scale of a besieged place. 
 A pair of SCALES. 
 A SCALE of degrees. 
 
 Scale of a fish, or of our own diseased skin. 
 Scale of a bone. 
 Scale and scaled (or scald) head. 
 We have also — 
 
 Shale of a nut, &c. 
 Shell of a fish, &c. 
 Shoal, Shole, or Skul of fishes. 
 Scull of the head. 
 Scowl of the eyes. 
 Shoulder. 
 And finally, Skill. 
 
 Shilling. 
 Slate. 
 Now in every one of these, as well as in each of the instances produced of the 
 ancient use of the word Scale, one common meaning (and only one common 
 meaning) presents itself immediately to our notice ; viz. divided, separated. 
 
 Scowl, i. e. separated eyes, or eyes looking different ways, which our ancestors 
 termed Sceol-eage. We only say Sceol ; i. e. Scowl, subaud. eyes. 
 
 Shoulder, which formerly was, and should still be, written Shoiilde, is also the 
 past participle of the verb j-cyllan. 
 
 I think it probable that Shilling, (Dutch Schelli?ig,^ may be corruptly written 
 for Shillen or Scylen, an aliquot part of a pound. 
 
 What we now call Slate was formerly Sclat. I suppose the word to have pro- 
 ceeded thus : — Skalit, Sklait, Sklate, Slate. — Slates are thin flakes of stone sepa- 
 rated or scaled from each other. — 
 
 In Mr. Tooke's old version it is written Sclaiis ; in Wiclif, Sclattis ; and in 
 Fabian, Sclate.
 
 184 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Of the one common meaning discoverable in all these words, not the slightest 
 notice is given either by Johnson, or Junius, or Skinner. Johnson shall speak for 
 himself. 
 ScAliE, n. s. (j-ceale, Saxon ; sckael, Dutch ; skal, Islandick.) 
 
 1. A balance; a vessel suspended by a beam, against another vessel; the dish of a 
 balance. 
 
 2. The sign Libra in the zodiack. 
 
 3. (^Escaille, French ; squama, Latin.) The small shells or crusts w^hich lying one 
 over another make the coats of fishes. 
 
 4. Any thing exfoliated or desquamated ; a thin lamina. 
 6. (^Scala, a ladder, Latin.) Ladder ; means of ascent. 
 
 " Love refines 
 
 The thoughts, and heart enlarges ; hath his seat 
 
 In reason, and is judicious ; is the «ca/e 
 
 By which to heav'nly love thou may'st ascend." Ml LTD N, P. L. VIII. 689. 
 
 " On the bending of these mountains the marks of several ancient scales of stairs may be 
 seen, by which they used to ascend them." Addison. 
 
 6. The act of storming by ladders. 
 
 7. Regular gradation ; a regular series rising like a ladder. 
 
 8. A figure subdivided by lines like the steps of a ladder, which is used to measure 
 proportions between pictures and the thing represented. 
 
 9. The series of harmonick or musical proportions. 
 
 " The bent of his thoughts and reasonings run up and down this scale," (i. e. this series of 
 harmonick or musical proportions, viz.) " tiiat no people can be happy but luider good go- 
 vernments." Temple. 
 
 10. Any thing marked at equal distances. 
 
 To Scald, v. a. {scaldare, Italian ; calidus, Latin.) 
 1 . To burn with hot liquor. 
 
 " I am scalded with my violent motion 
 
 And spleen of speed to see you." Shakspeake, King John, {sc. the last.) 
 
 " majesty ! 
 
 When thou dost pinch thy bearer, thou dost sit 
 
 Like a rich armour in the heat of d.iy. 
 
 That scalds with safety." Shaksp. Hen. IV. Part II. (Act IV, sc. .\.)
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 185 
 
 2. A provincial phrase in husbandry. 
 
 Scald, n. s. (from the verb.) Scurf on the head. 
 
 " Her head, altogether bald. 
 
 Was overgrown with scurf and filthy scald." Spensek. 
 
 A Scall or Skaled head, says Tooke, is called a Scald head. 
 Shale, n.s. {corrupted, I think, for Shell.) The husk ; the case of seeds in siliquous 
 plants. 
 
 " Behold yon poor and starved band. 
 
 And your fair shew shall suck away their souls. 
 
 Leaving tliein but the shales and husks of men." Shakspeare. 
 
 Shell, n.s. [yyU, j-ceal, Saxon; schale, schelle, Dutch.) 
 
 1. The hard covering of any thing; the external crust. 
 
 2. The covering of a testaceous or crustaceous animal. 
 
 3. The covering of the seeds of siliquous plants. 
 
 4. The covering of kernels. 
 
 5. The covering of an egg. 
 
 Though Shell, the noun, means a cover, yet to shell, the verb, means not to 
 cover, but to uncover; — i. e. " to take out of the shell," (i. e. the covering ;) " to 
 strip of the shell." A Shelter, Johnson says, is " A cover from any external 
 injury or violence;" and To shelter is " To cofe?- from external violence." And 
 though this latter noun and verb immediately succeed the former, yet this con- 
 tradictory manner of explanation passes without remark. Johnson saw no absur- 
 dity in explaining the noun and verb to have meanings directly opposite. Shift, 
 the noun, he explains " A woman's under linen ;" and To Shift, " To change, as 
 clothes." 
 
 Shoal, n.s. (fcole, Saxon.) 1. A croud ; a great multitude ; a throng. 2. A shal- 
 low ; a sand-bank. 
 
 Scowl, v. n. (j-cylan, to squint, Saxon ; skeela sig, to look sour, Islandick.) To 
 frown, to pout ; to look angr^r, sour, or sullen 
 
 To Pout, means " To look sullen, by thrusting out the lips." 
 
 SCDLL, n.s. (It is derived by Skinner from shell, in some provinces called *Am/^ ; as 
 testa and teste, or tete, signify the head. Mr. Lye observes, inore satisfactorily, 
 that skola is in Islandick the skull of an animal.) 
 
 1. The bone which incases and defends the brain ; the arched bone of the head. 
 
 2. A small boat ; a cockboat. 
 
 B b
 
 186 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 3. One who rows a cockboat. 
 
 4. (Sceole, Sax. an assembly.) In Milton's style, a shoal or vast multitude of fish. 
 
 Mr. Lye's etymology may have assisted Johnson, but him only, to understand 
 the reason of the application of the word — to a cockboat and to one who rows a 
 cockboat. 
 Shoulder, «. s. (j-cult)pe, Saxon ; scholder, Dutch.) 
 
 1. The joi?it which connects the arm to the body. 
 
 2. The upper joint of the foreleg. 
 
 3. The upper part of the back, &c. &c. 
 
 Shilling, n. s. (j-cylhnj, Saxon and Erse ; schelling, Dutch.) A coin of various 
 value in diflferent times. — It is now twelve pence. 
 SIGHT, (T.) which the Anglo-Saxon wrote 8i« and 8i^e, i. e. that faculty which 
 seeth, is the third person singular of the indicative of j-eon, videre. 
 
 The regular termination of this person is th, which in this and some other words 
 has become corrupted into ht. 
 Sight, n. s. (jej-i'Se, Saxon ; sic/it, gesicht, Dutch.) 
 
 With seven explanations, and the examples to them, Johnson fills nearly one folio 
 column. 
 SINCE, CT.)is the participle of j-eon. To see. In Anglo-Saxon p'S^an, j-yne, j-eanb- 
 ej-, j-r^'Se, or j-in-ej-. 
 
 Since, in modern English, is used four ways : two, as a preposition, connecting 
 or (or rather affecting') words ; and two, as a conjunction, affecting sentences. 
 As a preposition. — 1. Since, for j-i^^an, j-i'Sence, or seen and thenceforward. 
 2. Since, for fyne, sene, or seen. 
 
 As a conjunction. — 3. Since, for j-eanto, seeing, seeing as, or seeing that. 
 4. Since, for j-i'S^e, j-i^, seen as, or seen that. 
 
 Since is likewise used adverbially, as when we say, — It is a year since ; i. e. a 
 year seen. 
 
 Sithence and Siih, though now obsolete, continued in good use down even to 
 the time of the Stuarts. — 
 
 Johnson considers Since as an adverb, and preposition, and not as a conjunc- 
 tion ; though in the very first explanation of his adverb, and the three examples 
 to it, it is, according to the acknowledged distribution of the parts of speech, ma- 
 nifestly a conjunction and nothing else ; and belongs to Tooke's third division, — 
 " seeing that." 
 Since, adverb, (formed by contraction from Sithence, or Sith thence, from Si^e, 
 
 Saxon.) 
 I. Because that.
 
 OF THE DICTIONAUY OF DR. JOHNSON. .187 
 
 " Since, (i. e. seeing that,) the clearest discoveries we have of other spirits, besides God 
 and our own souls are imparted by revelation, the information of them should be taken from 
 thence." Locke, 
 
 " Since" (i. e. seeing that) " truth and constancy are vain, 
 Since" (i. e. seeing that) " neither love nor sense of pain, 
 Nor force of reason can persuade, 
 Then let example be obey'd." Granville. 
 
 In the second explanation and the examples to it, Since is also a conjunction, 
 and belongs to Tooke's fourth division. It is only in the third explanation that 
 Since is used adverbially. 
 
 Johnson has but one explanation of Since, the preposition, and two examples. 
 His first example belongs to Mr. Tooke's second division, Seen; and his second to 
 Tooke's first division, " Seen, and thenceforward." 
 
 " He since the morning hour," (i. e. seen the morning hour, or the morning hour being 
 seen,) " set out from heav'n." Milton. 
 
 " If such a man arise, I have a model by which he may build a nobler poem than any 
 extant since the ancients." (i.e. See7i the ancients, and thenceforwards.) Dryden. 
 
 Since (T.) is a very corrupt abbreviation, confounding together different words 
 and different combinations of words. 
 
 When used as a preposition, it has always the signification either of the past par- 
 ticiple seen joined to thence, (i. e. seen, and thenceforward ;) or else it has the sig- 
 nification of the past participle seen only. 
 
 When used as a conjunction, it has sometimes the signification of the present 
 participle seeing or seeing that ; and sometimes the signification of the past parti- 
 ciple seen, or seen that. — 
 
 SLACK, "] For Slack, Johnson is content with the Saxon, Islandick, Welsh simi- 
 
 SLOUCH, I lar words, and the Latin laxiis. Skinner conducts him to the verb 
 
 SLOUGH, I Sj-Iacian, laxare, remittere. 
 
 SLUG, Y Slouch, n.s. [sloff, Danish, stupid.) 
 
 SLOW, 1. A downcast look ; a depression of the head, 
 
 SLOVEN, 2. A man who looks heavy and clownish. 
 
 SLUT. J Slough, n. s. (j-loj, Saxon.) 
 
 1. A deep miry place ; a hole full of dirt. 
 
 2. The skin which a serpent casts off at his periodical renovation. 
 
 Take an example or two of this serpent at his periodical renovation : — The first 
 
 Bb2
 
 188 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 is Malvolio ; the second the organs of the human frame ; the third the human 
 
 body itself. 
 3. The part that separates from a foul sore. 
 Slug, n. s. [slug, Danish, and sloc/c, Dutch, siguify a glutton, and thence one that 
 
 has the sloth of a glutton.) 
 
 1. An idler; a drone; a slow, heavy, sleepy, lazy wretch. 
 
 2. An hindrance ; an obstruction. 
 
 3. A kind of slow creeping snail. 
 
 4. (Slecj, a hammerhead, Saxon.) A cylindrical or oval piece of metal shot from 
 a gun. 
 
 Slow, Johnson says, is " not swift," and eight or nine other " nots." 
 Sloven, n. s. isloef, Dutch ; yslyvn, Welsh, nasty, shabby.) 
 
 Slot, (slodde, Dutch.) 1. A dirty woman. 2. A word of slight contempt to a 
 woman. 
 
 All the words (T.) above enumerated, (in the Anglo-Saxon Slsec, SJeac, 8I05, 
 Slae]i, Slea), and 81a]i,) are the same past participle (differently pronounced and 
 written,) of the Anglo-Saxon verb Sleacian, Sleacjian, Slacian, [a broad,) tar- 
 dare, remitter e, relaxare, pegrescere. 
 
 Slouch, j-laec, (c^ for X',) i, e. A slow (pace.) 
 Slough, j-loj, (gh for cA,) i. e. Slow (water.) 
 Slug, j-loj, (g for ^,) i. e. Slow (reptile.) 
 Slow, j-la]), (w for g-.) 
 
 Such changes of pronunciation are perpetual and uniform throughout the whole 
 language. 
 
 Slotf-en, Slou-en, Sloven ; and Slow-ed, Slow'd, Sloud, Slouf, Slut, are the past 
 participle of the verb, Slaliian, To slorv; i. e. to make slow, or cause to be slow. 
 There is no reason but the fashion for the distinction which is at present made be- 
 tween Sloven and Slut, by applying the former of these words to males only, and 
 the latter only to females ; Gower and Chaucer apply Slut to males. — 
 SLEET, n. s. (perhaps from the Danish slet.) A kind of smooth small hail or snow, 
 not falling in flakes, but single particles. 
 
 Johnson's first example is from the Annus Mirabilis of Dryden: 
 
 " Now van to van the foremost squadrons meet, 
 The midmost squadrons hast'ning up behind. 
 Who view, far off, tiie storm of falling sleet, 
 And hear thtir thunder rattling in the wind.'*
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 189 
 
 Sleet (T.) is the past participle 81e-eb, Sleefe, Sleet, of Slean, projicere ; and 
 has no connection (as Johnson imagined,) with the Danish Slet, which means 
 smooth, polished. 
 SLEEVE. This word seems to have involved Johnson in more than usual perplexity. 
 Sleeve, n. s. (flip, Saxon.) 
 
 1. The part of the garment which covers the arm. 
 
 2. Sleeve, in some provinces, signifies a knot or skein of silk, which is by some very 
 probably supposed to be its meaning in the following passage : 
 
 " Sleep that knits up the ravell'd skavf of care," &c. 
 
 Shakspeare, Macbeth, Act II. sc. i. 
 
 3. Sleave, Dutch, signifies a cover; any thing spread over; which seems to be the 
 sense of the sleeve in the proverbial phrase: — "John laughed heartily in his 
 sleeve," &c. 
 
 4. To hang on a sleeve ; to make dependent. 
 Sleeveless, adj. (from sleeve.) 
 
 1. Wanting sleeves ; having no sleeves. 
 
 2. Wanting reasonableness, wanting propriety, wanting solidity. (This sense, of 
 which the word has been long possessed, I know not well how it obtained. Skin- 
 ner thinks it properly liveless, or lifeless ; to this I cannot heartily agree, though 
 I know not what better to suggest. Can it come from sleeve, a knot or skein, and 
 so signify unconnected, hanging ill together? or from sleeve, a cover; and there- 
 fore meaiis plainly absurd ; foolish, without palliation?) 
 
 " This sleeveless tale of transubstantiatiou was brought into the world by that other fable 
 of the multipresence." Hall. 
 
 " M)' landlad}' quarrelled with him for sending every one of her children upon a sleeveless 
 errand, as she calls it." Spectator. 
 
 In Tooke's opinion it certainly does come from Sleeve, a cover : and in that 
 meaning there appears not the slightest difficulty in the application of the word. 
 The reader may, if he pleases, consult the commentators on Shakspeare, (Macbeth. 
 Actll. sc. ii.) In Chaucer we read, "Good child (qd. she) what echeth such 
 renoume to the conscience of a wise man, that loketh and measureth his goodnes, 
 not by slevelesse words of the people, but by soothfastnesse of conscience : by 
 God nothing." Testament of Love, B. II. fo.302, c. 1. 
 
 Mr. Tyrwhit says, " Sleeveless seems to signify idle, unprofitable, as it does 
 still in vulgar language."
 
 190 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Sleeve, (T.) Anglo-Saxon Slyf, formerly called Gaj-ra-j-lijie, that with which the 
 arm is covered. The past participle of Slejraa, iiiduere. 
 Sleeveless means without a cover or pretence. 
 SLIT, } (T.) Fissnra pedis cervini, — is the past participle of Slican, findere, To 
 SLOT. 3 slit. 
 
 Slit, the noun, Johnson derives from the Saxon Slit, and Slot from the Islandick 
 Slod, " the track of a deer." 
 SLOP, ^ Are (T.) the past participle of j-lipan, to slip. 
 SLOPE, > To Slip, v.n. (j-lipan, Saxon; slippen, Dutch. 
 .SLIP, ^ 1. To slide; not to tread firm. 
 
 2. To slide; to glide. And 5. To glide. In all — eight. 
 
 To Slip, v. a. I. To convey secretly. And seven more explanations. 
 
 Slip, n. s. (from the verb.) 1. The art of slipping ; false step ; — and five more. 
 
 To Slop, v. a. (from lap, lop, slop.^ To drink grossly and greedily. 
 
 Slop, ??. s. (from the verb.) Mean and vile liquor of any kind. Generally some 
 
 nauseous or useless medicinal liquor. 
 Slop, n. s. (j-Iop, Saxon ; slave, Dutch, a covering.) Trowsers ; open breeches. 
 Johnson's Lap is borrowed from Skinner, who thinks both Lap and Slop, "a 
 sono ficta." 
 Slope, adj. (This word is not derived from any satisfactory original. Junius omits 
 it. Skinner derives it from slap, \axy Dutch ; and derives it from the curve of a 
 loose rope. Perhaps its original may be latent in loopen, Dutch, to run, slope 
 being easy to the runner.) Oblique ; not perpendicular. It is generally used of ac- 
 clivity or declivity, forming an angle greater or less with the plane of the horizon. 
 After all these pains to discover the etymology and settle the meaning, we are 
 informed that slope, the substantive, means, — 
 2. Declivity; ground cut or formed with declivity. 
 And then we are presented with this example : — 
 
 •' My lord advances with majestick mien. 
 
 And when up ten steep slopes you've dragg'd your thighs, 
 
 Just at his study door he'll bless your eyes." Pope. 
 
 A very excellent instance, " that slope is easy to the runner." But further. — 
 " The ascent of a hill" (says Johnson,) " is the acclivity. The descent is the declivity." 
 Acclivous means " rising with slopes," — easy to the runner. 
 SMEAR, (T.) The past participle of j^myjuau, ungere, illinere.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. ]91 
 
 This noun is not in the first folio of Johnson ; it appears in subsequent editions, 
 but still unsupported by authority. It is interpreted thus : — 
 Smear, n. s. An ointment ; any fat liquor or juice. 
 SMITH, (T.) One who smiteth soil, with a hammer, &c. This name was given to all 
 who smote with a hammer. 
 Smith, n. s. (jmi^, Saxon ; smeth, German ; smid, Dutch ; from j-mican, Saxon ; 
 
 ' (not to smite, but)' To beat.) 
 1. One who '(not even who beats, but who)' forges with his hammer. One who 
 works in metals. 
 SMOKE, (T.) is the regular past tense and past participle of j-mican, fumare. 
 
 Johnson copies Welsh, Saxon, and Dutch, from Junius and Skinner, and ex- 
 plains thus : " The visible effluvium, or sooty exhalation from any thing 
 
 burning." 
 SMOOTH, (Skinner,) ab A. S. j-mae'Se, planus, laevis, jmae^ian, complanare. — Alludit 
 Gr. MaJbf, leevis, glaber. 
 
 Of this Anglo-Saxon verb, Johnson makes no mention. 
 Smooth, (T.) (j-mse'S,) The past participle of Sme^ian, polire, planare. 
 SMUG, adj. (^smuck, dress; smiicken, to dress, Dutch.) Nice; spruce; dressed with 
 affectation of niceness, but without elegance. 
 
 The first edition had only this adjective ; subsequently the verb was inserted. 
 It is al.so used as a substantive by Beaumont and Fletcher in the Pilgrim. 
 
 Johnson explains To smug, which he terms a verb active, by To spruce, which 
 he terms a verb neuter. 
 
 Smug, (T.) is the past participle of j-msejan, j-meajan, deliberare, studere, 
 considerare. Applied to the person or to dress, it means studied; that on which 
 care and attention have been bestowed. 
 .SMUT, (Skinner,) ab A. S. Be-j-mytan, inquinare ; and this Lye has no hesitation to 
 adopt. 
 Smut, n. s. (j-mitca, Saxon ; smette, Dutch.) 
 
 1. A spot made with soot or coal. (Without example.) 
 
 2. Must or blackness gathered on corn ; mildew. 
 To Smut, v. a. [from the noun.) 
 
 Smut, (T.) Is the past participle of j-mitan, Be-j-mican, polluere, inquinare, 
 contaminare. 
 
 SNACK, n.s. (from snatch.) A share; a part taken by compact. 
 Snatch, n. s. {from the verb.) A hasty catch. 
 
 Snack, (T.) something snatched, taken hastily, is the past participle of To 
 snatch.
 
 192 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 SNAKE, ^ Snake, (T.) Anglo-Saxon j-nac, is the past participle of j-nican, serpere, 
 SNAIL, >■ reppre, to sneak; as serpens in Latin is the present participle of serpere. 
 SNUG, J To Sneak, Johnson does take from the Anglo-Saxon verb ; but Snake, 
 from j-naka, Saxon; snake, Danish: yet Junius tells him, " Omnino derivata ab 
 Anglo-Saxon j-nican, repere, serpere." And in this Skinner concurs. 
 
 Snail, (T.) Snajel (or Snakel) the diminutive of Snake; g being sounded and 
 written instead of ^ in the Anglo-Saxon, and both g and k dropped in the English. 
 Snail, n. s. (Snejl, Saxon ; snegel, Dutch.) A slimy animal, &c. 
 " Hoc credo," says Skinner, " ab Anglo-Saxon Snican, repere." 
 Snug, (T.) (i. e. Snuc,) is likewise the past participle of 8nican ; the charac- 
 teristick i changed to u, and g sounded for k. 
 Snug, (from sniegen, Dutch, says Johnson.) 
 SNITE. Lye — " Snyran, to snite ; emungere." 
 Skinner — " To suit, nares mungere." 
 
 Johnsou — " To snite, v. a. (Snycan, Saxon.) To blow the nose." 
 From the same Anglo-Saxon Snycan, Lye in Junius derives Snout: Johnson 
 from Snuyf, Dutch. And Snot, from Snoce, Saxon ; snot, Dutch. Junius, and 
 perhaps Skinner, from the Greek 'Noli;, humor, prefixo S. 
 
 Snot (T.J is the past participle of the verb To snite, Anglo-Saxon Snytan, 
 emungere, to wipe. Snot, the matter snited or wiped away; Snout, the part 
 snited or wiped. 
 
 SNOW, (T.) (in the Anglo-Saxon Sna]^, and the same in Douglas,) is the regular past 
 tense, and, therefore, past participle of 8ni]-an, which Gower and Chaucer write 
 To anew. It means, that which is sniwed or snewed. 
 Snow, n. s. (Sna), Saxon ; snee, Dutch.) The small particles of water frozen before 
 they unite into drops. 
 
 Junius would derive the Anglo-Saxon Suij^an, ningere, from the Greek Nipdv. 
 SNUFF, n. s. [smif, Dutch, snot.) 
 
 1. Snot. In this sense it is not used. 
 
 2. The useless excrescence of a candle. ' (e. g. Kiiig Lear.y 
 
 3. A candle almost burnt out. 
 
 4. The fired wick of a candle remaining after the flame. 
 
 6. Resentment expressed by snifting ; perverse resentment. 
 6. Powdered tobacco, taken by the nose. 
 
 Such are Johnson's meanings of this noun. Snuff. He has the verb To SNUFF, 
 and the verb To sniff ; the first from the Dutch snuffen, and the last from sniffa.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OP DR. JOHNSON. 193 
 
 Swedish. One of his explanations of To snuff, is to snift in contempt. — There is 
 no such verb as To snift in his Dictionary. 
 
 Snuff, (T.) that which is sniffed up the nose ; the past participle of the verb 
 To sniff. 
 SOMERSAULT, 'in.s. (^Somerset is the corruption. Sommer, a beam, and sauU, 
 SOMERSET, 3 French, a leap.) A fea/?, by which a ywOT^er throws himself from 
 a height, and turns over his head. 
 The word stands without authority. 
 
 Soprasalto, (T.) which the French have corrupted to Soubresault, and the Eng- 
 lish to Sumersault, Somersalt, Summersaut, and then to Somerset. 
 
 " What a somersalt 
 
 When the chair fel, she fetched, with her heels upwards." 
 
 B. and F. Tamer Tamed, \'o. 241, Vol. II. 
 
 In the first folio, Sober-salt; corrected in the second, says Mr. Weber. Vol. V. 
 p. 331. 
 SONG, (^T.) any thing singed, sang, or sung, is the past participle of the verb To 
 sing: as Cantus is of Canere, and Ode of AeiJw. 
 
 Johnson derives To SING, from the Anglo-Saxon j-injan ; but Song from Ere- 
 j-unjen. 
 
 Under the word Sonnet, we have a curious instance of Dr. Johnson's hatred of 
 
 Milton and of sonnets — He copies, into his Dictionary, Milton's eleventh sonnet, — 
 
 on his Tetrachordon,— and has the barbarity (not indeed in the first folio,) to 
 
 offer it as a specimen of Milton's sonnets. 
 
 SORROW, ^ The three first, (T.) by change of the characteristick, are the past par- 
 
 SORRY, / ticiple of the Anglo-Saxon verb j-ypj-an, j-yjie>an, j-ype>iau, to vex, to mo- 
 
 SORE, / lest, to cause mischief to. — This past participle was written in the Anglo- 
 
 SHREWD,\ Saxon participle )-op>, j-opj^e, foph.— Sophj, fojij, j-ape, j-ap. And 
 
 SHREW. ^ long after that time in English, Sorwe, Sorewe, Soar, &c. and was, and 
 
 is, the general name for any malady or disease, or mischief, or suffering : any 
 
 thing generally by which one is molested, vexed, grieved, or mischieved. And 
 
 whoever attempts to pronounce the Anglo-Saxon participle yoj\]>, will not wonder 
 
 that it should have been so variously written. 
 
 Shreied, is the same past participle, not by change of the characteristick letter, 
 but by adding ed to the indicative ; — it is j-ypj'eb, pyjiajjet). 
 
 Shrewe, or Shrew, is j-yp]-e, j-yjiej^e, the indicative of j-ypejjan, and means one 
 who vexes or molests. 
 
 Shrew was formerly applied indifferently to males as well as to females. 
 
 C c
 
 194 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Beshrew thee! (^Be-j-ype])e, the imperative of Be-}-ype>ian,) i. e. Be thou j-ypj'e, 
 
 j-y]ie]ie, i. e. vexed ; or, May'st thou be vexed, molested, mischieved, or grieved. — 
 
 Sorrow, Johnson derives from sorg, Danish ; and To Sorrow, from saurgan, 
 
 Gothic ; j-opjiau, Saxon. Sorry, from fapij, Saxon ; and Sore, from jaji, 
 
 Saxon. 
 Shrew, n. s. (nchreyen, German, to clamour.) A peevish, malignant, clamourous, 
 spiteful, vexatious, turbulent woman! I (It appears in Robert of Glocester, that 
 this word signified anciently any one perverse or obstinate of either sex.) 
 
 Johnson need not have gone to Robert of Glocester to find that Shrew was ap- 
 plied to males as well as females. In Chaucer's Testament of Love, (fo. 300, 
 Speght, 1598,) it occurs at least a dozen times so applied. 
 
 Though Shrew is from the German, Shrew-mouse is from the Saxon ; of which 
 little animal Johnson writes thus : — 
 Shrew.MOUSE, n. s. (j-cjiea] a, Saxon.) A mouse, of which the bite is generally sup- 
 posed venomous, and to which vplgar tradition as.«igns such malignity, that she 
 is said to lame the foot over which she runs. / am informed, that all these re- 
 ports are calumnious, and that her feet and teeth are equally harmle.ss with those 
 of any other little mouse. Our ancestors, however, looked on her with such ter- 
 ror, that they are supposed to have given her name to a acolding womari, whom 
 from her venom they call a Shrew. 
 To Beshrew, v. a. (The original of this word is somewhat obscure; as it evidently 
 implies to wish ill: some derive it from henchryen, German, to enchant. Topset, 
 in his Book of Animals, deduces it from the shrew mouse, an animal, says he, so 
 poisonous, that its bite is a severe curse. A sbreie-, likewise, signifies a scolding 
 woman ; but its origin is not known.) 
 
 To beshrew, and to shrew, Mr. Tyrwhitt says, means to curse; and a shrew, 
 an ill tempered curst man or woman ; and shrewed, wicked ; and shrewednesse, 
 ill nature. 
 SOUTH, (T.) is the past tense and past participle of j-eo^an, coquere, to seethe. The 
 French sud, and our English word suds, is the same as sod or sodden. 
 South, n.s. (fu¥, Saxon; suyd, Dutch; sud, French.) 
 I. The part where the sun is to us at noon. 
 SPAN, n. s. (j-pan, sponne, Saxon ; spanna, Italian ; span, Dutch.) [Perhaps origi- 
 nally the expansion of the hand.] 
 1. The span from the end of the thumb to the end of the little finger extended.— 
 [Nine inches.] 
 
 The words enclosed thus [ ] are not in the first folio. 
 
 The (T.) German spanne ; the old French espan, mentioned by Cotgrave ; the
 
 N 
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 195 
 
 Italian spanna; and the low Latin spannum, together with the Dutch, the Da- 
 nish, the Swedish, and the Islandic, are all, as well as the English word, merely 
 the past tense, and, therefore, past participle Span, Spon, of the Anglo-Saxon 
 verb j-pinan, to spin, extendere, protrahere. 
 SPEECH, (T.) Any thing spoke7i, and the faculty by which any thing is spoken; the 
 past tense and past participle ypeec, j-paece, of j-pecan, to speak. 
 
 This Johnson can subdivide into seven different meanings. " Any thing spoken" 
 stands the fourth ; " liberty to speak" the seventh ; and in the example the " liberty" 
 is actually expressed by the word " leave." 
 
 " I, with leave of speech implor'd, reply'd." Milton. 
 
 SPICK and SPAN new, means, in Tooke's opinion, " Shining new from the ware- 
 house." — In Dutch they say. Spick .spelder nieuw. And spyker means a warehouse 
 or magazine. Spii or spel means a spindle, schiet-spoel, the weaver's shuttle ; and 
 spoelder, the shuttle-thrower. In Dutch, therefore. Spick spelder nieuw means, 
 new from the warehouse and the loom. In German they say — Span neu and 
 funckel neu. Spange means any thing shining ; as funckel means to glitter or 
 sparkle. In Danish, funckelnye ; in Swedish, spitt spangande ny ; in English we 
 sa. J spick and span new ; fire new; brand new. The two last, brand and fire. 
 speak for themselves. — 
 Spick and Span. (This word I should not have expected to have found authorized 
 by a polite writer. Span new is used by Chaucer, and is supposed to come from 
 ppannan, to stretch, Saxon ; expandere, Latin, whence Span. Span new is, there- 
 fore, originally used for cloth new extended or dressed at the clothiers; and spick 
 
 and span is newly extended on the spikes or tenters. It is, however, a low 
 
 word.) 
 
 " Span new" Mr. Tyrwhitt says, " seems to signify quite new ; but why it does 
 so I cannot pretend to say," 
 
 SPOIL, to spoil, V. a. {spolio, Latin ; spolier, French.) 
 
 1. To rob ; to take away by force. 
 
 2. To plunder ; to strip of goods. 
 
 3. To corrupt; to mar ; to make useless. (This is properly spill, from j-pillan, 
 Saxon.) 
 
 Though Johnson gives two etymologies from Junius, for his verb, yet he takes 
 his noun in all its explanations — " Plunder, robbery, and corruption," from the 
 Latin spoliuin. 
 
 Mr. Tooke considers the Latin spolium to be itself from the Anglo-Saxon j-pillan, 
 
 C c 2
 
 196 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 privare, consumere, and the English Spoil, to be the past participle of the same 
 word. 
 
 " To spill or spoil, (Skinner also says,) ab Anglo-Saxon j-pillan, consumere, viti- 
 are, corrumpere." 
 SPOT, } (T.) The past participle of the verb To spit. Anglo-Saxon jpiccan. 
 SPOUT, y Spot, is the matter spitten, spate, or spitted; and Spout is the place whence 
 it was spitten or spate. 
 Spot, K. s. [spette, Danish; spotte, Flemish.) 
 1. A blot; a mark made by discoloration. 
 To Spot, to mark with discolorations ; to maculate. 
 Spout, n. s. (from spuyt, Dutch.) 
 1. A pipe, or mouth of a pipe or vessel, out of which any thing is poured. 
 
 " She gasping to begin some speech ; her eyes 
 
 Became two spouts." Shakspeare's Winter's Tale, (Act III. so. iii.) 
 
 SPROUT,) Anglo-Saxon (T.) Spjiote, Sppauc. Sprout is the past participle of 
 SPURT, S ]-ppiran, j-ppyran, germinare, to shoot out, to cast forth. Spurt is the 
 
 same word, by a customary metathesis. 
 
 Johnson derives Sprout, the verb, from the Anglo-Saxon j-ppycran, and the 
 
 Dutch spruyten ; but Spirt he derives from spruyten, Dutch, to shoot up, (with 
 
 Skinner,) and from spritta, Swedish, to fly out, (with Lye.) 
 STAGE, ~) Certainly, (says Tooke,) these words do not at first sight appear to 
 STAG, have the least connection with each other. And till the clue is fur- 
 
 STACK, nished, you may perhaps wonder why I have thus assembled them 
 
 STALK, together. 
 
 STAY, The verb j-cijan, ascendere, to which we owe these words, is at 
 
 STAIRS, ! present lost, but has not been long lost. Instances may be found of the 
 STORY, use of it from the time of Edward III. down even to the end of the 
 
 STYE, fifteenth century.— 
 
 STILE, Tooke then produces sixteen examples, in which this verb is used, 
 
 STIRRUP, from his old MS. translation of the New Testament; but it should seem 
 ETAGE. J that even then it was going out of use, for in Wichf it is only used 
 
 in four of them. 
 
 Johnson appears to have found the verb To Sty, in Spenser, though he does 
 
 not produce the passage : he explains it, " to soar ; to ascend." He has also To 
 
 Sty, v. a. (from the noun) "to shut up in a sty;'' i. e. " Acabbin to keep hog3
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 197 
 
 iu ; or, A place of bestial debauchery." Caliban, however, was shut up in 
 neither : — 
 
 " Here you sty me 
 
 In this hard rock, while you do keep from me 
 
 The rest of th' island " Shakspeare's Tempest, Act I. so. ii. 
 
 Stage. (T.) l.We apply Stage to any elevated place, where comedians or moun- 
 tebanks, or any other performers, exhibit ; and to many other scaffoldings or 
 buildings raised for many other purposes. 
 
 2. We apply Stage to corporeal progress. As, At this stage of my journey ; — 
 (observe, that travelling was formerly termed " s^eig'/ng'," to Jerusalem, or any 
 other place ;) — At this stage of the business ; — At this stage of my life. 
 
 3. We apply Stage to degrees of mental advancement in or towards any know- 
 ledge, talent, or excellence. 
 
 4. And besides the above manners of applying this word Stage, our ancestors 
 likewise employed it where the French still continue to use it ; for their word 
 Estage, Etage, is merely our English word Stage ; though, instead of it, upon 
 this occasion, we now use Story. 
 
 Ascent, (real or metaphorical,) is always conveyed by the word Stage. — 
 Stage, n. s. (estage, French.) 
 
 1. A floor raised to view, on which any show is exhibited. 
 
 2. The theatre ; the place of scenick entertainments. 
 
 3. Any place where any thing is publicly transacted or performed. 
 
 4. A place in which rest is taken on a journey ; as much of a journey as is per- 
 formed without intermission. [Statio, Latin.) 
 
 6. A single step of gradual progress. 
 
 Stage — Skinner — " Mallem ab A. S. 8cij;an, ascendere." 
 
 Stag, (T.) is the same past participle ; and the name is well applied to the ani- 
 mal that bears it. His raised and lofty head being the most striking circumstance 
 at first sight of him. 
 Stag, n. s. (Of this word I find no derivation.) The male red deer ; the male of 
 the hind. 
 
 Stack, (T.) is the same past participle — (k for g,) — applied to hay, wood, 
 raised. 
 
 Stack, n. a. [stacca, Italian.) 
 
 1. A large quantity of hay, corn, or wood, heaped up regularly together, 
 
 2. A number of chimnies or funnels standing together.
 
 198 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Stalk, (T.) applied by us at present only to plants, I believe to be the same 
 participle. 
 
 Sfal/c is by Skinner deduced from the Teutonic stiel ; and that again from 
 jnjan, ascendere. 
 
 Johnson derives the verb To Stalk, from j-calcan, Saxon ; and the noun from 
 the verb, in its first meaning ; viz. 
 
 1. High, proud, wide, and stately step. — And the 
 
 2. {Stele, Dutch.) The stem on which flowers or fruits grow. 
 
 Stay, (T.) is the same past participle of j-cijan, without either g- or /c, and 
 
 means merely Sceij, raised, high, lofty. " Rochis full stay," in Douglas, are 
 
 very high rocks. A " stay brae," is a high bank. 
 This word is not in Johnson. 
 
 Stair, (T.) means merely an ascender. Chaucer wrote it Steyer ; and the verb 
 To steig, he wrote to siey. 
 Stair, n. s. (j-rae^ep, Saxon ; sieg/w, Dutch.) Steps by which we ascend from 
 the lower part of a building to the upper. Stair was anciently used for the whole 
 order of steps ; but stair now, if it be used at all, signifies, as in Milton, only 
 one flight of steps : — • 
 
 " Satan now on the lower stair. 
 
 That scal'd by steps of gold to heav'n gate. 
 Looks down witli wonder at the sudden view 
 Of all this world " Milton. 
 
 Story, (T.) is merely Stagery, Stayery, Stawry, or Story; i.e. A set of Stairs. 
 Story, n. s. (j-coep, Saxon ; storie, Dutch ; storia, Italian.) 
 
 1. History; account of things past, &c. 
 
 2. Small tale, &c. 
 
 3. An idle or trifling tale, &c. 
 
 4. (Sroji, place, Saxon.) A floor ; a flight of rooms. 
 
 He tells us, that " to story" is from the noun ; and that it means — 1. To tell in 
 history ; to relate. 2. To range one under another. 
 
 Sty, (T.) on the eye. Skinner says well — " Tumor palpebrse phlegmonodes, 
 vel ab A. S. j-cigau, ascendere ; quia sc. coutinuo crescit, nisi per medicamenta co- 
 hibeatur." 
 
 This word, so applied, was not in the first folio. It was inserted subsequently, 
 thus : — 
 y. [I know not how derived.) A humour in the eye lid. 
 
 Sty, (T.) for hogs, in the Anglo-Saxon fCije, denotes a raised pen for those 
 filthy animals, who even with that advantage can scarcely be kept in tolerable 
 cleanliness.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 199 
 
 We have already seen Johnson's explanations of this word. 
 A Stile, (T.) in Anglo-Saxon fCijel, the diminutive of sty. 
 Stile, n.s. (j-cijele, from j-cijan, Saxon, to climb.) 
 
 1. A set of steps to pass from one enclosure to another. 
 
 2. {Slile, French.) A pin to cast the shadow in a sun dial. This should rather be 
 written Style. 
 
 As both Skinner and Lye present the first etymology to Johnson, he has not re- 
 fused it ; but this is the only mention of the Anglo-Saxon j-cijan to be found iu 
 Johnson, except in the next word. 
 
 Stirrup, (T.) iu Anglo-Saxon j-t:ij;-pap. In the derivation of this word our 
 etymologists (with the exception of Minshew) could not avoid concurrence. It is a 
 mounting rope ; a rope by which to mount. 
 
 Notwithstanding Johnson's concurrence in this etymology, he immediately ex- 
 plains the word to mean, — " An iron hoop suspended by a strap, iu which the 
 horseman sets his foot when he mounts or rides." 
 
 Skinner tells him — " Fumis ascensorius," but he prefers the example of Junius. 
 STERN, T Stern, (T.) Steren, Sier'n, i.e. Stirred, the past participle of tlie 
 verb j-npan, to stir, to steer, to move. — To ateer and to stir, the same 
 word tiow differently written and applied. 
 
 To Steer, v. a. (j^ceopan, j-rypan, Saxon ; siieren, Dutch.) To di- 
 rect ; to guide in a passage. 
 To Stir, v. a. (jcipian, Saxon ; stooren, Dutch.) To move, &c. 
 
 But though Stir, the verb, is from the Anglo-Saxon and the Dutch, 
 Stir, the noun, is from the Runick stur ; ystu-rf, Welsh. 
 A stern (T.) countenance is a moved countenance, moved by some passion. 
 Johnson, after Junius, says, — " j-typn, Saxon." Skinner — " fort, a vf rbo, to 
 stare." 
 
 The (T.) Stern of a ship, — the moved part of a ship, or that part by which tlic 
 ship is moved. 
 
 Johnson, after Junius, says,—" Steop, Saxon, of the same original with steer." 
 And explains it, — 
 
 1. The hind part of a ship, where the rudder is placed. 
 
 2. Post of management ; direction. 
 
 3. The hinder part of any thing. 
 A Store, (T.) is the collective term for any quantity or number of things stirred 
 
 or moved into some one place together. 
 Store, n.s. (stor, in old Swedish and Runick, is much, and is prefixed to other 
 words to intend their signification ; stor, Danish; stoor, Islandick, \s great. The 
 
 .STORE, 
 
 STOUR, 
 
 STURT, 
 
 START, 
 
 STIR, 
 
 STURDY, 
 
 ETOURDI 
 
 y
 
 200 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Teutonick dialects nearer to English seem not to have retained this word.) — And 
 he then gives four meanings in his usual manner. 
 
 Sfour, (T.) (Anglo-Saxon j-cup,) formerly in much use, me&us moved, stirred; 
 and was applied equally to dust, to water, and to men ; all of them things easily 
 moved. 
 Stour, 77. s. {stur, Runick, a battle ; j-ceojaan, Saxon, to disturb.) Assault, incur- 
 sion, tumult. Obsolete. 
 
 Siuri, (T.) is formed in the usual manner from Stour, 8cuj\. Siur-ed, Stur'd, 
 Shirt. 
 
 This word is not in Johnson, nor Skinner, nor Junius. 
 
 A start and a stir, (says Tooke,) require neither instance nor explanation. 
 
 Start, the noun, Johnson says, is from Start, the verb; and the verb from 
 starfzen, German. And this verb he thus explains : — 
 1. To feel a sudden and involuntary twitch or motion of the animal frame, on the 
 apprehension of danger. And six more. 
 
 Junius imagines Start to be derived from the Dutch steert, caiida ; and the Eng- 
 lish verb To start, and the Dutch steerten, mean nothing else " quam caudam ob- 
 vertere lis, quibuscum nobis res est." 
 
 By (T.) the accustomed addition of ig or y, to stour or stur, we have also the 
 adjective sturdij, and the French Estourdi, Etourdi. 
 
 Sturdy, " Mer. Casaubonus censet desumptum ex </liSa^o{." 
 
 Skinner and Johnson from estourdi, French. 
 
 STOCK, 
 
 STOCKS, 
 
 STOCKINGS, 
 
 STUCK, 
 
 STUCCO, 
 
 STAKE, 
 
 STEAK, 
 
 STICK, 
 
 STITCH. 
 
 All these, (viz. Sroc, Srac, Sncce ; Stock, Stok-en, Stuk, Stak, 
 Stik, Sticli,^ are the past tense, and past participle of the Anglo- 
 Saxon verb j-cican, j-cician, to stick, pungere, figere : although our 
 modern fashion acknowledges only stuck as the past tense and past 
 > participle of the verb To stick, and considers all the others, as so 
 many distinct and unconnected substantives. 
 
 1. Stock, Truncus, stipes, i. e. stuck; as log and post and block, 
 before explained : — " To stand like a stock." 
 2. Stock, metaph. a stupid or blockish person. 
 
 3. Stock, of a tree, itself stuck in the ground, from which branches proceed. 
 
 4. Stock, metaph. Stirps, family, race. 
 
 5. Stock, fixed quantity or store of any thing. 
 
 6. Stock, in trade, fixed sum of money or goods, capital, fund. 
 
 7. STocK-lock ; not affixed, but stuck in. 
 
 3. Stock, of a gun ; that in which the barrel is fixed or stuck. 
 9. Stock, handle; that in which any tool or instrument is fixed.
 
 OF THE DICTIONAUY OF DR. JOHNSON. 201 
 
 10. Stock, article of dress for the neck or legs. (See Stocking.) 
 
 11. Stocks, a place of punishment, in which the hands and legs are stuck or fixed. 
 
 12. Stocks, in which ships are stuck or fixed. 
 
 13. Stocks, the publick funds ; where the money of people is now fixed. 
 
 Such are the different applications of this word (so written) which Tooke has 
 collected, and in every explanation most clearly has he represented the reason of 
 the application. Johnson has twelve vague and indefinite explanations ; in not 
 one of which do we obtain the faintest glimpse of the true meaning of the word. 
 Stock, n. s. (fCoc, Saxon; stock, Dutch ; estoc, French.) 
 
 1. The trunk ; the body of a plant. 
 
 2. The trunk into which a graft is inserted. 
 
 3. A log or post. 
 
 4. A man proverbially stupid. 
 
 5. The handle of any thing. 
 
 6. A support of a ship while it is building. 
 
 7. (^Siocco, a rapier, Italian.) A thrust, a stoccado. 
 
 8. Something made of hnen ; a cravat ; a close neckcloth. Anciently a cover for 
 the leg, now Stocking. 
 
 9. A race; a lineage ; a family. 
 
 10. The principal; a capital store ; fund already provided. 
 
 11. Quantity; store; body. 
 
 12. A frind established by the government, of which the value rises and falls by arti- 
 fice or chance. 
 
 Stocks, n. s. (commonly without a singular.) Prison for the legs. 
 Stocklock, n.s. {stock and lock.) hock fi.ved in wood. 
 
 Stocking, (T.) for the leg ; corruptly written for stocken, (i. e. Stok, with the 
 addition of the participial termination en] because it was stuck or made with 
 sticking pins, (now called knitting needles.) 
 
 Johnson was aware of no corruption here, though he says that Stock was an- 
 ciently Stocken; nor does he offer any etymology. 
 Stocking, n. s. The covering of the leg. 
 
 Stucco, (T.) for houses, &c. A composition stuck or fixed upon walls. 
 Stucco, n. s. (Italian ; stuc, French.) A kind of fine plaster for walls. 
 
 Thus says Johnson, without even an &c. ; and then talks of " stucco Jloois." 
 Stake, (T.) in a hedge; stak or stuk there. 
 
 Stake, to which beasts are fastened to be baited : — i. e. Any thing stuck or fixed 
 in the ground for that purpose. 
 
 Stake, a deposit; paid down or fixed to answer the event. 
 
 D d
 
 202 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Stake, metaph. risque; any thing Jia:ed. or engaged to answer an event. — 
 Stake, n.s. (jcaca, Saxon ; staek, Dutch ; estaca, Spanish.) 
 
 1. A post or strong stick fixed in the ground. 
 
 2. A piece of wood. 
 
 3. Any thing placed as a palisade or fence. 
 
 4. The post to which a beast is tied to be baited. 
 
 The first beast is Octavius Caesar, the next Olivia, in the Twelfth Night. 
 
 5. Any thing pledged or wagered. I know not well whence it has this meaning. 
 [I suppose it is so named from being at stake, that is, in a state of hazard like an 
 animal baited, and in hazard from which it cannot be withdrawn.] 
 
 6. The state of being hazarded, pledged, or wagered. 
 
 Steak, (T.) A piece or portion of flesh so small as that it may be taken up and 
 carried, stuck upon a fork, or any slender sticking instrument. 
 Steak, n. s. (styck, Islandick and Erse, a piece ; steka, Swedish, to broil.) A slice 
 of flesh broiled or fried ; a collop. 
 
 Stick, (T.) (formerly written Stoc,') carried in the hand or otherwise ; but suf- 
 ficiently slender to be stuck or thrust into the ground or other soft substance. 
 Stick, n. s. (jcicca, Sax. ; stecco, Ital. ; steck, Dutch.) A piece of wood small and long. 
 To Stick, v. a. (jncan, Saxon.) To fasten on so as that it may adhere. 
 
 Tor Stick, v. n. he gives fifteen explanations. 
 To Stick, v. a. (j-cician, Saxon ; steken, Dutch.) 
 1. To stab ; to pierce with a pointed instrument. And three more. 
 Stick, (T.) a thrust. — Not in Johnson. 
 
 Stitch, (T.) in needle-work, (pronounced ch instead of ck,} a thrust, or push, 
 with a needle : also that which is performed by a thrust or push of a needle. 
 
 Stitch, metaph. A pain, resembling the sensation produced by being stuck or 
 pierced by any pointed instrument. 
 To Stitch, v. a. (jsticke, Danish ; sticken, Dutch.) 
 Stitch, n. s. (from the verb.) 
 
 1. A pass of a needle and thread through any thing. 
 
 2. (From j-cician, Saxon.) A sharp lancinating pam. 
 
 Besides the above uses of this participle, there were formerly — 
 
 Stock, (T.) for the leg ; instead of Stocken, {^Stocking.) 
 
 Stock, a thrust or push — Stuck, a thrust or push. 
 
 Stock, a sword or rapier, or any weapon that might be thrust or stuck. — 
 
 And of these uses (now obsolete) Tooke produces examples. It now remains 
 to shew to the reader, that Johnson has made very little serviceable use of his two 
 authorities. Skinner and Junius, by whom he has been directed to the Anglo-
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 203 
 
 Saxon verb j-Cican, to stick, in many instances, where he has been content to 
 transcribe from them the similar words in other languages, as satisfactory ety- 
 mologies. 
 
 Stock, Stirps, Skinner says, is " ab alt. Stock, truncus," which he derives from 
 Sleeken, figere, inhaerere : and this Dutch Sleeken, he classes with the Anglo- 
 Saxon Scican, to stick. Stake of a hedge, and Stake, a deposit, Junius and 
 Sliinner concur in deriving a. v. to stick; the latter, says Skinner, " quod scil. in 
 publico ^g-j'ter et proponitur tanquam victoris brabeum, victi mulcta." 
 
 And Juuius— " Inde" (i. e. a j-rican, figere,) " Anglis in sponsions vel ludo Tu 
 stalce down est aliquid pignoris loco deponere, quod veluti palojixum immotumque 
 maneat, usquedum victori cedat." 
 
 Stitch, Skinner also refers to the verb To stick. 
 
 Johnson has two active verbs To STICK ; the one he derives from {-cican, and the 
 other from /-cician : but he might have learned from Lye that they were one and 
 the same word. For Stocking, in the first folio, he ottered no etymology. Sub- 
 sequently he made the following improvement to his work : — " The original word 
 seems to be Stock ; whence Stocks, a prison for the legs. Stock, in tlie old tan' 
 guage, made the plural StocJxn, which was used for a pair of Stocks, or covers 
 for the legs. Stocken was in time taken for a singular, and pronounced Stocking. 
 The like corruption has happened to chick, chicken, chickens." 
 STORM.— Stypmian, To storm, says Lye; and of this verb Tooke affirms it to be the 
 past participle. 
 
 Johnson copies Welsh, Saxon, Dutch, and Italian, from Skinner. 
 STRENGTH, (T.) that which stringeth, or maketh one strong, is the third person 
 indicative of the verb To string ; and strong is the past participle of the same 
 verb. A strong man is a man well strttng. 
 
 Johnson has nothing more than the Anglo-Saxon similar words. He gives fif- 
 teen meanings to Strength, nine to String, and twenty to Strong. 
 STRAIN, ^ Strain, (T.) is the past tense, and, therefore, past participle of 
 
 STRIDE, > the Anglo-Saxon Scpynan, gignere, procreare, acquirere. 
 
 YESTER-DAY. J Chaucer writes streen and strene ; Douglas, strijnd, from 
 stryned, stryn'd. The participle Get, i. e. Begotten, is used in the same manner, 
 as a substantive, and also as a participle for Begotten. 
 
 A cock's stride is corruptly so pronounced, instead of a cock's strynd. — 
 Skinner says, — " A cock's stride, vel ut melius in agro Line, efferunt, a cock's 
 strine, — ab A. S. j-rjiinb, stirps, — Scjiynan, gignere." 
 Johnson has not the word, written in either way. 
 
 Dd 2
 
 204 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Strain, n. s. (from the verb.) 
 
 1. An injury by too much violence. 
 
 2. (Stpenje, Saxon.) Race, generation, descent, and six other explanations. 
 To Str.'MN, v. a. (estreindre, French.) 
 
 1. To squeeze through something. 
 
 Strain, the noun, is derived by Skinner from the same Anglo-Saxon j^cjiinb, 
 stirps — ]-rjiynan, gignere. 
 
 Strain, Streen, Strene, Stnjnd, are all traced by Lye to the same origin. 
 Yesterdatj, (T.) is in the Anglo-Saxon Irej-rjian Deej. E^ejtpan is the past 
 tense and past participle of Irej'tpinan, to acquire, to get, to obtain. But a day 
 is not gotten or obtained, till it is passed ; therefore Dej-rpen Dsej is equivalent to 
 the passed day. Gestran, Yestran, Yestern, Yester. 
 STUM, which Johnson, with Lye, supposes to be contracted from mustum, Tooke 
 says, is the past tense and past participle of Scyman, fumare, to steam, and means 
 fujnigated, steamed. 
 STUNT, (,T.) i. e. stopped in the growth, the past participle of Stinran, to stop. 
 
 Johnson has nothing to offer but the Islaudic, stunta. 
 SWOOP, > (T.) The Anglo-Saxon verb is j-])ipan, to sweep; and Swoop and Swop 
 SWOP. * are its regular past participle. 
 
 Swoop has nothing to do with the descent of a bird, or with any descent or 
 ascent ; but it may be applied to either ; for it has to do with a body in motion, 
 either ascending, descending, or horizontal ; and with a body removing all obstacles 
 in its passage. 
 Swoop, n. s. (from the verb.) Fall of a bird of prey upon his quarry. 
 His example is the passage already quoted under the word Chick. 
 The verb Johnson supposes to be formed from the sound. 
 
 A swop (T.) between two persons, is where, by consent of the parties, with- 
 out any delay, any reckoning, or counting, or other adjustment of proportion, 
 something is swept off at once by each of them. 
 To Swop, v. a. (of uncertain derivation.) To change : to exchange one thing for 
 another. A low word.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 205 
 
 T. 
 
 TAG, (T.) as well as Tight, is the past participle of Tian, vincire, to tie. 
 Tag, n. s. (tag, Islandick, the point of a lace.) 
 
 1. A point of metal put to the end of a string. (Without authority.) 
 
 2. Any thing paltry and mean. 3. A young sheep. 
 
 Tight, (T.) is Tied, Ti'd, Tight. 
 Tight, adj. {Ticht, Dutch.) 
 1. Tense; close; not loose. 
 • 2. Free from fluttering rags ; less than neat. 
 
 TALE, ? (T.) A tale, the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb cellan, some- 
 RE-TAIL, J thing told. To sell by tale, i. e. by numeration, not by weight or mea- 
 sure, but by the number told. — Retail, told over again. 
 Tale, n.s. (Jale, from cellan, to tell, Saxon.) 
 
 1. A narrative; a story. Commonly a slight or petty account of some trifling or 
 fabulous incident ; as a tale of a tub. 
 
 3. Oral relation. 
 
 3. (Talan, to count, Saxon.) Number reckoned. 
 
 4. Reckoning ; numeral account. 
 
 6. Information ; disclosure of any thing secret. 
 To Retail, v. a. [Retainer, French.) 
 
 ] . To sell in small quantities, in consequence of selling at second hajid. 
 Observe his only example : — 
 
 " All encouragement should be given to artificers; and those, who make, should also vend 
 and retail their commodities." Locke. 
 
 Retail, n.s. (from the verb.) Sale by small quantities, &c. 
 
 Junius appears to have had some suspicion that tellan, narrare, and rellan, 
 numerare, were the same word : and though Skinner does not, yet he avoids the 
 absurdity of classing them as one word, and then assigning separate etymologies 
 to them. 
 
 In Beaumont and Fletcher, (Weber's edit. Vol. I. p. 46 :) — " Being a merchant 
 venturer as he is, and there such excellent trading, methinks, ere this he might 
 have made return by tale or wholesale." 
 
 This passage the editor thus accommodatingly, if not luminously, expounds : — 
 " Tale seems to be used here for retail. If this is not allowed, we must read Sale."
 
 206 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Tilth, (T.) is the third persou indicative, and the rest are the past par- 
 ticiple of the Anglo-Saxon verb cilian, To lift up, To till. To till the 
 ground is to raise it, to turn it up. 
 
 Tall, aud the French word taille, (as applied to stature,) i. e. raised, 
 lifted up. 
 
 Toll, and the French word taille, (as applied to goods,) is a part lifted 
 off, or taken away. To raise taxes, to levy taxes — Lever des impots — &c. are 
 common expressions. 
 Tall, adj. (tdl, Welsh.) 
 
 ]. High in stature. 2. High; lofty. 3. Sturdy; lusty. 
 
 Toll, n. s. (This word seems derived from tollo, Latin ; toll, Saxon ; tol, Dutch : 
 told, Danish ; toll, Welsh ; taille, French.) An excise of goods ; a seizure of 
 some for permission of the rest. 
 
 Toll (T.) of a bell, is its being lifted up, which causes that sound which we 
 call its toll. 
 To Toll, Johnson says, is from the noun ; but his third explanation, — " To sound 
 as a single bell," — he introduces with a declaration, that he knows not whence de- 
 rived. Yet immediately after we find — ■ 
 To Toll, v. a. [tollo, Latin.) 
 1 . To ring a bell. 
 
 He appears to have had an idea that there is so wide a difference between 
 " sounding as a single bell," and " ringing a bell," that no one word can be applied 
 to both. 
 
 Tool, (T.) is (some instrument, any instrument) lifted up, or taken up, to 
 work with. 
 Tool, n. s. (tol, tool, Saxon.) 
 
 1. Any instrument of manual operation. 
 
 2. A hireling ; a wretch who acts at the command of another. 
 " Verum autem et ultimum etymon (says Skinner,) tum nostri fool, turn A. S. 
 
 tole, est ab A. S. cilian." 
 
 Toil, (T.) (for labour,) applied perhaps at first principally to having tilled (or 
 lifted up) the earth ; afterwards to other sorts of labour. This verb was formerly 
 written in English — Tuail, and Tueil. 
 
 Toil, (for a snare,) is any thing lifted up, or raised, for the purpose of en- 
 snaring any animal. As, a spider's web is a Toil, (something lifted up,') to catch 
 flies ; springes and uets. Toils for other animals. — 
 To Toil, v. n. (cilian, Saxon ; tmjlen, Dutch.) To labour ; perhaps originally to 
 labour in tillage.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 207 
 
 Toil, n. s. (from the verb.) 
 1. Labour ; fatigue. 
 ■^ 2. ( Toiie, toiles, French ; tela, Latin.) Any net or snare woven or meshed. 
 
 " She looks like sleep, 
 
 As she would catch another Antony 
 
 In her strong toil of grace." Shakspeare. Antony and Cleopatra. 
 
 " Fantastick honour, thou hast fram'd a toil 
 
 Thyself, to make thy love thy virtue's spoil." Drydek. 
 
 Tilt, (T.) of a boat or waggon. A tilt is well said of a vessel that is raised up; 
 but we ought to say To till, and not to tilt a vessel. 
 
 Tilt, the noun, Johnson derives from the Saxon tylb, and TiLT, the verb, from 
 the noun ; but at the fourth meaning of this same verb he offers a new etymology, 
 tillen, Dutch. 
 
 Tilth, (T ) Any operation which tilleth, i. e. lifteth or turneth up, or raiseth up 
 the earth. 
 
 Johnson derives this from Till, and Till from cylian, Saxon, " to cultivate ; to 
 husband ; commonly used of the husbandry of the plough." 
 To TARRE. To Tar, "to teaze, to provoke, (T«faT?«,)" is placed by Johnson as the 
 second meaning of the verb To Tar, from the noun. Tar, "liquid pitch." 
 
 In a note on Hamlet, (Reed, Vol. XVIIL p. 137,) Johnson says, " To provoke 
 any animal to rage, is to tarre him. The word is said to come from the Greek 
 
 In a note on King John, (Vol. X. p. 4G8,) Mr. Steevens says, " To stimulate, 
 to set him on. Supposed to be derived from ra^anu, excito." 
 
 Tooke produces two passages from his MS. Testament, in which the word is 
 written terre; and it is so written in the same places in Wiclif. 
 
 Typan, (T.) exacerbare, irritare, exasperare. To tar. And Tart is the past parti- 
 ciple Tared, Tar'd, Tart. 
 THACK, > Thatch, n.s. (?ace, straw. Skinner, from 'Sac, a roof; in Islandick, 
 THATCH, J thak, Mr. Lye.) Straw laid upon the top of a house to keep out the 
 weather. 
 To Thatch, v. a. C^accian, Saxon.) To cover as with straw. 
 
 Thack, (T.) Thatch, (Anglo-Saxon ^ac,) is the past tense and past participle of 
 ^ecan, tegere. 
 THAT, \ That, (T.) (in the Anglo-Saxon Sser, i. e. ^eab, ^ear,) means taken, assumed, 
 THE. 3 being merely the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb, ^ean, -^ejan,
 
 208 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 ^lon, [thihan, G.,) ^Jicjan, 'Sijian ; siimere, assumere, accipere, io the, io get, to 
 take, to assume. 
 
 " 111 mote he the 
 
 That caused me 
 
 To make mjself a frere." 5ir Thomas More's Works, p. 4. 
 
 It and that always refer to some thing or things, person or persons, taken, as- 
 sumed, or spoken of before. It is a good action, i. e. The said (action) is a good 
 
 action ; or That is a good action, i. e. The assumed (action) is a good action ; or, 
 the action, received in discourse, is a good action. 
 
 The (our article, as it is called,) is the imperative of the same verb ''SSeaii ; 
 which may very well supply the place of the correspondent Anglo-Saxon article 
 j-e ; which is the imperative of j-eon, videre ; for it answers the same purpose in 
 discourse to say, See man, or Take man. For instance — 
 
 " T/ie man that hath not musick in himself. 
 Is fit for treasons, stratagems," &c. 
 
 Or, 
 
 " That man is fit for treasons," &c. 
 
 Take man, (or see man,) taken man hath not musick, &c. 
 
 Said man, or taken man, is fit for treasons, &c. 
 
 That (call it article, or pronoun, or conjunction,) has always one meaning. 
 
 " Thieves rise by night that tliey may cut men's throats." 
 
 Thieves may cut men's throats ; (for) that (purpose) they rise by night. — 
 Carrying Tooke's resolution a step farther, agreeably to his own explanation of 
 
 the word That, we shall have — 
 
 " Thieves may cut men's throats; (for) that, i. e. taken, assumed, (purpose) 
 
 they rise by night." 
 
 Junius and Mr. Tyrwhitt say, that To the means To thrive: and in support of 
 
 this explanation the former produces, among others, the following from Chaucer's 
 
 Romance of the Rose : — 
 
 " Well evill mote they thrive and thee. 
 
 And evill arivud mote they be." R. R. 1067, (Speght, fo. 121, c. ii.)
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 209 
 
 Mr. Tyrwhitt, speaking of the state in which the English language appears to 
 have been iu the time of Chaucer, says, — " The prepositive article se, soe, that, 
 (which answered to the o, >), 7o, of the Greeks, in all its varieties of gender, case, 
 and number,) had been long laid aside, and instead of it an indeclinable THE was 
 prefixed to all sorts of nouns in all cases, and iu both numbers." 
 
 In his Glossary Mr. Tyrwhitt writes thus : — " The, when prefixed to adjectives 
 or adverbs, in the comparative degree, is generally to be considered as a corrup- 
 tion of tky, which was commonly put by the Saxons for tham, the ablative case 
 singular of the article that, used as a pronoun. — The merier, 716 — eo Icetius ; the 
 more merry, 804, eo Icetiores. Of the same construction are the phrases — Yet fare 
 they the werse, 4348 ;— Yet fare I never the better, 7533. — When the is repeated 
 with a second comparative, either adjective or adverb, the first the is to be under- 
 stood in the sense of Latin quo. See v. 5955. The more it brenneth, the more 
 it hath desire — to consume every thing ; — quo magis — eo magis." 
 
 The etymological discoveries of Home Tooke will rise in importance incalculably 
 in the estimation of a reader of common understanding, when he finds such a man 
 as Mr. Tyrwhitt write in this manner, and publish such notions for the instruction 
 of the publick. 
 THEFT, (T.) is Theved, Thev'd, Theft. 
 
 THIEF, n.s. (thiubs, Gothick ; ^eop, Saxon ; die/, Dutch.) It was anciently written 
 thieof, and so appeareth to have been of two syllables ; thie was wout to be taken 
 for thrift, so that (" I beg attention to this so that,") thie of is he that TAKES of 
 or from a man his thie ; that is, his thrift or means whereby he thrives. 
 
 Thie of, then, means, etymologically, thrift of; and, according to the interpre- 
 tation founded upon this etymology, those two harmless words, as they have 
 hitherto been supposed, Thereof and Whereof, must lose " their character of qui- 
 escence," and be branded with " the infamy of their connections :" so that, THEREOF 
 is he that takes of or from a man his there, &c. &c. 
 
 Thief, however, means — 
 
 1. One who takes what belongs to another. 
 
 2. An excrescence in the snuff of a candle. 
 
 " Their burning lamps the storm ensuing show, 
 
 Th' oil sparkles, thieves about the siiufF do grow." May. 
 
 A Candle means, " A light made of vvax or tallow, surrounding a wick of flax 
 or cotton." And — 
 
 A Lamp means, " A light made with oil and a wick." 
 
 Ee
 
 210 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 That such is the meaning, — the primitive meaning,— of this latter word, the 
 Ladj in Comus shall testify : 
 
 " O thievish night. 
 
 Why shouldst thou, but for some felonious end, 
 !n tiiy dark lanthorn, thus close up the stars 
 That nature hung in heaven, and fiU'd their lamps 
 With everlasting oil, to give due light 
 To the misled and lonely traveller." 
 
 What will Mr. Stewart say to this ? — He, — whose poetical associations were 
 so sorely rent in his unhappy researches after the meaning of the word Har- 
 binger. 
 
 But besides the Lady, Johnson produces a Philosopher to confirm his assertion 
 that Lamp means " A light made with oil;" and he — the Philosopher — says, 
 
 " In lamp furnaces 1 used spirits of wine — instead of oil." Boyle. 
 
 After this we are informed that Lamp also means — 
 2. Any kind of light, in poetical language, real or metaphorical. 
 
 And " the light of life," and " Cynthia's silver lamp," are adduced as examples. 
 Johnson, moreover, being saving of his thie, i. e. of " his thrift, or means whereby 
 he thrived," produces the same passage from Comus as an instance that Lant- 
 horn, which by the Lady is expressly denominated a dark one, means " A trans- 
 parent case for a candle I .'" 
 THICK, -\ For Thick, Johnson gives the Northern similar words, and truly says, 
 THICKET, y that it means, 1. Not thin. And Thin, with equal truth, he says, means 
 THIGH. S ]. Not thick. 
 
 Thicket, n.s. (^iccecu, Saxon.) A close knot or tuft of trees; a close wood or 
 
 copse. 
 Thigh, n. s. (¥eoh, Saxon ; ihieo, Islandick ; die, Dutch.) The thigh includes all 
 between the buttocks and the knee. 
 
 Of Thicket, Skinner says, " A nom. Thick, q. d. A place thick set with trees or 
 shrubs." 
 
 Thick, (T.) Thicket, Thigh, are the past participle of Diccian, densare, con- 
 
 densare. Thicket for thicked, i. e. with trees. Thigh {gh for ck) is sometimes in 
 
 the Anglo-Saxon written Deob, (for Deoc,) by change of the characteristick 
 letter.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 211 
 
 THING, J Thing, n.s. (^inj, Saxon; ding, Dutch.) 
 
 THINK, > I. Whatever is; not a person. 
 
 THINKER. S 
 
 " Do not you chide ; I have a thing for j'ou. 
 
 You liave a thing for nie ! 
 
 It is a common thing 
 
 Ha? 
 
 ^To have a foolish wife." Shakspeare. 
 
 2. It is used in contempt. 
 
 3. It is used of persons in contempt, or sometimes with pity. 
 
 4. It is used by Shakspeare once in a sense of honour. 
 
 Such is the whole of the information which we can obtain respecting this most 
 important word from our great Lexicographer. 
 To Think, v. n. pret. thought, {thank-gan, Gothick ; ^encean, Saxon ; dencken, 
 Dutch.) 
 
 1. To have ideas ; to compare terms or things ; to reason ; to cogitate ; to perform 
 any mental operation, whether of apprehension, judgment, or illation. 
 
 2. To judge ; to conclude ; \.o determine. 
 8. To doubt. 
 
 To which of the mental operations enumerated by Johnson does the latter ex- 
 planation apply ? 
 Thinker, n. s. One who thinks in a certain manner. 
 
 c Me Thinketh, It seems to me. 'i 
 
 i Me Thought, It appeared to me. > 
 
 These are (continues Johnson,) anomaZows phrases of long continuance and great au- 
 thority, but not easily reconciled to grammar. In Me thinketh, the verb, being of 
 the third person, seems to be referred not to the thing, and is therefore either ac- 
 tive, as signifying to cause to think ; or has the sense oi seems; me thinks, it seems 
 to me. 
 
 " Res, a thing, (says Tooke,) gives us Reor, i. e. I am thinged ; Fereor, I am 
 strongly thinged; for ve in Latin composition means Valde, — i. e. Valide. — 
 And Verus, i. e. strongly impressed upon the mind, is the contracted participle of 
 Fereor. — Where we now say, / think, the ancient expression was, Me thinketh ; 
 i. e. Me thingeth — It thingeth me. 
 
 " Where shall we sojourn till our coronation .'' 
 
 Where it thinks best unto your royal self." Richard IIL p. 186. 
 
 E e 2
 
 212 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 The terminating k or g is the only difference, and that little enough, between 
 Think And Thing. Is not that circumstance worth consideration here? Perhaps 
 you will find that the commou vulgar pronunciation of Nothink instead of Nothing 
 IS not so very absurd as our contvary fashion makes it appear. Bishop Hooker so 
 wrote it; — 
 
 " Men's yeyes be obedient unto the Creatour, that they may se on think, and 
 yet not another." ^ Declaration of Christe. By Johau Hooper, cap. viii. 
 
 Mr. Locke speaks of things " which never came within the reach cf our senses ;" 
 and yet I think it a plain inference from Mr. Locke's own reasonings, that there 
 
 can be no such things. The passage is somewhat long, but too important to be 
 
 omitted. 
 
 " All * our simple ideas are adequate. Because, being nothing but the effects of 
 certain powers in things, fitted and ordained by God to produce such sensations in 
 us, they cannot but be correspondent and adequate to those powers : and we are 
 sure they agree to the reality of things. For if sugar produce in us the ideas 
 which we call whiteness and sweetnesjs, we are sure there is a power in sugar to 
 produce those ideas in our minds, or else they could not have been produced by it. 
 And so each sensation answering the power that operates on any of our senses, the 
 idea so produced is a real idea (and not a fiction of the mind, which has no power 
 to produce any simple idea:) and cannot but be adequate, since it ought only to 
 answer that power ; and so all simple ideas are adequate. It is true, the things pro- 
 ducing in us these simple ideas are but few of them denominated by us, as if they 
 were only the causes of them ; but as if those ideas were real beings in them. For 
 though fire be called painful to the touch, whereby is signified the power of pro- 
 ducing in us the idea of pain, yet it is denominated also light and hot ; as if light 
 and heat were really something in the tire more than a power to excite those ideas 
 in us ; and therefore are called qualities in or of the fire. But there being nothing, 
 in truth, but powers to excite such ideas in us, I must in that sense be understood, 
 when I speak of secondary! qualities, as being in things; or of their ideas, as 
 being the objects that excite them in us. Such ways of speaking, though accom- 
 modated to the vulgar notions, without which one cannot be well understood, yet 
 
 • Locke's Works, Vol. I. p. 224. 
 
 t This is an unfortunate restriction. Mr. Locke's primary qualities are those which " convey 
 themselves into the mind by more senses than one ;" secondary, those " which come into the mind 
 by one sense only." There is no other difference.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 213 
 
 truly signify nothing but those powers which are in things to excite certain sensa- 
 tions or ideas in us; since, were there no fit organs to receive the impressions fire 
 makes on the sight and touch, nor a mind joined to those organs to receive the 
 ideas of light and heat by those impressions from the fire or sun, there would yet 
 be no more light or heat in the world, than there would be pain, if there wereuo 
 sensible creature to feel it." 
 
 Are we not thus led to a just understanding of the word Thing ? — that (sub- 
 aud. aliquid) — which causes or produces sensation or idea. 
 
 Every word, we have been told by Mr. Tooke, is a noun ; and a noun is the sim- 
 ple or complex, the particular or general name or sign of one or more ideas. Lan- 
 guage, then, cannot carry us beyond sensations or ideas ; whenever we attempt 
 to advance farther, we inevitably talk nonsense. Simple and particular names 
 will express simple and particular ideas ; complex and general names will express 
 collections of simple and particular ideas ; but there is no necessity to presume a 
 composition or combination of ideas. Mr. Locke constantly confounds these 
 terras. 
 
 What is the meaning of Mr. Locke's expression — " The reality of things" — 
 Healiias reruin ? It is no more than the " Thingality of things." A real 
 being — The REALITY of external objects — The REALITY of matter. All these are 
 phrases of similar import, and, if used for the purpose of distinction, of equal 
 impropriety ; inasmuch as all things, ALL beings, are and must be real: all ex- 
 ternal objects, all matter, are and must be real : that is, able to thing, or to 
 cause sensations. 
 
 " I am thing-ed !" echoes Mr. Stewart ; " whoever used such language before?" 
 
 We must at present disregard Mr. Stewart. A thing is: — a cause of a sensation 
 IS. What mean we by this word IS? What is the meaning of the verb TO BE? 
 I believe Mr. Tooke was accustomed to illustrate his opinion upon this point by 
 some such instances as the following. — But let all errors and imperfections and 
 absurdities rest upon my own head. 
 
 The rose is sweet. "^ /" sweet. 
 
 The grass is green, w \ green. 
 
 The sound IS harsh. \ Tht^i is, causes sensations, — / harsh. 
 
 The fruit is sour. C A sour. 
 
 The road is rough, j f rough. 
 
 Perhaps, then, by the verb — To Be, — we mean no other than " To cause a seusa-
 
 214 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 tion." — And " as the rigour of iuterpretative lexicography requires that the ex- 
 planation and the word explained should be reciprocal," — let us try a few more 
 instances, and substitute the explanation for the word explained. 
 
 a " Sweet is the breath of morn, her rising sweet 
 
 With charm of earliest birds." 
 
 i. e. The breath of morn causes sensations — sweet. 
 
 " To be contents his natural desire ; 
 
 He asks no angel's wings, no seraph's fire." 
 
 i. e. To cause sensations to himself contents, &c. 
 
 " • . . . , Now conscience wakes despau' 
 
 That slumber'd ; wakes the bitter memory 
 Of what he was, what is, and what must be 
 Worse " 
 
 i. e. Of what sensations he did cause to himself; what he does, and what he must 
 cause to himself. 
 
 Non sum, qualis eram.— 
 
 i. e. I cause not the same sensations that I did cause. 
 
 " Thou art not holy to bely me so ; 
 
 I am not mad ; this hair, I tear, is mine ; 
 
 My name is Constance ; 1 teas Geffrey's wife, 
 
 Young Arthur is my son, and he is lost : 
 
 1 am not mad : — 1 would to Heaven I were ! — 
 
 If i were mad, I should forget my son : 
 
 Or madly think, a babe of clouts were he; 
 
 I am not mad ; too well, too well 1 feel 
 
 The different plague of each calamity." 
 
 The reader (a personage to whom I never allude, without a lively recollection 
 
 of Porson's ill-omened Hi guis erit, — ) the reader will translate this passage for 
 
 himself. 
 THONG, >^ Where Johnson found " Thrang, Throng," which he gives as etymolo- 
 THIN. 3 gies for Thong, I know not. Junius says, " Lancastrienses adhuc retinu- 
 
 erunt suum Thwang, ex A. S. DJianj, vel DJ^-ong." And Skinner — " Ab A. S. 
 
 DJanj."
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 215 
 
 For Thin, Johnson gives from Skinner the Northern similar words. 
 Thong, (T.) Thin, are the past participles of Th)iynan, DJ^inan, decrescere, minui. 
 Thong, (in the A. S. Djionj, D>an^,) was still written Thwong, long after our 
 language ceased to be called Anglo-Saxon. Thin, also, appears to have been 
 written with a w. 
 
 Thwong is used in Wiclif as well as in Tooke's MS. Testament. 
 THOROUGH, prep. (The word Through extended into two syllables.) 
 
 What, (says Tooke,) could possibly be expected from such an etymologist as 
 this ? He might with as much verisimilitude say, that Saiuala (Goth.) was the word 
 Soul, extended into three syllables, or that EMniAOffun was the word Alms extended 
 into six. 
 Through, prep, (^ujih, Saxon ; door, Dutch ; durch, German.) Thro\ contracted 
 by barbarians from Through. — The barbarian cited is Dryden. 
 
 But though in Johnson's opinion Through and Thorough differ in nothing but 
 the number of syllables, they still do not mean exactly the same thing. 
 Through, means " From end to end of." And 
 
 Thorough, " By way of making passage or penetration." 
 
 The (T.) English preposition Thorough, Thourough, Thorow, Through, or Thro", 
 is no other than the Gothic substantive Dauro, or the Teutonic substantive Thu- 
 ruh ; and, like them, means door, gate, passage. 
 
 Mr. Tooke places before the reader, at one view, the words employed to signify 
 the same idea in those languages to which our own has the greatest affinity. 
 THOUGH. (T.) Tho\ Though, Thah, (or as our country folks more purely pro- 
 nounce it, Thaf, Thauf, Thof,] is the imperative Daj: or Dajnj, of the Anglo- 
 Saxon verb Dapian or Daj:ij;an, to allow, permit, grant, yield, assent ; and Dapi j 
 becomes Thah, 'though, Thoug, (and Thoch, as G. Douglas and other Scotch 
 authors write it.) 
 Tho', adv. (^onne, Saxon.) 
 
 1. Then. Spenser. 
 
 2. Tho", contracted for though. 
 
 Though, conjunction, (^eah, Saxon ; thauh, Gothick.) 
 1. Notwithstanding that ; although. 
 
 Does Johnson mean, that when Though is contracted into T/to', it becomes an 
 adverb,' and loses its origin from Deah, and acquires one from Donne ? If not, 
 what does he mean ? 
 TILL, (T.) is a word compounded of to and while ; i.e. Time. It is not unusual with 
 the common people, and some antient authors, to use while alone as a preposition ; 
 that is, to leave out to, and say, I will stay while evening, instead of :/V« evening.
 
 216 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 or To while evening. That is, I will slay time evening, — instead of To Time 
 evening. 
 
 In GifFord's edition of Massinger, Vol. II. p. 414, — 
 
 " You have waked him ; softly, gracious madam, 
 
 While we are unknown ; and then consult at leisure." [£jr«n<.] 
 
 Upon this plain passage we have the following sagacious note : 
 
 " While — i. e. Until; a very common acceptation of the word in our old writers.'" 
 
 Now though it is very true, that while is frequently used in our old writers, (as 
 Tooke has well explained,) without to or unto; yet in this passage I believe it 
 to be equally true, that the insertion of to or unto — that is, the use of till or 
 until, — would render the passage complete nonsense. 
 
 In the same work. Vol. IV. p. 476, — 
 
 " Cleanthes, if you want money, to morrow use me ; 
 I'll trust you wliile your father's dead." 
 
 i. e. U7ii\\ your father be dead. 
 
 It is as clear, that while is used here for till, i. e. to while, as that in the former 
 passage it is not. 
 
 In Reed's Shakspeare, (Vol. V. p. 395,)— 
 
 •' He shall conceal it. 
 
 Whiles you are willing it shall come to note." 
 
 Whiles, says Johnson, is until. This word is still so used in the northern coun- 
 tries. It is, I think, used in this sense in the preface to the Accidence. 
 In his Dictionary, however, he writes — 
 Until, adv. 1. To the time that. 2. To the place that. And, 
 Until, prep. To. Used of time. The other use is obsolete. And, 
 While, Whiles, Whilst, adv. (pj^ile, Saxon. Whiles is now out of use.) I. Dur- 
 ing the time that. 2. As long as. 3. At the same time that. 
 
 A While, (says Tooke,) is & time. Whil-es; time, that ov which.' Whilst is a 
 corruption ; it should be written as formerly, Whiles. See As. 
 To TIRE, V. a. (tyjiian, Saxon.) 
 
 I. To fatigue ; to make weary; to harass; to wear out with labour or tedious- 
 ne.«s.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 217 
 
 So says Johnson in his Dictionary ; but as a commentator on Shakspeare he 
 -writes otherwise. (Reed, Vol. XIV. p. 2.S.) 
 
 " Like an emptie eagle, 
 
 Tyre on the flebh of nie, and of my sonne." Fo. 149. 
 
 " To Tire, is to fasten, to fix the talons, from the French tirer." Johnson. 
 We must attend likewise to his coadjutors for a moment. 
 " To tire is to peck. So, in Decker's Match me in London : 
 
 " The vulture ti;ei 
 
 Upon the eagle's heart." Steevens. 
 
 In Timon of Athens, (fo. 89,) Reed, Vol. XIX. p. 116,— 
 
 " Upon that were my thoughts tijring when wee encountred." 
 
 " A hawk, I think, is said to tire, when she amuses herself with pecking a phea- 
 sant's wing, or any thing that puts her in mind of prey. To tire upon a thing is, 
 therefore, to be idly employed upon it." Johnson. 
 
 " I believe Dr. Johnson is mistaken. Tiring means here, I iYiiaV., fixed, fastened, 
 as the hawk fastens its beak eagerly on its prey. So, in our author's Veuus and 
 Adonis : 
 
 " Like as an empty eagle, sharp by fast. 
 
 Tires with her beak on feathers, flesh and bone." Malone. 
 
 " Dr. Johnson's explanation, I believe, is right. Thus, in Winter's Tale, Anti- 
 gonus is said to be womdin-tird, i. e. peeked by a woman, as we now say, with a 
 similar allusion, hen-pecked." Steevens. 
 
 Commentator-pecked we are, at all events. 
 
 There is a certain past participle, (which my regard for the delicacy of Mr. 
 Stewart forbids me to mention,) derived by Tooke from the Anglo-Saxon verb 
 Tyjmn, to feed upon. And he quotes the very lines from Venus and Adonis which 
 Mr. Malone has also quoted. 
 
 The thoughts of the Lord, the trencher friend of Timon, instead of being idly 
 employed, as Johnson imagines, were most anxiously employed; were feeding 
 upon a bait, which (as he suspected) Timon had thrown before him. A mere 
 reference to Lye's Anglo-Saxon Dictionary would have enabled Mr. Steevens to 
 put an end to the idle controversy between Malone and Johnson. 
 
 F f
 
 218 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 The editor of Beaumont and Fletcher repeats, " To tire means to peck at ; the 
 phrases are again from falconry ;" and that he should do so is nothing strange. 
 The wonder is, that Mr. Steevens should not think it necessary to search for the 
 cause of the application of the term to falconry ; which he would easily have 
 found in the real meaning of the word. 
 
 Lye — " Tipan, Tyjian, Tyjiian, Typijan, Typjiian, to tear. Mordere, ureie, 
 lacessere, vexare, exasperare, exacerbare, irritare, irridere." 
 TO. (T.) The preposition To, (in Dutch, toe and tot, a little nearer to the original,) 
 is the Gothic substantive, Taui or Tauhts, i. e. act, effect, result, consummation. 
 Which Gothic substantive is indeed itself no other than the past participle Tauid 
 or Tauids, of the verb Tauyan, agere. And what is done, is terminated, ended, 
 finished. 
 
 In the Teutonick this verb is written Tuan or Tuon, whence the modern Ger- 
 man Thun, and its preposition (varying like its verb) tu. 
 
 In the Anglo-Saxon verb is Teojan, and the preposition To. 
 After this derivation, it will not appear in the least mysterious or wonderful that 
 we should, in a peculiar manner, in English, prefix this same word TO to the infi- 
 nitive of our verbs. For the verbs, in English, not being distinguished, as in 
 other languages, by a peculiar termination, and it being sometimes impossible to 
 distinguish them by their place, when the old termination of the Anglo-Saxon 
 verbs was dropped, this word to, (i. e. act,') became necessary to be prefixed, in 
 order to distinguish them from nouns, and to invest them with the verbal charac- 
 ter : for there is no difference between the noun Love, and the verb To love, but 
 what must be comprized m the prefix to. 
 
 The infinitive, therefore, appears plainly to be what the Stoicks called it, the 
 very verb itself; pure and uncompounded with the various accidents of mood, of 
 number, of gender, of person, and (in English) of tense; which accidents are, in 
 some languages, joined to the verb by variety of termination ; and in some by an 
 additional word signifying the added circumstance. 
 
 There is one mistake from which this prefix to ought to have rescued our Eng- 
 lish Grammarians ; they should not have repeated the error of insisting that the 
 infiniiive was a mere noun; since it was found necessary in English to add 
 another word, (viz.) to, merely to distinguish the infinitive from the noun, after 
 the infinitive had lost that distinguishing termination which it had formerly. 
 
 There are certainly other parts of the English verb, undistinguished from the 
 noun by termination ; and to them also, (and to those parts only which have not a 
 distinguishing termination,) as well as to the infinitive, is this distinguishing sign 
 equally necessary, and equally prefixed. Do (the auxiliary verb, as it has been
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 219 
 
 called,) is derived from the same root, and is indeed the same word as To. The 
 difference between a t and a «? is so very small, that an etymologist knows by the 
 practice of languages, and an anatomist by the reason of that practice, that in the 
 derivation of words it is scarce worth regarding. And for the same reason that 
 to is put before the infinitive, do used formerly to be put before such other parts 
 of the v&rb, which likewise were not distinguished from the noun by termination. 
 As we still say, I do love, instead of I love; and I doed or did love, instead of 
 I loved. But it is worth our while to observe, that if a distinguishing termination 
 is used, then the distinguishing DO or did must be omitted, the termination fulfil- 
 ling its office. And therefore we never find I DID loved, or He doth lovet/t. But 
 I did love. He doth love. 
 
 It is not, indeed, an approved practice at present to use do before those parts of 
 the verb, they being now by custom sufficiently distinguished by their place ; and 
 therefore the redundancy is now avoided, and do is considered, in that case, as 
 unnecessary and expletive. 
 
 However, it is still used, and is the common practice, and should be used when- 
 ever the distinguishing place, is disturbed by interrogation, or by the inseriiori of a 
 negation, or of some other words between the nominative case and the verb. 
 As, — 
 
 He does not love the truth. 
 
 Does he love the truth ? 
 
 He does at the same time love the truth. 
 
 And if we chuse to avoid the use of this verbal sig7i, do, we must supply its place 
 by a distinguishing termination to the verb. As, — 
 
 He loveth not the truth. 
 
 Loveth he the truth ? 
 
 He at the same time loveth the truth. 
 
 Or where the verb has not a distinguishing termination (as in plurals,) — 
 
 They do not love the truth. 
 
 Do they love the truth ? 
 
 They DO at the same time love the truth. 
 
 Here, if we wish to avoid the verbal sign, we must remove the negative, or other 
 intervening word or words from between the nominative case and the verb, and so 
 restore the distinguishing place. As, — 
 
 F f 2
 
 220 
 
 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 They love not the truth. 
 
 Love they the truth ? 
 
 At the same time they love the truth. 
 
 It is not, however, uncommon to say, T/iey, at the same time, love the truth. — 
 Where the intervening words (a< the same time) are considered as merely paren- 
 thetical, and the mind of the speaker still preserves the connection of place between 
 the nominative case and the verb. 
 
 And thus we see that, though we cannot, as *Mr. Tyrwhitt truly says, account 
 for the use of this verbal sign from any analogy to other languages, yet there is 
 no caprice in these methods of employing to and do, so differently from the prac- 
 tice of other languages ; but that they arise from the peculiar method which the 
 English language has taken to arrive at the same necessary end, which other 
 . languages attain by distinguishing termination. — 
 
 Mr. Tooke, also, is persuaded, that the correspondent Latin preposition ad, is 
 merely the past participle of agere ; which past participle is likewise a Latin sub- 
 stantive. — 
 
 After perusing these remarks upon the word TO (i. e. act,) it may be worth the 
 trouble of the reader to refer to the word Thing. 
 TOOTH, n. s. plural teeth, (co^, Saxon ; taud, Dutch.) 
 
 Tooth, (T.) (Goth, Tauyith.) That which tuggeth; the third person singular of 
 the indicative of Tauyan, Teojan, to tug. 
 TOWN,^ (T.) Are but one word, with one meaning; viz. inclosed, encompassed, 
 TUN, > shut in; and they only differ (besides their spelling) in their modern dif- 
 TEN, 3 ferent application and subaudition. It is the past tense and therefore past 
 participle (ton, rone, run, cyne, tene,) of the Anglo-Saxon verb Tynan, to in- 
 close, to encompass, to tyne. The modern subaudition, when we use the word 
 Town, is restricted to — any number of houses inclosed together. Formerly the 
 English subaudition embraced — Any inclosure, any quantity of land, &c. inclosed. 
 A Tun (tunne) and its diminutive Tunnel, (rsenel, tenel,) is the same participle 
 with the same meaning ; though now usually applied to an inclosure for fluids. 
 
 The number of fingers is still the utmost extent of numeration. The hands, 
 doubled, closed, or shut in, include and conclude all number ; and might well, 
 therefore, be denominated Tyn, or Ten. For therein you have closed all nume- 
 ration : and if you want more, you must begin again — ten and one, ten and two, 
 &c- to twain tens ; when you again recommence twain-tens and one, &c. — 
 
 * Essay on the Language, &c. of Chaucer, n. 37.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 221 
 
 Town, n.s. (run, Saxon; tuyn, Dutch; from cinan, Saxon, to shut.) 
 1. Any walled collection of houses. 
 
 Junius precedes Johnson in this derivation from the Anglo-Saxon Tinan. 
 Skinner says, " To tyne, adhuc pro sepire quibusdam Anglias partibus usur- 
 patur, si Verstegano fides sit." 
 Tun, n.s. (cunne, Saxon; tonne, Dutch; tonne, tonneau, French.) 
 1. A large cask. And six other meanings. 
 
 Skinner says, — " Omnia a Lat. Tina;" but Tina is itself from Tynan, in Tooke's 
 opinion. 
 Ten, adj. (cyn, Saxon ; Hen, Dutch.) The decimal number, &c. 
 TRUE, } (T.) True is the past participle of the verb Trauan, (Goth.) Tpeo}an, 
 TRUTH,) confidere, to think, to believe firmly, to be thoroughly persuaded of, to 
 trow. 
 
 True, or, as it was formerly written, Trew, means simply and merely, — That 
 which is Trowed. 
 
 Truth is the third person singular of the indicative Trow. It was formerly writ- 
 ten Trowelh, Trowth, Trouth, and Troth. And it means (aliquid, any thing, some- 
 thing,) that which one Trowelh, i. e. thinketh, firmly believeth. 
 
 Johnson merely mentions the Saxon similar words, and says, that " True is not 
 false, and TRUTH is the contrary to falsehood :" with seven or eight other explana- 
 tions equally good. 
 
 Of Trow, Johnson says, that it is " a word now disused, and rarely used even 
 in ancient writers but in familiar language." 
 
 Of the Gothic verb Trauan, we find no mention in Johnson, though he is twice 
 directed to it by Lye, in Junius, under the words Trow and True. 
 TRIM. " Idem est cum Smugg," saith Junius, — Mer. Casaub. deflectit a Gr. TE7fi|M,u«i, 
 prseterito perf. pass. T^tSo/Mxi. 
 
 Skinner—" Ab A. S. Decjiymmet), perfectus, hoc a verbo Trimman^ ^dificare, 
 confirniare." 
 
 Johnson adopts Skinner's Decjiymmeb, completed, for Trim, the adjective ; 
 and Trimman, to build, for Trim, the verb. 
 
 Trim, (T.) used adjectively or substantively, is the past participle of the verb 
 Tpyman, ordinare, disponere. 
 TROUBLE, Johnson derives from the French troubler, and Junius from the Latin 
 tribulare. 
 
 Trouble (T.) is the past participle of Tj^ibulan, tundere, conterere, piusere, to 
 bruise, to pound, to vex. The Latin tribulare is the same word, differing only 
 by a different infinitive termination — Tribul-an, Tribul-are.
 
 222 
 
 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 TRUCE, (T.) is the regular past tense, and, therefore, past participle of the An- 
 glo-Saxon verb Tjii))j-ian, fidem dare, to pledge one's faith, to plight one's 
 troth. — 
 
 The French Trhve (formerly written Tresves,") is the same word. 
 Truce, n. s. (truga, low Latin ; tregua, Italian ; iruie, old French.) 
 1. A temporary peace ; a cessation of hostilities. 
 TRULL, (T.) in Anglo-Saxon Dypel, Dypl, is the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon 
 verb Dyplian, perforare. And as Dyjihan, or Dijilian, by a very common trans- 
 position of the r, is in English Thrill; so the regular past participle of Dypliau, 
 viz. Dypl or Dupl, is become the English Throll, Thrul, or Trull. 
 
 Johnson, after Lye, derives THRILL and Drill from the Anglo-Saxon Dyplian ; 
 but Trull from the Italian truUa, 
 
 w. 
 
 WANE, "\To Wane, v.n. (J'anian, to grow less, Saxon.) 
 
 WAN, /Wane, n.s. (from the verb.) I. Decrease of the moon. 8. Decline, dimi- 
 
 WAND, V uution ; declension. 
 
 WANT, VWan, adj. (>ann, Saxon; gwan, weakly, Welsh.) Pale as with sickness; 
 
 GAUNT. J languid of look. 
 
 " Sad to view his \-is9ge pale and wane 
 
 Who erst iu flowers of freshest youth was clad." 
 
 Fa. Queen. 
 
 Wand, n. s. [vaand, Danish.) 
 
 I. A small stick, or twig; a long rod. 
 
 3. A charming rod. 
 
 To Want, v. a. (])ana, Saxon.) 
 
 For the noun Want, he does not even refer to the verb. 
 Gaunt, adj. (as if gewant, from je^aman, to lessen, Saxon.) Thin ; slender ; lean ; 
 meagre. 
 
 For his etymology of Wane and Gaunt, Johnson is indebted to Skinner. 
 
 According to Tooke, all these words are the past participle of Ulanian, To 
 wane, to decrease, to fall away ; and mean decreased, or fallen away. The moon
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 223 
 
 in the wane is the moon in a decreased state. Sheiton says, " The waters were 
 wan;" i. e. decreased. 
 
 Want, is Waned, Wan'd, Want. 
 
 Gaunt, is Gewaned, Gewand, Gewant, G'want, Gaunt. 
 WAKE, ?To Wake, v. a. O^eccian, Saxon; weeken, Dutch.) 
 WATCH, > 1. To rouse from sleep. 
 Wake, n.s. (from the verb. J 
 
 1. The feast of the dedication of the Church, formerly kept by watching all night. 
 So consistent are Johnson's explanations of the verb and of the noun, — which 
 noun, according to him, is from the verb. And if Wake, the noun, is from Wake 
 the verb, why is not Watch, the noun, from Watch, the verb? 
 Watch, n.s. (|fficce, Saxon.) 1. Forbearance of sleep, &c. 
 To Watch, v. n. (Jiaccian, Saxon.) 1. Not to sleep ; to wake, &c. 
 
 Junius — " Wake, vigilare ; Goth, wakan; A. S. j;acian, j^acijan. — Watch, vigilia, 
 (see Wake, vigilare.") 
 
 Skinner is to the same purport ; and Tooke says, " that though accounted sub- 
 stantives in construction, they are merely the past participles of the verb UJecan, 
 lUeccean ; vigilare, excitare, suscitare, expergisci, solicitare." 
 WALL, n. s. {wal, Welsh ; vallum, Latin ; J;all, Saxon ; walle, Dutch.) 
 
 1. A series of brick or stone, or other materials carried upwards, and cemented with 
 mortar ; the side of a building. 
 
 Skinner derives the Anglo-Saxon J-all from the Latin vallum ; but " Vallum it- 
 self, (says Tooke,) is no other than our word Wal, with the addition of the article 
 ttm, (or the Greek ov,) tacked to it." 
 
 WalKJY.) is the past participle of lUiIan, connectere, copulare, to join together, 
 to consolidate, to cement. And its meaning is singly, consolidated, cemented, 
 or joined firmly together. The Anglo-Saxon lUeal is sometimes applied by them 
 in the same manner in which alone we now use it ; viz. for any materials, brick, 
 stone, mud, clay, wood, &c. consolidated, cemented, or fastened together. But 
 it is also sometimes used by them for the cement itself, or that by which the ma- 
 terials are connected. 
 WARD, A syllable much used as an affix in composition, as heavenward, with ten- 
 dency to heaven ; hitherward, this way ; from lUeaj^t^, Saxon : it notes tendency 
 to or from. 
 To Ward, v. a. (JjeajiiDian, Saxon ; waren, Dutch ; garder, French ) 
 To Reward, v. a. (re and ajcarf/, to give in return. Skinner.) 
 To Award, v. a. (derived by Skinner, somewhat improbaiilij, from j^eajib, Saxoo, 
 toward.) To adjudge, &c.— See Award.
 
 224 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Ward, (T.) in the Anglo-Saxon lUajib, lUeajib, is the imperative of the verb 
 UJapbian or UJeajibian, to look out ; or to direct the view. It is the same word 
 as the French Garder, and so Chaucer uses it, where it is not called a prepo- 
 sition. 
 
 Our common English word To reward, which usually, by the help of other 
 words in the sentence, conveys To recompence, to benefit, in return for some good 
 action done, yet sometimes means very far from benefit ; as thus : — " Reward them 
 after their doings ;" where it may convey the signification of punishment, for 
 which its real import is equally well calculated ; for it is no other than fiegarder, 
 i. e. To look again ; i. e. To remember, to reconsider ; the natural consequence of 
 which will be, either benefit or the contrary, according to the action or conduct 
 which we review. — 
 
 This syllable, as Johnson calls it, was formerly joined to the names of places, 
 persons, and things, with much more freedom than is nov*' customary. 
 
 ^oraewarde, Troiewarde, Scotloudwarde, Flaundersi0a7Y/, Thebes!ca?-(/e, Bur- 
 deuxwarde, with others, are found in Govver, Chaucer, and Douglas. 
 
 Ward (T.) always retains one single meaning ; viz. Regard, Look at. See, Direct 
 your view. 
 WARM, ^ Warm., (T.) UJapm, lUeapm, and lUyjimeb, i. e. Warmed, &re the 
 
 WARMTH, f past tense and past participle of the verb lUypman, calefacere. 
 LUKEWARM, C The Anglo-Saxon UJlaec, tepidus, (which we corruptly pronounce 
 LEWWARM. y and write Luke,) is the past participle of lUlacian, tepere, tepescere. 
 And Lew, in the Anglo-Saxon JJliJ', and j3leo|i, is the past participle of phjan, 
 pleo]-an, tepere, fovere. 
 
 To say Luke or Lew warm, is merely saying warm-warm. 
 Lukewarm, adj. (The original of this word is doubted. Warmth, in Saxon jJleo^ ; 
 in old Frisick hlij ; in Dutch liewte ; whence probably our luke, to which warm 
 may be added, to determine, by the first word, the force of the second ; as we 
 say, boiling hot.) 
 
 Skinner mentions the Anglo-Saxon verb UJluecian, but prefers the Greek Xoa. 
 WATH, vox septentrionali Angliee propria, says Skinner, who is inclined to derive it, 
 with Wade, from the Latin Vadum. 
 
 Walk, (T.) i. e. where one wadeth, the third person singular of UJatean, To 
 wade, is used commonly in Lincolnshire, and the North, for a Ford. 
 To Wade, v. n. (from vadum, pronounced wadum.) 
 WEIGHT, (T.) Anglo-Saxon tUege^, the third person singular of the indicative of
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 225 
 
 UJsejan, to weigh. The weight of any thing is that which it weigheth. The ter- 
 minating h is lost. 
 
 For the verb, Johnson produces this Anglo-Saxon Ulaegan ; but for the substan- 
 tive merely " lUihr, Saxon." 
 WELL, (^T.) Is the past participle of lUillan, ebullire, effluere, to spring out, to well. 
 It means (any or some place) where water or other fluid hath sprung out or welled. 
 Johnson gives merely the Saxon similar words from Skinner, without Skinner's 
 addition, " Hsec ab A. S. Uleallan, erumpere, ebullire, scaturire." 
 Junius also says, — " Sunt ab A.S. UJeallan, lUellan, lUyllan," &c. 
 WELKIN,^ Welkin, m. s. (from >ealcan, io roll; ])elcen, clouds, Saxon.) 
 WHEEL, > 1. The visible regions of the air. Out of use except in poetry. 
 WHILE. S 
 
 " Ne in all the welkin icas no cloud." Chaucer. 
 
 2. Welkin eye is, I suppose, blue eye ; sky-coloured eye. 
 
 Chaucer evidently distinguishes in the line quoted by Johnson himself, between 
 Cloud and Welkin ; he also, as Junius has observed, manifestly distinguishes 
 between Welkin and Skie. 
 
 " He let a rertaine winde ygo, 
 
 That blew so hidously and hie, 
 
 That it ne lefte not a skie 
 
 In all the ivelkin long and biode.'* The House of Fame, lib. iii. v. 508. 
 
 Notwithstanding this, Mr. Tyrwhitt .says in his Glossary, " Welkin, n. Saxon, 
 the sky." 
 
 Welkin, (T.) is the present participle UJilhjenb, or Ulealcynb, (i. e. volvens, 
 quod volvit,) of the Anglo-Saxon verb Ulilhgan, Ulealcan, volvere, revolvere ; 
 which is equally applicable to any eye of any colour, to what revolves or rolls 
 over our heads, and to the waves of the sea. 
 
 A welkin eye, then, is a rolling or wandering eye. 
 Wheel, n. s. (Jiweol, Dutch; wiel, Dutch; hioel, Islandick.) 1. A circular body 
 that turns round upon an axis. 
 
 E. g. Carnality is the great wheel, &c. 
 
 Wheel, (T.) quod volvitur. In Anglo-Saxon jJjeojl, pjieohl, JJJjcoJjoI, (by 
 transposition for UJeolij or Uleolj,) is the past participle of Ulilli^an. 
 
 In Beaumont and Fletcher we read — 
 
 " Heaven's grace inwhcel ye : 
 
 And all good thoughts and prayers dwell about ye." The Pilgrim, Act I. sc. ii.
 
 22b A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 Upon this the editor informs us, that the older dramatists were fond of using or 
 coining such extraordinary words as the present verb. 
 While, n.s. {weil, German; pj-ile, Saxon.) Time, space of time. 
 
 While, (T.) In the Anglo-Saxon p>ile, (for Pl'iol,) is the same past participle. 
 We say indifferently, — Walk a while, or, Take a turn. 
 WENCH, according to Johnson, is from lUenche, Saxon, and means a young woman. 
 And then, A voung woman in contetapt ; a strumpet. And then again, A strumpet. 
 Junius savs — " Ego quoque originem Angl. Wench olim petieram ex Augl. to 
 Wince, Proterve repiignare et indomitorum equorum instar coutrectautium nianus 
 aversari. Solent enim virguncularum plurimae vera quandoque reluctatione, scepius 
 dissiinulata, palpantes eludere ; haud aliter atque equi nondum satis edomiti, non 
 sine maligna saevi acutique clamoris minacia resilire sclent ab agasonibus pectora 
 eornm ventresque defricare parantibus." 
 
 Wench, (T.) is the past participle of lUincian, To wink, i.e. One that is winked 
 at; and, by implication, who may be had by a nod or a wink. 
 WEST, n. s. (I'ej-c, Saxon ; west, Dutch.) The region where the sun goes below the 
 horizon at the equinoxes. 
 
 Wesed, (T.) Wes'd, West, is the past participle of U)ej-an, macerare, to wet. 
 WHARF, } (T.) Are the past participles of JJJjyppan, lUyppan, ambire, projicere. 
 WARP, 3 Wharf, n.s.^warf, Swedish; werf, Dutch.) A perpendicular bank or 
 mole, raised for the convenience of lading or emptying vessels. 
 So says Johnson, with utter neglect of Junius. 
 
 Wharf, " Moles ultra nativam ripse litorisve crepidinem in aquas projecia, ne 
 naves littoralium vadorum brevibus prohibeantur appellere. Goth. Wairpan est 
 projicere. A. S. lUeoppan, lUyppan, lUujipan." 
 
 And from this Anglo-Saxon lUyjipan, Junius derives the verb To warp, and 
 Lye the noun Warp, in cloth. 
 Warp, n. s. (])eapp, Saxon ; werp, Dutch.) That order of thread in a thing woven 
 that crosses the woof. 
 WHORE, '\ Whore, says Skinner, " Verstegan optime deflectit ab A. S. J>ypan, jJypian, 
 HARLOT,r conducere." 
 
 VARLET,r^ Johnson is satisfied with pop, Saxon; hoere, Dutch. 
 VALET, y Harlot, says Skinner, — " Doct. Th. H. scite, ut solet, dictum putat 
 quasi Whorelet, vel Horelet." 
 
 Johnson is in perplexity, whether it be from herlodes, Welsh, a girl ; horelet, a 
 little whore ; or Arietta, the mother of William the Conqueror. 
 Varlet and Valet, Johnson derives from the French. 
 
 Whore, (,T.) is the past participle of pypan, to hire. The word means simply 
 (subaud. some one, any one,) hired. It was formerly written without the w.
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 227 
 
 Harlot, I believe with Dr. Th. Hickes, is merely Horelet, the diminutive of 
 Hore. 
 
 The ancient Varlet, and the modern Valet, for Hireling, I believe to be the 
 same word as Harlot ; the aspirate only changed to v, and the r, by effeminate 
 and slovenly speech, suppressed in the latter. — 
 
 Mr. Tooke produces an example from Shakspeare of the use of Varlot and 
 Whore as synonymous terms, and instances from different authors of the ancient 
 application of Harlot, to men '" merely as persons receiving wages or hire." 
 WIDTH, (T.) Anglo-Saxon U]a<3e"S, is the third person singular of the Anglo-Saxon 
 verb lUabau, procedere. 
 
 Johnson has merely Width from Wide, and Wide from UJibe, Saxon. 
 WILD, (^T.) is Willed, WilVd, (or self-willed) in opposition to those (whether men or 
 beasts,) who are tamed or subdued (by reason or otherwise) to the will of others 
 or of society. 
 
 For Wild, the adjective, (from |iilb, Saxon,) Johnson gives eleven explana- 
 tions ; and Wild, the substantive, he derives from the adjective. 
 WILE, j (T.) In the Anglo-Saxon UJijlian, Ire-J^ijlian — Be-)iijlian means to con- 
 GUILE,f jure, to divine, consequently to practice cheat, imposture, and enchant- 
 GUILT,^ ment. 
 
 GULL. ^ Wile, (from jjijhan,) and Guile, (from je-Jjijhan,) is that by which any 
 one is deceived. 
 
 Guilt is Ere-jjijleb, Guiled, GuiVd, Guilt, the past participle of Ere-]?ijlian. To 
 find Guilt in any one, is to find that he has been guiled, or, as we now say, be- 
 guiled ; as wicked means witched or bewitched. 
 
 Gull is the past tense, (by the change of the characteristick letter,) and means 
 merely a person guiled or beguiled. — 
 
 In Ford's Works, by Weber, Vol. I. p. 128, we read — " That gull, that young 
 old gull, is coming this way." 
 
 " A gull," (as Mr. Steevens observes,) " is a bird remarkable for the poverty of 
 
 its feathers." Metaphorically, the word was used for a blockhead, a person of a 
 
 poor understanding, as well as a person good for nothing. Cotgrave explains 
 
 Naquemouche, a fly-catcher, a gaping hoydon, an idle gull." 
 
 Wile, n.s. (}'ile, Saxon; wiel, Islandick.) A deceit, a fraud ; &c. 
 
 Guile, n. s. (giiille, gille, old French, the same with Wile,] Deceitful, cunning, &c. 
 
 Guilt, n. s. (jilt, Saxon, originally signified the fine or mulct paid for an offence, 
 
 and afterwards the offence itself.) 
 Guilty, adj. (jilcij, Saxon, one condemned to pay a fine for an offence.) 1. Justlv 
 chargeable with a crime ; not innocent. 
 
 Gg 2
 
 228 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 To Gui.L, V. a. {guiller, to cheat, old French.) To trick, to cheat. 
 GcLL, n. s. (from the verb.) 1. (Alergus.) A sea bird. 
 
 2. A cheat, a fraud, a trick. 
 
 3. A stupid animal ; one easily cheated. 
 
 WITCH, > Witch, n. s. (>icce, Saxon.) A woman given to unlawful arts. 
 WICKED. > Wicked, adj. (of this common word the etymology is very obscure : |>icca 
 is «M enchanter; JEBCcan, is io oppress ; )iiccian, to curse; ];iceb, is eroo^erf : all 
 these, however. Skinner rejects for vitiatus, Latin. Perhaps it is a compound of 
 wic, vile, bad, ixnA head ; malum caput.) 
 
 According to which latter wise supposition, (says Tooke,) a wicked action 
 means a malum caput action ; but nothing is too ridiculous for this undertaker. 
 Witch is the past tense, used as a participle, of the Anglo-Saxon verb ))iccian, 
 incantare, veneficiis uti. And wicked, i. e. witched, (^ for cA,) is the same past 
 tense, with the participial termination ed. The word witch is therefore as appli- 
 cable to men as to women. 
 
 And that it was so applied, Tooke produces examples. 
 WIZEN, (T.) the past participle of lUij-nian, marcescere. 
 
 This word, still common in our Northern counties, is not in Johnson, though 
 
 in both Junius and Skinner; and Skinner and Lye agree to derive it from UJeor- 
 
 nian, (or UJi)-nian,) marcescere. 
 
 W^ITH, ? (T.) With is the imperative of lUi^an, to join. It is sometimes also 
 
 WITHOUT. 3 the imperative of UJyji¥an, to be; and is then synonymous with By, the 
 
 imperative of Beon, to be. 
 
 Johnson has eighteen explanations of With, but shews no suspicion that these 
 are two words of separate origin. He acknowledges that " it is not always easv 
 to distinguish with and by, nor perhaps is any distinction always observed." 
 
 But, (T.) (as distinguished from Bot,) and Without, have both exactly the same 
 meaning, that is, in modern English, neither more nor less than Be-out. 
 
 They were both originally used indifferently either as conjunctions or preposi- 
 tions. In approved modern speech. Without is now entirely confined to the office 
 of a preposition ; and But is generally, though not always, used as a conjunction. 
 
 Without is nothing but the imperative UJyp^utan, from the Anglo-Saxon and 
 Gothic verb lUeoji^an, Wairlhan ; which in the Anglo-Saxon and English lan- 
 guages is yoked and incorporated with the verb Beon, esse. And this will account 
 to Mr. Tyrvvhitt for the remark which he has made, viz. that " By and With are 
 often synonymous." 
 
 Our old English authors frequently employed this verb UJeoji'San, instead of 
 Be, in every part of the conjugation. —
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 229 
 
 Aud of this use Mr. Tooke produces instances from Gower, Chaucer, and 
 Douglas. 
 WREST,) To Wrest, v. a. (|piBj-ran, Saxon.) To twist, &c. 
 
 WRIST. ) Wrist, n. a. (J'yjijt, Saxon.) The joint by which the band is joined to the 
 arm. 
 
 Johnson omits to notice Skinner's — " Vel a verbo to wrest." 
 
 M'^rest, (T.) is the past participle of the verb UJpyj ran, torquere, intorquere, 
 to wrest. 
 
 Wrist, which is the same past participle, was formerly called )?anb)^yjij c, i. e. 
 Handwrist, or Ilandwrest. — 
 WRIGHT, T Wright, n. s. (Jpita, lUyphtra, Saxon.) A workman, &c. 
 WORK, >-WoRK, n. s. (lUeopc, Saxon; werk, Dutch.) Toil, &c. 
 
 WROUGHT. 3 Wrought, (j^pogb, Saxon. The pret. and part, passive, as it seems, 
 of work ; as the Dutch werchen makes gerocht.') 
 
 This is all the information which Johnson supplies. Skinner tells him that 
 Wright is from the verb lUeopcan, UJypcan, operari ; and under M'ork he directs 
 him to the same verb. 
 
 Wright, (T.) i. e. One that iDorketh. The third person of the indicative Ulyn- 
 cau, operari. As, Shipwright, Cariwright, Wainwright, Wlveelwright. One that 
 worketh at ships, carts, waggons, wheels. 
 
 R and H, the canine and the aspirate, are the two letters of the alphabet more 
 subject to transposition than any other. So Work, — aliquid operatum, — which we 
 retain as our substantive, is the regular past tense of UJyjican ; which, by the 
 addition of the participial termination ed, became Worked, Work'd, Workl. This 
 our ancestors, by substituting h for k or c, wrote lUojihr, and by transposition 
 Ulpohc; which we now write fVrought, and retain both as past tense and past 
 participle of UJyjican, to work. For UJypceS our ancestors wrote IB yp he ; and, 
 by a transposition similar to the foregoing, Wryht, which with us becomes Wright. 
 
 As the eighth interpretation of the verb To work, Johnson gives — 
 8. To act internally ; to operate as a purge, or other physick. 
 
 " IVor/c on. 
 
 My medicine, work.' Thus credulous fools are caught." 
 
 The reader will easily imagine the kind of purge or physick which had been 
 administered, when he is apprized that the patient, — the credulous fool, — upon 
 whom it was thus to work, was Othello ; and the doctor — honest lago. 
 WRONG, (T.) is the past participle of the verb to wring, lUpinjan, torquere. The
 
 230 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION 
 
 word answering to it in Italian is torlo, the past participle of the verb iorquere ; 
 whence the French also have tort. It means merely wrung, or wrested from the 
 right or ordered line of conduct. 
 Johnson says, that Wrong is lUpanje, Saxon, and means — 
 1. An injury ; a designed or known detriment. 2. Errour ; not right. 
 
 In Junius we may find — " Wring, A. S. lUpinjan, B. Wringen. — Wrong — Belgis 
 a Wringen, torquere, est Wro?ig, quod et contortiouem et injuriam denotat." 
 
 And Skinner derives Johnson's UJjian^e, from the same A. S. verb lUjiinjan. 
 torquere. 
 WROTH, ^Wroth, adj. Qpd'S, Saxon ; vrod, Danish.) Angry. Out of use. 
 WRATH, M Wrath, n. s. (j'jia'S, Saxon ; wrede, Danish ; wreed, cruel, Dutch.) Anger ; 
 WREATH, r fury; rage. 
 RADDLE, /Wreath, ?«. s. (>jieo~S, Saxon.) 
 WRY, m 1. Any thing curled or twisted. 
 
 RIDDLE. ^Riddle, «. s. (peebelj-, Saxon, from Raede, counsel, perhaps a trial of 
 wit.) 
 I. An enigma. And, 3. A coarse or open sieve. 
 
 Under the verb To riddle, Johnson says, " There is something of a ickimsical 
 analogy between the two senses of the word Riddle, but their derivations differ." 
 And To RIDDLE, he tells us, means To «/«-riddle. 
 Wry, adj. (from Writhe.] For this derivation Johnson is indebted to Skinner. 
 
 Wrath, says Skinner, — " Mallem tamen deducere ab A. S. Uljay'San, torquere, 
 To])py^an, distorquere ; quia sc. Irati vultus distorquent." 
 Wreath, Skinner traces to the same verb. 
 
 Tooke says, — All these words are the past tense, and, therefore, the past par- 
 ticiple of Ulpi¥,an, torquere, to writhe. The two former are applied to the mind, 
 and together with Wreath, (or Writhe,) speak for themselves. 
 
 A raddle-heA^e is a hedge of pleached or plash'd or twisted or wreathed twigs 
 or boughs. I suppose Raddle to be so pronounced for Uljia'^el, the diminutive of 
 lUjia'S. So Riddle metaphorically. 
 
 Wry I suppose to be so pronounced for UJpi^. —
 
 OF THE DICTIONARY OF DR. JOHNSON. 231 
 
 Y. 
 
 YARD, T Yard, n. s. (jyajib, Saxon.) 
 
 GARDEN, 1. Inclosed ground adjoining to a iiouse. 
 
 GIRTH, ^ 2. (5yp>i, Saxon.) A measure of three feet. 
 
 GARTER, ^ 3. The support of the sails. 
 
 GIRDLE, Johnson, to the last, adheres to the absurdity of giving different 
 
 GARLAND. J etymologies to different explanations of the same word — I mean the 
 
 same, according to Ms arrangement. For in the present instance it happens that 
 
 there are two words, actually different in meaning and origin, as will shortly be 
 
 seen. (See the next article.) 
 
 Girth, Johnson, after Skinner, derives from Gird ; and GiRD from the Anglo- 
 Saxon Dyjiban. 
 
 For Garden, Garter, Girdle, Garland, we have, in Johnson, Welsh, French, 
 and Italian similar words. 
 
 Yard, (T.) in the Anglo-Saxon Dyajib, is the past tense and past participle of 
 the verb Dyjiban, cingere, to gird, to surround, to inclose ; and it is therefore 
 applicable to any inclosed place. 
 
 Garden is the same past tense with the addition of the termination en. 
 Girth is that which girdetk or gird.th any thing. 
 
 Garter is a Girder : Girdle is in Anglo-Saxon the diminutive Irypbel. — 
 Hence Tooke supposes the verb Iryjibelan, whose present participle would be 
 Erypbeland, encircling, surrounding; and he doubts not that Fryjibelanb, Irypb- 
 lanb, Ij-eplanb, has become our modern Garland. 
 YARE, ^ Are (T.) the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb Jjyyijptm, Erypian, to 
 YARD, >- prepare ; formed by changing the characteristick letter y to a. — Yare means 
 YARN, J prepared. 
 
 A Yard, to mete, or to measure with, (before any certain extent was designated 
 by the word,) was called a Met-jeapb or Mece-jypb, or Mete-yard ; i. e. some- 
 thing prepared to mete or measure with. This was its general name : and that 
 prepared extension might be formed of any proper materials. When it was of 
 wood, it was formerly called a yard-ieand, i. e. A wand prepared for that pur- 
 pose. By common use, when we talk of mensuration, we now omit the preceding 
 word Mete, and the subsequent wand, aud say singly a yard.
 
 232 A CRITICAL EXAMINATION, &C. 
 
 Yaren, Yar'n, Yarn, means prepared (subaud. cotton, silk, or wool.} 
 Yare, is also the imperative of the same Anglo-Saxon verb. — 
 In Nottinghamshire, yardwand is still in common use. 
 Johnson manages to confound the imperative and past participle. 
 Yare, adj. (jeajij^e, Saxon.) Ready, dextrous, eager. 
 
 " Yare, yare," (i. e. Prepare, prepare,] " good Iros, quick." 
 
 Shaksp. Antony and Cleopatra. 
 
 " I do desire to learn ; and I hope, if yovi have occasion to use me for vour turn, you 
 shall find me yar«." (i. e, prepared.) Shakspeare. 
 
 Of Yarn he has no more to say than " Deajin, Saxon ; spun wool, woollen 
 thread." 
 
 " Yare," says Skinner, " nobis Avidus, a Teut. (fee. vel parum deflexo sensu ab 
 A. S. Deapo, Ereap})e ; Chaucero etiam yare, paratus, promtus, verb. A. S. Ereap- 
 Jian, parare." 
 
 " Yare," says Junius, " he let make his shippes. Instruebat classem ;" and he 
 refers it to the Alamannic — Garuuen; afterwards observing, " A Saxonibus 
 Iieaji))ian et Erejeajij^ian easdem fere acceptiones habent, quas ffar«<Me« Alamannis." 
 Of this Anglo-Saxon verb, however, Johnson makes no mention. 
 YOKE, (T.) the past participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb De-ican, addere, adjicere, 
 augere, jungere, gives us the English verb, to ich, (now commonly written to eAe.) 
 By the change of the characteristic we have Geoc, which we now write Yok or 
 Yoke. 
 Yoke, n. s. (jeoc, Saxon ; jock, Dutch ; jiigum, Latin ; joug, French.) 
 1. The bandage placed on the neck of draught oxen. 
 
 Such is Johnson's primitive meaning. — The Latin jug-um Tooke derives from 
 the same Saxon verb. 
 
 And Johnson perseveres in his habitual disregard of propriety in the selection 
 cf examples to his different interpretations. 
 
 THE END OF THE CRITICAL EXAMINATION.
 
 333 
 
 LETTER THE SECOND. 
 
 DEAR LAMBRICK, 
 
 J. HE slow movements of the press have 
 allowed me sufficient opportunity to inspect the published portion 
 of the Dictionary of Dr. Johnson, edited by the Reverend Henry J. 
 Todd ; and I will now, in discharge of my promise, proceed to in- 
 form you in what measure my anticipations of its merits are con- 
 firmed by my examination of the book. The attention you have 
 bestowed upon the preceding pages, saves me from the ungracious 
 task of occupying any considerable portion of your time. 
 
 To this book, then, is prefixed an advertisement ! — which reduces 
 me at once to the humiliating necessity of " playing the recanter." 
 — I must fairly acknowledge, that I was in errour in attributing the 
 former advertisement to an inhabitant of the press-room of the 
 printer. The writer of that production and of this, must be one 
 and the same person ; and this is so decorated with quotation, and 
 fortified with reference, that I cannot forbear to ascribe it to the 
 
 Hh
 
 234 LETTER THE SECOND. 
 
 learned Editor himself, — calm and collected in his own private 
 study. Thus far, then, I admit the thoughtless hastiness of my 
 judgment. 
 
 Multa promissa, — says the old adage, — levant Jidem ; and, on the 
 other hand, it may with safety be affirmed, that he who knows not 
 what he should promise, cannot be very well acquainted with what he 
 should perform. Mr. Todd promises, " that the fruits, such as they 
 are, of his employment, will be found in an abundant supply of 
 words, which have been hitherto omitted ; in a rectification of many 
 which etymology, in particular, requires ; and in exemplifying 
 several which are without illustration." — Such is the sum total of 
 his promised benefactions to the literary publick. 
 
 My first object has been to assure myself, that the plan which 
 Mr. Todd has followed is the plan which Johnson followed : — the 
 same in its principles of etymology, — the same in its manner of 
 explaining the signification, — and of illustrating the explanation by 
 examples. This being done, — and it was very soon done, — the 
 same, said I, {hand incerta cano,) the same must be its fate, Mr. 
 Todd himself acknowledges, in the simplicity of his heart, that "all 
 that he has done is but as dust in the balance, when *weighed against 
 the work of Dr. Johnson." 
 
 * Whether this word is to be understood in the poetical, metaphorical, famih"ar, or 
 turlesque sense, I pronounce not ; certainly, not in the literal : for as two 4to. volumes 
 are to be increased to four, Mr. Todd's portion will weigh ^\xsi as much as Dr. John- 
 son's. And this, perhaps, will satisfy Mr. Todd's proprietors.
 
 LETTER THE SECOND. 235 
 
 There are, perhaps, one or two points upon vvhich you may have 
 .some desire to obtain more immediate satisfaction, hi the first place, 
 you may, I imagine, be curious to learn whether the rectifying 
 hand of Mr. Todd has been employed to remove those more bare- 
 faced absurdities, which might be supposed to command the atten- 
 tion even of an editor of Mr. Todd's school of philology ; those, 
 for instance, which I exposed to your view, under the words " To 
 ASK and To arrive." The answer is decisive of the degree of cri- 
 tical acumen, with which he has scrutinized into the defects of that 
 work, upon which his editorial labours have been exerted. They 
 remain untouched. And there is scarcely a fault, however glaring, 
 that this editor has hitherto corrected.* 
 
 I was, and you perhaps may also be, willing to inquire, what 
 licence he allowed himself in expunging from his vocabulary those 
 barbarous words,t with which Mr. Tooke was so disgusted. I found 
 
 * Au atlempt is made under the word " Eared" which I have just had an oppor- 
 tunity of seeing, in time to acknowledge it. The explanation is corrected, but the 
 etymology stands unaltered. 
 
 t Mr. Todd, it seems, has no objection to augment the number ; and one of his own 
 introduction, viz. To calamistrate, will supply the reader with an instance of the wit 
 with which Mr. Todd sometimes seasons the insipidity of his ordinary labours. 
 
 " The hair torturers of modern times," (he observes,) " may be glad of the word," 
 (viz. To Calamistrate,') " especially when I add, that a Calamist, in James the First's 
 time, was ' one having his hair turned upwards ;^ a definition that will suit those who 
 have recently studied how, in this respect, to set their hair on end .'" 
 
 " Buck," (Mr. Todd also tells us,) " is a cant word for a bold, ostentatious, or for- 
 
 H h 2
 
 236 LETTER THE SECOND. 
 
 it short, yet characteristick. He will expunge no words, " except" 
 (mark this exception,) " except where no such words in reality- 
 exist." 
 
 Differing from Dr. Johnson, and agreeing with Dr. Ash, he is of 
 opinion, that " appellatives, derived from proper names, will not 
 be thought intruders ;" and upon this head he seems almost inspired 
 with sufficient courage to accuse Dr. Johnson of inconsistency ; 
 inasmuch as the said Dr. Johnson " admits a Pagan, though he has 
 rejected a Quaker." By the adoption of this class of words, Mr. 
 Todd has at least ensured the enlargement of the bulk of his work, 
 and it would be no small gratification to me to perceive the informa- 
 tion of his readers augmented in proportion. An example or two 
 will put it into your power to judge for yourself. 
 
 Antinomian, 71. s. One of the sect called Antinomianism. 
 Antinomianism, n. s. The tenets of those who are called ^/<fi- 
 
 nomians. See Antinomian. 
 Arian, n. s. One of the sect of Arius, who denies that Christ is 
 
 the eternal God.* 
 Arianism, n. s. The heresy or sect of Arius. 
 Arminian, n. s. He who supports the tenets of Arminius. 
 Arminianism, n. s. The tenets of Arminius. 
 
 ward person; a. blood ; whom Johnson calls a ma7i of fire .'—Sevenius has observed, 
 that the Gothick bocke is a great man ! Who is a greater, one may add, in his own 
 estimation, than a buck?" ' 
 
 * Are Socinians and Deists— Arians ?
 
 LETTER THE SECOND. 237 
 
 I am afraid that, upon comparison, Mr. Todd will be found to 
 be somewhat inferior to his chosen exemplar. Dr. Ash. — Observe 
 the good Doctor : 
 
 Antinomian, s. One who denies the obligation of the moral 
 law ; one who pays no regard to the law. 
 
 After Dr. Ash has given what he considers a sufficient explanation 
 of this word, there is some plausibility in the subsequent reference 
 to it ; and when he has informed us that — 
 
 Arminius was the leader of a sect, who held general redemption, 
 and the merit of good works : 
 
 he is equally warranted in explaining the appellative Arminian to 
 be "One who holds the doctrines of Arminius." Mr. Todd, 
 however, might as well have rejected his Antinomian and Armi- 
 nian altogether, as have introduced them with such non-explanatory 
 explanations. 
 
 Though I feel myself exempted from the toil of descending very 
 minutely into a criticism of Mr. Todd's share of this performance, 
 you will scarcely be satisfied, if I do not enter so far into a detail, 
 as to enable you to decide yet a little better upon the sfi//e of the 
 artist. For this purpose I proceed. 
 
 It was undoubtedly to be expected, that Mr. Todd would at
 
 238 LETTER THE SECOND. 
 
 least have the prudence to accept of the bounteous aid of Mr, 
 Tooke in separate etymologies, notwithstanding the Diversions of 
 Parley had so totally failed to clear the film from his sight ; and to 
 enable him to view The Dictionary of the English Language 
 in its full deformity. What then are the facts ? 
 
 Some of IVIr. Tooke's etymologies he rejects ; and he certainly 
 not only had a right, but it was his duty, to do so, upon good 
 cause shewn. 
 
 A greater number he neglects, and this, I think, it was his indis- 
 pensable duty not to do. 
 
 Some he adopts, with due acknowledgment ; and for so doing, 
 lamely as it is done, he deserves the thanks of his readers. 
 
 In a greater number of instances he accepts the assistance of Mr. 
 Tooke, without any acknowledgement ; and for so doing, I will 
 leave it to Mr. Todd to determine how far the observations of the 
 elder Pliny are applicable to himself.* 
 
 I will present you with a specimen or two of those " sufficient 
 reasons," which have convinced Mr. Todd of the propriety of 
 rejecting certain etymologies of Mr. Tooke ; and I have to return 
 that gentleman my thanks for having expressed those reasons in form 
 so palpable, as to render any comment from me wholly superfluous. 
 
 * Obnoxii profecto animi, &c. — Nat. Hist. Lib. 1.
 
 LETTER THE SECOND. 239 
 
 t 
 
 " Sapiens, vitatu quidque petitii 
 
 Sit melius, CAUSAS reddet tibi." 
 
 Bacon : Todd states the etymologies of Johnson and Tooke, 
 (which for once coincide,) and then proceeds thus : " I may, 
 however, reiev perhaps as strongly to the old French — Bacon.'" 
 
 Barren : Todd states the etymology of Tooke, and proceeds — 
 " I pass from this assertion to the old French, baraignc, which is 
 precisely correspondent to our own Avord, meaning sterile," &c. 
 
 Bold : " Mr. Tooke's remark that bold is the past participle of to 
 build, cannot easily be admitted." 
 
 Bread : Todd states the etymology of Tooke, and proceeds : 
 
 " It h full as probable,* I think, that the Saxon Breod, whence 
 our Bread, is from the verb Bredan, to nourish." 
 
 Broach, Todd declares, suo periculo, " is more probably from the 
 low Latin Broca, from Verruculum, a little spit," than from 
 the English verb To Break. 
 
 Breeches, n.s. Bra;c, Saxon, from Bracca, an old Gaulish word ; 
 so that Skinner imagines the name of the part covered with 
 
 * I am afraid that Mr. Todd was not aware of the reason, which makes Mr. Tooke's 
 etymology probably correct. See the word Malt, iu the Diversions of Parley, Vol. 11 
 p. 70.
 
 240 LETTER THE SECOND. 
 
 Breeches to be derived from that of the garment. — INIr. H. 
 Tooke inclines to the Saxon, Bryce, ' because,' he says, 'Breeches 
 cover those parts where the body is broken into two parts.' — 
 But from this ludicrous refinement of etymology, I pass on to 
 direct the reader to the Celtic and Gothic languages. — On let 
 him pass. 
 
 I have already presented you with the etymology which Skinner 
 preferred, and which was not merely inclined to, but actually 
 adopted, by Tooke. Neither Skinner nor Tooke were conscious of 
 that " ludicrous refinement," which the sportive humour of Mr. 
 Todd is so quick to perceive. 
 
 But : Todd states the etymology (if so it must be called) of 
 Johnson ; and then those, Avhich Tooke has proposed for the 
 two words Bot diud But, and thus proceeds : " Hoz^ever the woj-d 
 may be derived, it has hitherto, in our dictionaries, been very 
 inaccurately explained." 
 
 The quietude and indifference which is thus manifested by this 
 gentleman, whose professed duty it is to settle [as far as he is able,) 
 the etymology of words, will excite in minds differently constituted 
 emotions of a very different description. My own are of little 
 moment. I pass on, therefore, to claim your attention to an instance 
 of the sagacity evinced by him in his efforts to correct an inaccu- 
 racy of explanation, which Johnson and Dr. Adam Smith have 
 sanctioned by their authority. This is the example : —
 
 LETTER THE SECOND. 241 
 
 " Thus fights Ulysses, thus his fame extends, 
 A formidable man, but to his friends." 
 
 I need not tell you, (I hope, for the sake of common sense, that 
 Mr. Todd did not know it,) that these are the words of Ajax ; — of 
 Ajax, who has previously charged Ulysses with basely flying from 
 the fires of Hector ; and who has proclaimed, that he can scarcely 
 deem it an honour to obtain tiiat prize, which such an abject rival 
 as Ulysses had but hoped to gain. This Ajax, in the opinion of 
 Johnson and Smith, was not a very likely person to give Ulysses 
 the best of all characters, as a soldier ; and they accordingly ima- 
 gined it to be the intention of that hero to pronounce Ulysses a 
 coward in the field of battle, and formidable to his friends alone* 
 for thus they interpret his meaning. Strange mistake ! in the judg- 
 ment of Mr. Todd. Although Ajax has just informed us, that 
 the Grecian host had been deprived of the aid of the two cham- 
 pions, Philoctetes and Palamedes, by the villainous treachery of 
 Ulysses, — 
 
 " Aut exilio vires subduxit Achivis 
 
 Aut nece." 
 
 Nevertheless, (quoth Mr. Todd,) it is the apparent intention of 
 this same Ajax to declare this same Ulysses, who, though he had 
 not strength to stand, had strength to run away, — 
 
 * Formidable; Ulysses formidable!! To whom? But (i. e. boot, superadd,) to his 
 friends. — Such is the explanation which correct etymology presents. 
 
 I i
 
 242 LETTER THE SECOND. 
 
 " Cui standi vulnera vires 
 
 Non dederant, nullo tardatus vulnere fugit." 
 
 to declare this man to be formidable to all, except his friends ! ! 
 " Sic pugnat, sic est metuendus Ulysses." 
 
 After this specimen of the acuteness of Mr, Todd's understand- 
 ing, a similar specimen of its soundness will follow in due course. 
 He professes, you know, to have limited his exemplifications to 
 several words in Johnson, which are without illustration. He ought 
 to have exemplified all. An architect, capable of benefiting by 
 experience, and having any ambition to raise a durable structure, 
 would, if building upon an old foundation, make it his first care to 
 complete what he knew had been left deficient. Such, however, is 
 not the proceeding of Mr. Todd ; as he manfully avows. And 
 when I tell you that in the letter A there are nearly one thousand* 
 explanations unexemplified, you may be inquisitive to ascertain 
 how many and what words he has supplied with examples. I will 
 not undertake to satisfy you. I will announce the first word which 
 he does so supply ; and you will not ask me for another. It is 
 this : — 
 
 A taken materially, or by itself, (says Johnson,) is a noun ; as, 
 a great A, a little a. 
 
 * Among these are about one hundred words introduced by Mr. Todd, and un- 
 supported by any authority whatever ; not by Diet., nor Huloet, nor even by Mr. 
 Todd's great favourite, Prompt. Par.
 
 LETTER THE SECOND. 243 
 
 Through this " ludicrous refinement," Tooke, in his copy of the 
 Dictionary, had struck his pen ; with what feelings you will be at 
 no loss to conjecture. Not so Mr. Todd ; he respectfully preserves 
 it ; nay, he does more ; he carefully furnishes an example. 
 
 I have a few words to say upon one more topick, and then I have 
 done with Mr.Todd. This gentleman acknowledges that the propri- 
 etors of his work had, with unsolicited ! kindness, procui'ed for his in- 
 spection the papers of the late Mr. Home Tooke, and his copy of 
 Johnson's Dictionary, with some marginal remarks. But (he adds,) 
 " these have yielded no great harvest of information." I for my part 
 never expected, — it was indeed impossible to indulge a hope for a 
 moment, — that they could afford the least advantage to the writer, 
 who was already known, with a blindness more than Chalcedonian, 
 to have adopted for the foundation of his labours The Dictionary 
 of the English Language,* when the eiiea nxEPOENTA was pre- 
 sented to his choice. 
 
 I myself had an opportunity of inspecting, thoughbut very slightly, 
 the papers of Home Tooke, and his copy of Johnson's Dictionary. 
 From some MS. observations in the blank pages of the latter I 
 collected that it was his intention to trace the words historically 
 from the earliest authors to their present usage ; that he would 
 
 * Though Mr. Todd lavishes the most extravagant praise upon this Dictionary, yet, 
 when an excuse for his own indolence is to be given, he declares it to be " a difficulty 
 insurmountable" to correct every mistake in that " wonderful achievement of genius 
 and labour." 
 
 I i 2
 
 244 LETTER THE SECOND. 
 
 have commenced with Robert of Gloucester ; and that, as a pre- 
 parator)'^ measure, he deemed it necessary to construct an index to all 
 those works,which he should determine to adopt as authorities. Whe- 
 ther Mr. Todd has resorted to such certain means of perfecting his 
 vocabulary; or whether, like Johnson, after exhausting the published 
 vocabularies, and published indexes, he relied upon fortuitous and 
 unguided excursions into books ; he supplies me not with one sin- 
 gle hint for conjecture.* 
 
 Among other materials, which Mr. Tooke had collected, was his 
 vocabulary, merely in a state to receive the etymologies, explana- 
 tions, and examples. And, in addition to this vocabulary, were 
 an Index Expurgatorius ; and the Cards described by Mr. Erskine, 
 as a contrivance to elude the frailty of memory, and the shortness 
 of human life. 
 
 * The principal additions which Mr. Todd appears to have made to the vocabulary, 
 consist of derivative and compound words. There are upwards of seventy words com- 
 pounded with All, and nearly fifty with Arch. 
 
 Among these compounds are two, which I receive with a very lively sense of grati- 
 tude ; they a.re-~ Addle-headed and Arch-botcher. They associate together with the 
 most graceful ease imaginable, and are constantly, yet unaccountably, sporting before 
 my fancy, when musing over the lexicographical labours of the Reverend Henry J. 
 Todd. 
 
 There is another compound with which I have less reason to be satisfied ; it is, 
 « Catch-penny, (from Catch and penny,) A worthless pamphlet, merely calculated to 
 gain a little money." I deny that it means a pamphlet, and so would any of Mr. Todd's 
 proprietors.
 
 LETTER THE SECOND. 245 
 
 Mr. Tooke, you know, has expressed his opinion, that " nearly 
 one-third of Johnson's Dictionary is as much the language of the 
 Hottentots as of the English." And he appears to have compiled 
 this Index Expurgatorius to preserve his oAvn work from 
 intruders of so offensive a character. You are already apprized 
 that it would have been quite " contrary to the proclaimed edict and 
 continent canon" of Mr. Todd, to have derived any harvest of infor- 
 mation from this portion of Mr. Tooke's labours.* 
 
 The Cards now alone remain. Upon each card was written one 
 word, sometimes more, transcribed, I imagine, from an alphabe- 
 tical vocabulary, and then sorted and packed accoi'ding to the 
 terminations ; those in 7nent, full, ive, &c. collected into separate 
 parcels : and so collected, no doubt, with this important view ; 
 that all words having one and the same termination, might be ex- 
 plained in one and the same consistent manner, agreeably to the 
 meaning of the termijiation.f Whether Mr. Todd had any concep- 
 tion that such was Mr. Tooke's design, and that to him it appeared 
 useless, or erroneous, or impracticable ; or whether he considered 
 Mr. Tooke, in such an assortment of the words, to have no higher 
 object than Walker had in his Rhyming Dictionary, viz. " To an- 
 swer the purposes of spelling and pronouncing," I will not venture to 
 
 * Mr. Todd is not very nice in his authorities. A Critical or Quarterly Reviewer, a 
 British Critick, or " A Declaration of the Prince Regent of Great Britain and Ireland, 
 Jan. 1813," are selected for his purpose. 
 
 t " One word or one termination should be used with one signification, and for one 
 purpose." Div. of Pur. Vol. II. p. 491.
 
 246 LETTER THE SECOND. 
 
 give any opinion. Of this I am confident, that had Mr. Todd fully 
 understood, and duly estimated the purposes of Mr. Tooke, he would 
 never have permitted his Dictionary to be disgraced by such con- 
 tradictory explanations as the following words exhibit : — 
 
 Adjunctive, n.s. That which ?5 joiner?. 
 Adjunctive, adj. That which joins. 
 
 Attributive, adj. That which attribute*. 
 Attributive, n.s. The thing attributed. 
 
 Consistently with such a manner of explanation, I will suggest 
 an improvement to the Dictionary, upon authority which, I think, 
 Mr. Todd would be unwilling to encourage an inclination to dis- 
 pute. Johnson gives only two explanations of the verb To exhaust. 
 The second is, — 
 
 - 2. To draw out totally ; to draw until nothing is left. 
 
 Let me persuade Mr. Todd to subjoin a third : — 
 
 5. To Jill up totally ; to fill up until no more can be contained. 
 
 And to subjoin this happy illustration : — " He is content, if his 
 countrymen admit that he has contributed somewhat towards that 
 which many hands will, not exhaust ; that his efforts, though imper- 
 fect, are not useless.*" 
 
 * Todd's Advertisement, p. iv.
 
 LETTER THE SECOND. 247 
 
 At last then, I hope, I may congratulate you and myself upon 
 my complete deliverance from the thorny paths of Lexicography. 
 I am no etymologist ; and, (you must be well assured,) I never 
 should have involved myself so long and so earnestly in the discus- 
 sions of etymology, if I had not been convinced that the proofs of 
 a new Theory of Language would be thence most satisfactorily 
 deduced. You know me too well to harbour the slightest suspicion, 
 that it can communicate any pleasure to me to wound the reputation 
 of Dr. Johnson, or to blight the budding honours of Mr. Todd ; 
 but the cause of sound leai'ning demands, that the Dictionary of 
 the former should be stripped of its unmerited reputation, and not 
 only that the hand of the latter should be palsied in its attempts to 
 support the tottering fabrick, but even that his own proclaimed 
 pretensions to distinction should be scrutinized, and, if false and 
 hollow, be peremptorily rejected and condemned. 
 
 With these views have I entered so minutely and so laboriously 
 into a particular examination of so great a number of words, their 
 etymology, their explanation, and mode of illustration ; and the 
 plain and incontestible result is, that the only Dictionary to which 
 the English nation allows any authority, is destitute of every single 
 quality which could entitle it to approbation. 
 
 My exertions, then, I hope, will have this good eifect, — they 
 lyill enforce a conviction upon the publick, that if a good English 
 Dictionary is ever completed, (and there is a demand for the com- 
 pletion of such a work,) it must be in a far different plan of con-
 
 248 LETTER THE SECOND. 
 
 struction, and manner of performance from those which Johnson 
 pursued, and which Mr. Todd is toiling to imitate and uphold ; and 
 that to complete it, is required the possession of abilities and 
 attainments of the highest order, — of learning, deep, extensive, 
 various, and well assorted ; of a mind indeed strictly disciplined in 
 philosophy, fearless of labour, and able to endure it. Was Dr. 
 Johnson, is Mr. Todd [proh pudor!) in the enviable enjoyment of a 
 character so exalted and so rare ? 
 
 You have noticed, no doubt, in passing, that I have almost uni- 
 formly contented myself with barely stating the etymologies of 
 Tooke, and have permitted them to remain entirely unquestioned. 
 That all without exception are correct, and that I might not upon 
 investigation give a decided preference to others, is more than I 
 would wish you to understand. My intention, as far as the writings 
 of Mr. Tooke are concerned, was, to illustrate by their example 
 the principles upon which philological researches should be con- 
 ducted ; not to criticise the accuracy of every individual deriva- 
 tion ; and, as far as the Dictionary of Dr. Johnson is concerned, to 
 substantiate my opinion, that the author was totally ignorant or 
 regardless of every just principle of philology, and to illustrate by 
 his example the inevitable consequence of such ignorance or disre- 
 gard -.—etymology, trifling or erroneous, to a ridiculous extent ; 
 explanations, without a shadow of the real meaning ; subdivisions 
 of explanation, without end, " false, absurd, and impossible ;"— * 
 and examples, in illustration of these explanations, selected with 
 a total contempt of propriety and common sense.
 
 LETTER THE SECOND. 249 
 
 All this, I think, I have established by examples so numerous 
 and unequivocal, that I should insult your luiderstanding if I hesi- 
 tated to anticipate your judgment upon the qualifications, by which 
 that writer must be distinguished, who still avows his conviction, 
 that " the Dictionary of Dr. Johnson has been rightly pronounced 
 a wonderful achievement of genius and labour." 
 
 This avowal, singly and alone, declares the man ; yet I do not 
 demand your judgment upon this solitary ground ; other means for 
 forming an opinion have I presented in abundance before you : and 
 as you have already decided the author to be bad, I have, I think, 
 made you sufficiently acquainted with his editor to induce you to 
 admit that he is worse. 
 
 TAT0' OTTX22 OMOAOrOTMENA $ATE ; H HflS ; 
 
 Farewell. 
 March, 1815. 
 
 To Samuel Lambrick, Esquire. 
 
 K k
 
 ^51 
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 DEAB LAMBRICK, 
 
 -T ROM Mr. Todd, then, we pass on to Mr. 
 Dugald Stewart, who is, I believe, the only writer of any celebrity, 
 who has made a direct attack upon the philological speculations of 
 Mr. Tooke ; and he appears to regard those speculations with cer- 
 tain melancholy forebodings of their tendency and effect. T shall 
 not deny that Mr. Stewart has reasonable grounds of apprehension ; 
 for Mr. Tooke, after ample proof of the vigour of his arm, and the 
 steadiness of his aim, has uttered his menaces against the prevailing 
 systems of metaphysicks, with the confidence of a man strong to 
 perform, and in full possession of the means of performance. 
 
 Mr. Stewart has, however, as I shall soon convince you, not only 
 mistaken the meaning and the object of Mr. Tooke's reasoninos in 
 several points of detailed grammatical discussion ; but he appears to 
 remain wholly unacquainted with some of the most important general 
 principles of philosophical grammar ; and some, which theetymolo- 
 
 K k 2
 
 252 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 gies, throughout the latter volume of the Diversions of Purley, 
 remove, in my opinion, beyond the possibility of contention. 
 
 I. In the first place, then, Mr. Stewart declares, " That it is a 
 leading inference, drawn by ]Mr. Tooke himself, that the common 
 arrangements of the parts of speech in the writings of Grammarians 
 being inaccurate and unphilosophical, must contribute greatly to 
 retard the progress of students in the acquisition of particular lan- 
 guages.*" 
 
 In what part of Mr. Tooke's writings this inference has been 
 detected by ]Mr. Stewart, I am wholly unable to discover ; but 
 several passages present themselves to my recollection, which con- 
 vey, as I understand them, a meaning directly the reverse. And 
 these passages I produce. — 
 
 ScHULTENS "condemns the subdivision of particles into declin- 
 able and undeclinable, and proposes to divide them into separate and 
 inseparable. In my opinion, neither of these distributions is blame- 
 able in the grammar of a particular language, whose object is only to 
 assist a learner of that language ; but the one subdivision is just as 
 unphilosophical as the other.t" 
 
 Thus clearly does he distinguish between those distributions and 
 arrangements, which may be adopted in a particular language to aid 
 
 « Philosophical Essays, p. 173. t Diversions of Purley, Vol. I. p. 244.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 253 
 
 the memory of the learner, and the philosophical distribution of 
 language in general. 
 
 Again : — Mr. Tooke admits, that, " to the pedagogue indeed, 
 who must not trouble children about the corruption of words, the 
 distinction of prepositions and conjunctions n;ay be useful enough, 
 (on account of the cases which they govern, when applied to words, 
 and which they do not govern when applied to sentences,) and for 
 some such reason, perhaps, both this and many other distinctions 
 were at first introduced. Nor would they have caused any mischief 
 or confusion, if the philosopher had not adopted these distinctions ; 
 taken them for real differences in nature, or in the operations of the 
 human mind ; and then attempted to account for what he did not 
 understand. And thus the grammatist has misled the grammarian, 
 and both of them the philosopher.*" 
 
 Again : — " The doctrine of deponents is not for men, but for 
 children, who, at the beginning, must learn implicitly, and not be 
 disturbed or bewildered with a reason for every thing ; which rea- 
 son they would not understand, even if the teacher was always able 
 to give it-t" 
 
 After a consideration of these extracts, you will agree with me, 
 that the inference, attributed to Mr. Tooke, is not drawn by him, 
 but by Mr. Stewart himself ; — hastily, incautiously, and unwarrant- 
 ably. 
 
 * Div. of Pur. Vol. I. p. 327. t Ibid. Vol. II, p. 405,
 
 254 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 II, Mr. Stewart also asserts, — "That Mr. Tooke has not hesi- 
 tated to draw this inference also : viz. That no grammatical distinc- 
 tion exists between those two parts of speech, the substantive and 
 the adjective, in such tongues as the Greek, the Latin, and the 
 English.*" 
 
 And Mr. Stewart facetiously continues: — " This inference is drawn 
 in my own opinion with nearly as great precipitation as if he had 
 concluded, because savages supply the want of forks by the fingers, 
 that therefore a finger and a fork are the same thing ! !" 
 
 Let me beg of you to refer either to the original work of jVIr. 
 Tooke, or to the observations, which I have compressed together 
 i-especting the adjective ; to mark carefully with what plainness he 
 asserts the real distinction (with Wilkins) to be the simple circum- 
 stance of " pertaining to ;" to observe also that the adjective is 
 considered by him not to be (like the noun) necessary for com- 
 munication, but convenient for dispatch ; and further to recollect 
 the admission which he makes at the very outset of his inquiries, 
 that, " in the strict sense of the term, no doubt, both the neces- 
 sary words, and the abbreviations^ are all of them parts of speech, 
 because they are all useful in language, and each has a different 
 manner of signification if and you will then be at no loss to deter- 
 mine, whether the charge of precipitation should not, with justice, 
 be retorted upon Mr. Stewart himself. 
 
 * Philosophical Essays, p. 174. t Div. of Pur. Vol. I. p. 48.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 255 
 
 III. " Mr. Tooke," (says Mr. Stewart,) " has shewn that some 
 words, which are now banished even from decent conversation, are 
 very nearly allied in their origin to others, which are unexception- 
 able, and he seems disposed to ascribe our prejudices against the 
 former to false delicacy. I should be glad to know what practical 
 inference Mr. Tooke would wish us to draw from these discoveries. 
 Is it that the latter should be degraded on account of the infamy of 
 their connections ? or that every word which can claim a common 
 descent with them from a respectable stem, is entitled to admission 
 into the same society.*" 
 
 From the solemn tone with which these sage and tasteful obser- 
 vations are introduced, a stranger to the writings of Mr. Tooke 
 might be led to suppose, that words of the description alluded 
 to had been searched after by him with great diligence, were to be 
 found in considerable numbers in the pages of his work, and were 
 there pressed upon the reader's attention with an earnestness pro- 
 portionate to some important end. There are, however, but three 
 of these words — " which fell in his way and he found them." 
 
 Such, indeed, are the airs of affectation displayed throughout 
 the whole of this extract from Mr. Stewart, that I cannot imagine 
 with what feelings a man of a grave understanding could commit it 
 to paper. The first question deserves, and shall receive, no answer. 
 To the second, (captious and uncalled for as it is,) I answer, and 
 
 * Philosophical Essays, p. 193,
 
 256 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 upon Mr. Tooke's authority, No : — tliougli they were innocent and 
 decent words, they are now otherwise. Perhaps I ought not to have 
 considered this as a grammatical misconception, but as a mere hal- 
 lucination of taste. 
 
 These, however, you may consider as misunderstandings of small 
 importance, and I should indeed have scarcely thought it worth the 
 trouble to produce them, did not they strikingly exemplify the 
 carelessness with which the very elaborate productions of JVIr. Tooke 
 have been examined, and that too, by an author who takes upon 
 himself to controvert the doctrines they are intended to establish. 
 
 IV. But there yet remains another misconception, as it appears^ 
 to me, (and I call it by this name with an utter abhorrence of that 
 malignant spirit of controversy which allows of no misconception, 
 but imputes every misinterpretation to design and artifice,) there is, 
 I say, another misconception,* upon which, as it affects the most 
 important principles of Mr. Tooke's etymological speculations, it is 
 necessary for us to bestow a more deliberate and enlarged consider- 
 ation. And in order to do this with the greater certainty of arriving 
 at a right conclusion, it seems proper to collect a few of the general 
 observations, which are scattered through the pages of the Diversions 
 of Purley, and not noticed in my short Analysis, and which will 
 enable us to discover for ourselves the opinions of Mr. Tooke upon 
 the grammatical use and importance of Etymology. 
 
 * Into which Mr. Stewart's " friendly critick" has also fallen.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 257 
 
 " Interpreters, who seek the ?neaning of a word singly from the 
 passages in which it is found, usually connect with it the meaning 
 of some other word or words in the sentence. A regard to the indi- 
 vidual etymology of the word would save them from this error, and 
 conduct them to the intrinsick tneanitig of the word, a?id the cause of 
 its application. 
 
 " All etymological pursuit beyond this is merely for the gratifica- 
 tion of a childish curiosity, in which the understanding takes no 
 share, and from which it can derive no advantage. — 
 
 ■ 
 
 " That word is always sufficiently original in that languaoe Avhere 
 its meaning, which is the cause of the application, can be found. 
 
 " Nor should it occasion surprize or discouragement, that words 
 so different in their present application should be ti'aced to the same 
 origin, for it is the necessary condition of all languages ; it is the 
 lot of man, as of all other animals, to have very few different ideas, 
 (and there is a good physical reason for it,) though we have many 
 words, and yet even of them we have by no means so many of dif- 
 ferent significations as we are supposed to have. 
 
 *' One word, or one termination should be used with one signifi- 
 cation, and for one purpose." 
 
 You have now before you the sum of Mr. Tooke's declared opi- 
 nions upon the grammatical use and importance, and even upon 
 
 l1
 
 Q58 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 certain results of etymology. The further doctrines that may be 
 attributed to him by other writers, are matters of inference ; — 
 and the question immediately arises, — Are these inferences fairly 
 deducible from the expressed principles and reasonings of his 
 work ? 
 
 After quoting, at great length, the etymologies and the applica- 
 tions of the past participles just, right, and wrong,* Mr. Stewart 
 proceeds thus : — " Through the whole of this passage Mr. Tooke 
 evidently assumes as a principle, that, in order to ascertain, with 
 precision, the philosophical import of any word, it is necessary to 
 trace its progress historically through all the successive meariings — " 
 
 I must beg of you to observe, that the phrase " philosophical 
 import" is not employed by IVIr. Tooke ; and also to bear in mind, 
 that Mr. Tooke has, in all the uses of the words cited, shewn each 
 of them to have and to pi-eserve one meaning, and one alone. — 
 Where, then, did Mr. Stewart stumble upon these successive mean- 
 ings ? — Let Mr. Stewart, however, proceed : — 
 
 " Through all the successive meanings which it has been em- 
 
 ployed to convey, from the moment that it was first introduced into 
 our language ; or, if the word be of foreign growth, that we should 
 prosecute the research till we ascertain the literal and primitive 
 sense of the root from whence it sprung. It is in this literal and 
 
 * See these words in the Critical Examination.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 259 
 
 primitive sense alone, that, according to him, a philosopher is 
 entitled to employ it, even in the present advanced state of science ; 
 and whenever he annexes to it a meaning at all different, he imposes 
 equally upon himself and others.*" 
 
 Such is the sweeping inference of Mr. Stewart, wholly unautho- 
 rized by any thing to be found in the Diversions of Purley, and 
 founded entirely upon an error, which it requires no great portion 
 of critical sagacity to detect. It proceeds from this : — That Mr. 
 Stewart has not comprehended, indeed I do not recollect that he 
 has one single allusion to, the distinction which is so cautiously 
 preserved through the volumes of Mr. Tooke, and so clearly ex- 
 pressed in the passages which I have transcribed, between the 
 intrinsick meaning of a word, and the application of it to things, 
 differing, perhaps, in all respects, except one, which will authorize 
 such application. 
 
 If Mr. Stewart had possessed a clear understanding of this most 
 important distinction, he would, I think, have perceived that the 
 only grammatical inference which can be fairly drawn from the 
 quotations which he has made, (and upon which he has rested his 
 deduction,) connected as they should be in his mind with the general 
 principles, vipon which the etymological inquiries of the whole 
 work are conducted, is barely this : — That from the etymology of 
 the word we should fix its intrinsick meaning ; that that meaning 
 
 * Philosophical Essays, p. 165 and 190. 
 l12
 
 260 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 should always (as in the instances* quoted by Mr. Stewart,) furnish 
 the cause of the application ; and that no application of a word is 
 justifiable, for which the meaning will not (as in those instances also 
 it does) supply a reason. 
 
 I raise no objection to the phrase " Philosophical import of a 
 word ;" I merely require that it should be thoioughly understood, 
 and then used consistently. The intrinsick meaning of a word is 
 not the whole, but it is a necessary part of this " philosophical 
 import ;" to the application and subaudition we must resort for 
 the rest. 
 
 Mr. Stewart disavows all homage to the etymological, that is, the 
 real meaning of words, and points to ever fleeting usage, ("which so 
 oft doth construe things clean from the purpose of the things them- 
 selves,") as the only authority to which he will consent to own his 
 fealty, or to pay his obedience. He, it should seem, or I must 
 confess myself wholly at a loss to comprehend his criticisms upon 
 the writings of Mr. Tooke, following the example of Dr. Johnson, 
 imagines the " meaning" of a word, and its " philosophical import," 
 to be the same ; and he further maintains, that a knowledge of this 
 meaning or import is not to be acquired from etymology, but " by 
 that habit of accurate and vigilant induction, which, by the study 
 of the most approved models of writing and of thinking, elicits 
 gradually the precise notions, which our best authors have annexed 
 
 * Except one application of the word Just.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 £61 
 
 to their phraseology." Mr. Tooke, on the other hand, cautiously 
 and constantly exhibits the difference between the real sense, Avhich 
 etymology alone enables us to discover, and that variety of appli- 
 cation which necessity exacts, and usage must tolerate and adopt ; 
 admitting, by his own practice, that for competent information of 
 the extent to which usage may have carried her sufferance, we cer- 
 tainly must have recourse to a careful study of the most deservedly 
 approved compositions. But Mr. Stewart not observing the care- 
 ful preservation of this distinction, imputes to Mr. Tooke a corol- 
 lary, which, (with the premises from which he derives it,) exists only 
 in the errors of his own understanding. 
 
 Bear with me a few moments longer, while I illustrate this view 
 of the subject ; for as it has so entirely escaped the notice of Mr. 
 Stewart, it is not improbable that it may require explanation to the 
 generality of readers. 
 
 Mr. Tooke says, that the Anglo-Saxon Moja^e signifies Qttod 
 dissipat ; and that from this word we have immediately the two Eng- 
 lish words Mirth and Murther : in short, that the three words 
 are but one word differently written. 
 
 Mirth and Murther, then, have the same intrinsick meanincr, 
 that which dissipateth, (subaud. aliquid,) but they have a most essen- 
 tially different application and subaudition ; the first is applied to 
 that which dissipateth, (subaud. care, grief, &c ) ; the second is 
 applied to that which dissipateth (subaud. life.)
 
 262 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 I do not presume that Mr. Stewart will controvert the correct- 
 ness of this etymology r but in consistency with himself, — because 
 these applications and subauditions are so firmly established by 
 general usage, and appear to him to have been introduced so early, 
 " that the memory of man runneth not to the contrary," — he will 
 explain Mirth actually to 77iean, That which dissipates care or 
 grief, &c. ; and Murther actually to mean. That which dissipates 
 life : and then, considering these to be the two " literal and primi- 
 tive senses" of the two words, he condemns Mr. Tooke for main- 
 taining, that in these respective senses alone is a philosopher now 
 entitled to employ them.* But Mr. Tooke must not be accused of 
 extending to the meaning and application and subaudition com- 
 bined, (though such combination be confirmed by usage the most 
 ancient and general,) a law, which he guardedly and rigidly restricts 
 to the meaning alone. The meaning is uniform, unvarying, and 
 invariable ; the application and subaudition as unlimited as the 
 numberless necessities of speech. 
 
 It is, too, because Mr. Stewart has permitted this important gram- 
 matical distinction wholly to elude his attention, that he is thrown 
 into such surprize by the climax which Johnson's explanations of 
 the word Right extort from Mr. Tooke : — 
 
 " All false, absurd, and impossible." 
 
 * I employ these two words only as instances in illustration of Mr. Tooke's opinions, 
 not as words about the application of which there is any dispute ; and indeed that there 
 is not, is one reason for my selecting them.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 263 
 
 Mr. Stewart does not intimate a disposition to dispute, that John- 
 son's explanations are false and absurd ; but he thinks that he " may- 
 be permitted to ask, upon what ground Mr. Tooke has concluded 
 his climax Avith the word impossible?" Mr. Stewart is already 
 answered : — it is quite impossible for any word to have so many 
 different meanings ; and his surprize will perhaps subside into assent 
 and approbation, if I have rendered clear and intelligible the doc- 
 trine upon which I have so strongly insisted. 
 
 He may now also be able to satisfy himself of the gross inaccu- 
 racy of his own assertion,* " that our words, when examined sepa- 
 rately, are often as completely insignificant as the letters of which 
 they are composed ; deriving their meaning solely from the connec- 
 tion or relation in which they stand toothers.+" He will, I encou- 
 rage the hope, perceive how erroneously he has attributed that to 
 the meaning, which pertains merely to the subaudition and appli- 
 cation of a word ; and he will then acknowledge the meanitig, what- 
 ever may be the case with the import, to have not the slightest 
 dependency upon that connection or relation, from which he has 
 rashly asserted it to be solely derived. 
 
 It is one among the many alarms which agitate the spirits of Mr. 
 Stewart, that by the strict disciplinarians of Mr. Tooke's school of 
 
 * Stewart's Philosophical Essays, p. 155. 
 
 t This assertion is made ia opposition to those who maintain that " every word is the 
 sign of an idea." Surely Mr. Stewart does not impute this notion to Tooke.
 
 264 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 philology, the graces of his elocution should be too severely re- 
 strained, and the flowers of his rhetorick be stripped by a barba- 
 rous and unsparing hand. For my own part I cannot sympathize 
 with him in liis fears, persuaded, as I am, that from the M-ritings 
 of Mr. Tooke himself, (for of the disciples I know nothing,) he 
 might derive a lesson upon style, which, if properly applied, could 
 have no other effects than such as would materially contribute to 
 the improvement of his own. One quality (only one I acknow- 
 ledge,) there is of good composition, in which, in a great degree, 
 he must be pronounced to be deficient, — I mean, intelligibility. In 
 reading the works of Mr. Stewart and of Dr. Reid likewise, I am 
 constantly reduced to the necessity of acquitting them of the absurd 
 consequences, which must result from the plain and obvious inter- 
 pretation of the language in which their opinions are expressed, 
 and of endeavouring " to elicit their precise notions by vigilant 
 induction.*" 
 
 * For instance : — Dr. Reid defines judgment to be " An act of the mind by which 
 one thing is affirmed or denied of another." He then admits, " That this affirmation 
 or denial is not essential." 
 
 This definition, however, Mr. Stewartt pronounces to be " concise and perspicuous, 
 notwithstanding this imperfection." The conciseness and perspicuity of a definition, 
 which is admitted to contain only that which is not essential; concise indeed, for it 
 omits all that it ought to express, and perspicuous, inasmuch it explains nothing at 
 all. These, surely, cannot be the precise notions which Dr. Reid and Mr. Stewart 
 " annex to their phraseology." 
 
 Again : — Mr. Stewart asserts, that " it is impossible to conceive either an intelligent 
 or an active being to exist," without a belief of personal identity, p. 53. 
 
 * Stewart's Elements of Philosophy, Vol. II. p. 18.
 
 JLETTER THE THIRD 265 
 
 I am not alluding to those vices, which must crowd the pages of 
 every writer of Mr. Stewart's principles of metaphysical philoso- 
 phy, but to such as might be banished without any change in his 
 system. That a very radical and widely-extended alteration would 
 be accomplished in the works of philosophers by an adoption of 
 Mr. Tooke's principles of language, — because their philosophy itself 
 must assume a very different form, — is manifest enough. But I must 
 be permitted to withdraw Mr. Tooke from the idle discussion into 
 which Mr. Stewart hasthought it wise to enter respecting " incongru- 
 ous metaphors.*" Mr. Tooke had higher aims and nobler views : he 
 had an entirely new Theory of Language to demonstrate, and 
 to apply that theory to the prevailing systems of metaphysical, that 
 is, of verbal, imposture. He, and all, who with him have their 
 minds fixed upon an object of such importance, would willingly 
 leave it to Mr. Stewart to dispute, or, if he should be so successful, 
 to settle, whether the objections urged against the use of the phrases 
 
 Yet — " it (i. e. personal identity) forms an object of knowledge to nobody but a 
 metaphysician." p. 54. 
 
 Yet again : — " It is not to the metaphysician alone that the ideas of identity and 
 personality are familiar." p. 55. 
 
 To discover what Mr. Stewart really means would "dizzy the arithmetick of me- 
 mory," and in my exertions to acquire a conception of his meaning, I have found 
 myself in the predicament of the poor Clown : — " Marry, now I can tell ; mass, I can- 
 not tell." 
 
 * It should not be forgotten, that much of language, commonly thought to be meta- 
 phorical, is merely — particular application of general meaning. 
 
 M m
 
 266 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 " handle a subject," — " go to," — " fertile source," may or may not 
 be ascribed to the caprice of taste. For into such investigations 
 does Mr. Stewart introduce his readers. Yes ; — this gentleman, 
 who is inspired with such grand ideas of the nature of those spe- 
 culations which should engage the attention of the philosopher, 
 and so mean an opinion of the humble province of the philologer, 
 does actually occupy some pages of Essays, entitled philosophical, 
 with such frivolities as these. 
 
 But against Mr. Stewart I have a very heavy accusation still un- 
 told. He has had the hardihood to assert,* that JMr. Locke prepared 
 the way for Mr, Tooke's researches, and the disingenuousness to 
 insinuate, that Mr. Tooke suppressed, or, if it suit him better, for- 
 bore to take any notice of the passage to which he was so much 
 indebted. And not satisfied with these imputations, Mr. Stewart 
 is desirous that Hobbes should participate of those honours which 
 he is desirous to withhold from the name of Tooke. " Hobbes (he 
 says) seems to have been the first, or at least one of the first, who 
 started the idea of this sort of etymological metaphysicks." 
 
 I willingly allow, that much excellent sense may be collected 
 from the works of Hobbes ; and I could refer to many particular 
 passages upon which Mr. Stewart might reflect with essential 
 advantage. 
 
 '* There be two kinds of knowledge," saith the philosopher of 
 * Stewart's Philosophical Essays, p. 566,
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 267 
 
 Malmsbury, " whereof the one is but sense, or knowledge original, 
 and the remembrance of the same : the other is science or know- 
 ledge of the truth of propositions, and how things are called, and 
 is derived from understanding. It is a great ability in man out of 
 the words, contexture, and other circumstances of language, to 
 deliver himself from equivocation, and to find out the true meaning 
 of what is said ; and this we call understanding." 
 
 The ill success, which has attended Mr. Stewart in the employ- 
 ment of his understanding to discover *' the true meaning of what 
 is said," is to be attributed to that ignorance of philology, in which 
 his disdain for the labours of the philologer has permitted him 
 to remain immured. This contemned competitor for renown 
 must confine his discussions to grammar and etymology ; — he 
 must not usurp the honours of philosophy ; and, as if the am- 
 bition of Mr. Stewart to strip a cotemporary of his hard-earned 
 honours were insatiable, he unblushingly affirms,* " That, how 
 much soever Mr. Tooke's discoveries may astonish those who have 
 been accustomed to confine their studies to grammar alone, they 
 must strike every philosopher as the natural and necessary conse- 
 quence of that progressive order, in which the mind becomes ac- 
 quainted with the different objects of its knowledge, and of those 
 general laws which govern human thought in the employment of 
 arbitrary signs." 
 
 The discovery, I believe, to which Mr. Stewart here alludes, is 
 
 * Stewart's Philosophical Essays, p. 161. 
 M m 2
 
 268 LETTER THE THIRD. „ 
 
 expressed by himself thus, " That even the terms which express 
 our most refined and abstracted thoughts were borrowed originally 
 from some object of external perception." 
 
 You will smile, then, at the overweening confidence Mith which 
 this declaration is made, when you observe, as you undoubtedly 
 must, how utterly unacquainted with those very discoveries which 
 he here pretends to be so evident, Mr. Stewart to this moment con- 
 tinues. If to suggest the possibility that a certain discovery might 
 be made, be to prepare the way for it, and if Mr. Stewart could be 
 admitted to have stated fully the sum and substance of Mr. Tooke's 
 discoveries, then indeed I might be inclined to confess that Mr. 
 Locke was the preparer of his way, — but upon no other conditions. 
 
 In his zeal to degrade still lower, if possible, the writings of Mr. 
 Tooke, Mr. Stewart is betrayed into a forgetfulness of the repu- 
 tation of his own : for he subsequently declares, that the numerous 
 examples produced in the Diversions of Purley, do not appear to 
 him* " to establish any one general truth, but the influence of fancy, 
 and of casual association on the structure of speech." 
 
 Thus, in an instant, — with a contempt of consistency, which per- 
 haps you might expect to excite a stronger emotion than surprize,- — 
 is the formation of language, which every philosopher must know 
 to be *' the natural and necessary consequence of the progressive 
 
 * Stewart's Philosophical Essays, p. 181.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 269 
 
 order in which the mind becomes acquainted with the different 
 objects of its knowledge, and those general laws which govern 
 human thought," pronounced to be the creature " of fancy and of 
 casual association ;" the fancy too of rude imlettered men, whose 
 senses, and whose organs of articulation, (the raw materials for the 
 manufacture of speech,) would be rather more interestingly preoccu- 
 pied by their urgent necessities. 
 
 When you recal to your recollection the instances of *misconcep- 
 tion of which Mr. Stewart has been guilty, the efforts which he 
 has made to lower the litemry reputation of the most truly learned 
 and sagacious philosopher of his age, and the airs of superiority 
 which he assumes over the philologer and the grammarian, I shall 
 not be censured by you, I think, if I present to his notice the 
 indignant remarks with which Mr. Tooke concluded his Letter 
 to Mr. Dunning, and which he has carefully preserved in a note 
 to the thirty-first page of the first volume of the Diversions of 
 Purley. — 
 
 " Perhaps it was for mankind a lucky mistake, (for it was a mis- 
 take,) which Mr. Locke made when he called his book ' An Essay 
 on Human Understanding.^ For some part of the inestimable bene- 
 
 * Mr. Stewart very gravely assures us that he was allured to the study of metaphy- 
 sicks by considering the phaenomeua of dreaming. Ut vidi, ingenui. But though he 
 has written upon this seductive topick with strong feelings of partiality, I will not 
 venture to assert that he has made any distinguishable advancement beyond the poetical 
 philosophy of Lucretius. Lib. iv. v. 95^. et seq.
 
 270 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 fits of that book has merely on account of its title reached to many 
 thousands more than, I fear, it Avould have done, had he called it 
 (what it is merely) A Grammatical Essay, or a Treatise on Words, or 
 on Language. The Human Mind, or the Human Understanding, 
 appears to be a grand and noble theme ; and all men, even the most 
 insufficient, conceive that to be a proper object for their contem- 
 plation ; whilst inquiries into the nature of language, (through 
 
 WHICH ALONE THEY CAN OBTAIN ANY KNOWLEDGE BEYOND THE 
 
 BEASTS,) are fallen into such extreme disrepute and contempt, that 
 even those who " neither have the accent of christian, pagan, or 
 man," nor can speak so many words together with as much propriety 
 as Balaam's ass did, do yet imagine words to be infinitely beneath 
 the concern of their exalted understanding." 
 
 Mr. Stewart takes so much delight in veiling his meaning under a 
 variety of vague and undiscriminating expressions, that in his par- 
 ticular charge against Mr. Tooke, I feel myself in great embar- 
 rassment to fix with precision upon the meaning of the phrase, 
 " prepared the Avay." It is certainly susceptible of a variety of 
 interpretations. 
 
 Does he mean that Mr. Locke prepared the way for the researches 
 of Mr. Tooke, as a teacher of the alphabet prepares the way for 
 the loftiest attainments in literature ? Or that Mr. Locke has ac- 
 tually developed such premises as lead immediately and obviously 
 ex concessis either to the philological inquiries, or the philological 
 conclusions, which Mr. Tooke has published to the world ? If the
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 271 
 
 former, the charge amounts to nothing ; — if the latter, it is quite 
 unwarranted. 
 
 There is an ambiguity also in Mr. Stewart's use of the word 
 " research," which consists in this : that it is usually and properly 
 applied to the " inquiry," and appears to be applied by Mr. Stewart 
 to the " conclusions," which are established in consequence of 
 inquiry. To inquire is not always to learn, to research is not always 
 to discover ; and I cannot think that you will allow him to be the 
 best judge of what might or might not guide Mr. Tooke to his 
 researches, since it is so evident that he has entirely misconceived 
 the principles upon which they are conducted, and the conclusions 
 to which they lead. 
 
 It is literally true, as Mr. Stewart has remarked, that Mr. Tooke 
 has not any whei-e noticed the particular passages quoted by Mr. 
 Stewart from the Essay on Human Understanding ; but it is neces- 
 sary that you should keep in your recollection a circumstance 
 equally true, viz. that he does notice the %i>hole of the book, in the 
 first chapter of which those passages are to be found ; that he spe- 
 cifies the objects of the great author in composing that book ; and 
 asserts his subsequent abandonment of one of those objects. — 
 *He tells us, that in this book Mr. Locke " has really done little 
 else but enlarge upon what he had said before, when he thought he 
 was treating only of ideas, that is, he continued to treat of the 
 
 * Div. of Pur. Vol. I. p. 39.
 
 272 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 composition of terras. For though he says,* 'that unless the force 
 and ma7iner of signification of words are first well observed, there 
 can be very little clearly said, and pertinently, concerning know- 
 ledge ;' and though this is the declared reason of writing his third 
 book, concerning language, as distinct from ideas, yet he continues 
 to ti-eat singly as before of i\\e force of words, (which depends upon 
 the number of ideas of which each word is a sign,) and has not 
 advanced one syllable concerning their mmmer of signification." 
 
 Thus fully does Mr. Tooke present to the view of his readers this 
 portion of Mr. Locke's work, in perfect fearlessness of any deduc- 
 tion from his claims to originality. Nay more, he admits that 
 Locke points out the propriety of an inquiry into the manner of 
 signification ; and, though he himself has prosecuted that inquiry, 
 he never suspected that JMr. Locke had been his guide, for he 
 affirms that Mr. Locke has not advanced one syllable upon the 
 subject. 
 
 Mr. Tooke's researches or inquiries were, in the first place, you 
 well remember, carried into the Etymology, and thence into the 
 true meaning of the English Conjunctions, Prepositions, and Ad- 
 verbs, which were commonly supposed to have no meaning ; and 
 the principle upon which this inquir}- proceeded was, " That every 
 word in every language must have a complete meaning and signifi- 
 cation, even when taken by itself." Does Mr. Stewart mean that 
 
 * Locke, B. III. c. ix. s. 21.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 273 
 
 Mr. Locke prepared the way for this inquiry ? Mr. Locke no where 
 intimates any conception that words of this class, these indeclin- 
 able and insignificant particles, were even " the names of things* 
 that fall not under our senses," (for Mr. Locke, as well as Mr. 
 Stewart imagined that there were such things,)— he even declares 
 that " they are not by themselves the names of any ideas. "f How 
 then could he entertain a suspicion " that by tracing them to their 
 sources we should find them to have had their rise from sensible 
 ideas ?" The only inquiry which Mr. Locke was persuaded to be 
 necessary with respect to those particles was, " into the right use 
 of them, their force and significancy." In short, there is not the 
 slightest suggestion of any occasion for such an inquiry as that which 
 Mr. Tooke has conducted to a conclusion, so unexpected by all 
 except himself ; and even Mr. Stewart, I think, will not contend 
 that he, who does not drop one hint with respect to the propriety of 
 a particular research, can be pronounced to have prepared the way 
 fer the conclusions to which that research may have' conducted. 
 
 " He only" (says Dr. Pal ey,) "discovers, who proves;" and it 
 is upon this ground alone that Mr. Locke can rest his claim to the 
 discovery of the origin of our ideas. He was not singular in refer- 
 ring them all to the senses : about half a century before the publi- 
 cation of the Essay on Human Understanding, Hobbes had distinctly 
 maintained the same doctrine ; and " nihil intellectu, quod non prius 
 
 * See the word Thing, in the Critical Examinatioh. 
 
 t Locke's Works, Vol. I. p. 890. 
 
 N n
 
 274 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 in sensu, is, as well as its converse, an ancient and well known 
 position." 
 
 . Mr. Locke, by applying the law of Sir Isaac Newton, discarded 
 the doctrine of innate ideas : the supposition was unnecessary ; and 
 the originality of Mr. Locke consists in the adoption of this unan- 
 swerable argument, which he so powerfully and etEcaciously em- 
 ployed. But he saw not that this same argument might be used 
 with equal force against the composition of ideas; — that the suppo- 
 sition of their existence was equally unnecessary ; — that every 
 purpose, for which the composition of ideas was imagined, could 
 more easily and naturally be answered by the composition of terms : 
 yet is this the only argument which at the outset of his inquiry 
 Mr. Tooke thought it necessary to produce. Mr. Locke treats of 
 the composition of ideas in firm belief that such composition actu- 
 ally takes place in the human mind ; and Mr. Tooke commences 
 his inquiries with denying the possibility of such composition ; and 
 with asserting, that " the only composition is in the terms." Was it 
 for this that Mr. Locke prepared the way > 
 
 But this phrase — " prepared the way," — assumes an aspect of 
 still more momentous import, when it is recollected that, in the 
 opinions of Mr. Stewart and of his avowed master in metaphysicks, 
 Dr. Reid, the principles of Locke prepared the way for the scepti- 
 cism of Hume. Locke proved that from our senses, and from them 
 alone, we receive all our ideas ; Berkeley endeavoured to mark the 
 extent to which our senses could carry us in the acquisition of Ideas ;
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 275 
 
 and in doing so effectually banished *" a substratum o'f material 
 qualities," from the jargon of verbal delusion. 
 
 This I consider to be the generally acknowledged achievement of 
 Berkeley : — " The only thing" (he asserts,+) " whose existence we 
 deny, is that which philosophers call matter or material substance." 
 Again : — " If the word substance be taken in the vulgar sense, for 
 a combination of sensible qualities, such as extension, solidity, 
 weight, and the like, this we cannot be accused of taking away. 
 But if it be taken in a philosophic sense, for the support of acci- 
 dents or qualities without the mind, then indeed I acknowledge we 
 take it away, if one may be said to take away that which never had 
 any existence, not even in the imagination." And subsequently, 
 X" It is utterly impossible there should be any such thing (as 
 matter) so long as that word is taken to denote an unthinking sub- 
 stratum of qualities or accidents, wherein they exist without the 
 mind." 
 
 For this achievement, however, Mr. Locke may be truly said to 
 have prepared the way. He had divided our simple ideas into 
 §'• Those which come into our minds by one sense only," and into 
 
 * I do not forget the ability with which Berkeley opposed Locke's doctrine of 
 abstract ideas ; but unfortunately he left complex ideas untouched. 
 
 t Berkeley's Works, Vol. I. p. 40. % Id. p. 60. 
 
 § Locke's Works, Vol. L p. 55—69. 
 
 N n 2
 
 276 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 those " that convey themselves into the mind by moie senses than 
 one." Among the former he enumerates colours, sounds, tastes, 
 &c. Among the latter, extension, figure, motion, &c. He after- 
 wards *distributes the qualities of body into primary and secondary; 
 but fails to observe that those qualities, to which he gives the name 
 of primary, are those " which convey themselves into the mind by 
 more senses than one," and that the secondary are those " which 
 come into the mind by one sense only." Had not this plain fact 
 passed unnoticed, I think he would have made a most essential 
 change in his speculations into the manner in which the ideas of 
 primary and secondary qualities are produced. For the inference, 
 I think, is plain, that the only diiference is, not in the manner of 
 their production, (for they are all by sense,) but in the number of 
 senses which contribute to their production. And had Berkeley 
 perceived this fact, and drawn this inference, it would have made 
 an essential change too in the method of his reasoning. When Mr. 
 Locke, however, has compounded these simple ideas together, and 
 created certain complex ideas of substance, he is then reduced to 
 the necessity of explaining the nature of the process. And thus he 
 writes : — f 
 
 § 1. " The mind, being furnished with a great number of simple 
 ideas, conveyed in by the senses, as they are found in exterior 
 things, or by reflection on its own operations, takes notice also, 
 that a certain number of these simple ideas go constantly together ; 
 
 * Locke's Works, Vol. I. p. 64. t Id. p. 169, et seq.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 277 
 
 which being presumed to belong to one thing, and words being 
 suited to common apprehensions, and made use of for quick dis- 
 patch, are called, so united in one subject, by one name ; which, 
 by inadvertency, we are apt afterwards to talk of, and consider as 
 one simple idea, which indeed is a complication of many ideas to- 
 gether ; because not imagining how these simple ideas can subsist 
 by themselves, we accustom ourselves to suppose some substratum 
 wherein they do subsist, and from which they do result, which 
 therefore we call substance. 
 
 § 2. " So that if any one will examine himself concerning his 
 notion of pure substance in general, he will find he has no other idea 
 of it at all, but only a supposition of he knows not what support of such 
 qualities, which are capable of producing simple ideas in us ; which 
 qualities are commonly called accidents." 
 
 Instead of concluding, as the whole tenour of his observations 
 leads us to expect, that we have, and can have, no idea of this sup- 
 posed substratum, he talks of our making " an obscure and relative 
 idea of substance in general;" that we have " a confused idea of 
 something to which simple ideas belong," and finally contents him- 
 self with acknowledging, that of that something, " it is certain we 
 have no clear or distinct idea." For the inference of Berkeley, 
 however, Mr. Locke may with propriety be said to have prepared 
 the way. 
 
 Hume succeeded: and he, — founding his system upon the principle
 
 278 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 of Mr. Locke with respect to the origin of our ideas, -that all our 
 ideas are derived from our senses, and from them alone, — he, I say, 
 after some proemial artifices, which it is far from my intention at 
 this time to expose, inferred, and roundly asserted, that it was 
 contrary to reason to rely upon the evidences of our senses at all ! ! 
 Is it possible that such an inference can have been deduced from 
 such premises, whatever may have been the intermediate gradations, 
 without the grossest pei'version of terms ? Is it possible that the 
 whole reasoning of this dexterous juggler can be aught better than 
 verbal imposture ? But so confounded was Dr. Reid by the sub- 
 tility of his countryman, that, instead of exerting his faculties to 
 lay bare the sophistry of Hume's deductions, he never suspected 
 the fallacy to lurk merely in his adroit use, or rather abuse, of lan- 
 guage ; but he attributed the mischief to Locke himself, and began 
 instantly to unlearn the philosophy which he had before adopted. 
 He did more ; he satisfied himself that he had detected the errors 
 of his former teacher ; and upon the downfall of these errors he 
 imagined that he could erect a bulwark, upon which the sceptical 
 assaults of Hume were too feeble to eft'ect an impression. 
 
 For my own part, I do not entertain a very flattering opinion of 
 the Doctor's rock of defence.* I rather suspect that he has not 
 
 * I do not wish to slight Dr. Reid's controversial accomplishments ; he appears to 
 have been distinguished by some truly formidable. He declares that " We (i. e. He) 
 can clearly and distinctly conceive things impossible.t" Being in possession of this 
 
 t Essays on the Intellectual Po^\ ers. Essay V. c. vi.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 279 
 
 without justice been accused of throwing some advantages into the 
 hands of his adversary ; and, indeed, it appears scarcely susceptible 
 of doubt, that as long as philosophers continue to conduct the con- 
 troversy upon the presumption of the existence of complex and 
 abstract ideas, the security of the philosophical sceptick from a 
 disgraceful discomfiture must depend upon the force and the skill 
 with which he — (who draws his arrows from that exhaustless store 
 of " ambiguous words," which his opponents have collected for his 
 use, as well as for their own,) — may wield his weapons of annoyance 
 
 and defence. But I am permitting myself to be hurried beyond 
 
 my prescribed bounds. To return. — 
 
 " It may (says Tooke) appear presumptuous, but it is necessary 
 here to declare my opinion, that Mr. Locke in his Essay never did 
 advance one step beyond the origin of ideas and the composition of 
 terms." 
 
 In this opinion I fully coincide ; and (I must farther confess, at 
 whatever risk,) I feel myself quite unable to discover that any 
 advancementf has been made by Mr. Stewart beyond the point 
 which terminated the progress of Mr. Locke. Mr. Stewart may issue 
 
 uncommon talent, and being also avowedly inspired with a certain efficacious " prin- 
 ciple of credulity," it was judicious in Hume (if I may use an expression of his own 
 upon a different occasion,) to resile from all contest with so gifted an antagonist. 
 
 t Mr. Stewart is too familiar with the writings of Lord Bacon to mi>apply this 
 word.
 
 280 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 forth from the press volume after volume, but until he has cleared 
 from his understanding the doctrine of the composition of ideas, 
 his course is ended. It was to the assumption of this doctrine 
 that Locke's failure was owing ; and to the artful abuse of it that 
 Hume is indebted for the rank he is allowed to maintain among 
 metaphysical writers. 
 
 Mr. Locke saw that complex terms were the signs of certain col- 
 lections of simple ideas ; he then imagined, that of those collec- 
 tions a combination* was formed ; and that by this combination a 
 complex idea was created : so that for every complex term there 
 existed a correspondent complex idea : and this, although he had 
 previously admitted that " the simple ideas" {received by one sense) 
 " united in the same subject," (softness and warmth in wax, for in- 
 stance,) " are as perfectly distinct as those that come in by different 
 senses. t" 
 
 Mark then an extravagance or two into which he is consequently 
 plunged. " We have" (he says) "negative names, which stand not 
 directly for positive ideas, but for their absence, such as Insipid, 
 Silence, Nihil, &c. which words denote positive ideas ; v. g. Taste, 
 Sound, Being, with a signification of their absence. J" 
 
 * In the crucible of Mr. Harris, " where truths are produced by a kind of logical 
 chemistry." Stewart on the Human Mind, Vol. I. p. 96. 
 
 t Locke's Works, Vol. I. p. 53. 
 
 t Id. p. 63. And this he repeats, p. 243.
 
 LETTER THE THIR0. 281 
 
 Notwithstanding this declaration, giving himself up to these 
 complex ideas, he writes a whole chapter upon the kind of idea to 
 which we give the name of infinity ; in the course of which we 
 are directed carefully to distinguish between the idea of the infinity 
 of space, and the idea of space infinite : we are told that though 
 the idea of the infinity of number is clear, yet the idea of an infinite 
 number is absurd ; that we have this clear idea of infinity, with- 
 out ever completing it ; and, in fact, that though this idea of 
 infinity is clear, yet " the clearest idea we can get of it is the confused 
 incompi-ehetisibk remainder of endless *addible numbers." 
 
 * Let it not be imagined that these are exploded doctrines — exploded for their absur- 
 dity. We are told, in a very modern digest of logical and metaphysical perplexity, 
 that " From the perpetual addibility of the ideas of number, space, duration, the idea 
 of infinity is acquired.t" 
 
 In this same work we are told, J" That being is the highest genus, which logicians 
 call Genus Generalissimum." That " Being is a simple idea." That " it is a com- 
 mon property to all things which exist." That " Universal ideas are representatives of 
 these properties." 
 
 And we are assured, " That universal ideas in their ascent from individuals to genus 
 generalissimum become gradually more simple." And that " Universal ideas in their 
 descent from genus generalissimum to individuals become gradually more complex." 
 
 And this is from a writer who adopts the opinion of Dr. Darwin, " That Mr. Tooke 
 has unfolded, by a single ^asA of light, the whole theory of language. ||" 
 
 t Belsham's Elements, Logic, p. xv. % Id. p. xix. § Id. p. xxx. 
 
 II Belsham's Elements, Philosophy, p. 114, n. 
 
 O O
 
 282 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 From such gross confusion as this a sound theory of language is 
 sufficient to deliver us ; but I see no relief for those who believe in 
 the existence of complex ideas ; and though the opinion of Mr. 
 Stewart, as well as of Mr. Locke, that causation, number, 
 PERSONAL IDENTITY, POWER, are the namcs of single simple idcas, 
 inay not to the careless thinker wear the appearance of so obvious 
 an absurdity ; yet if it be considered, (and by the Diversions of 
 Purley it is proved,) that these words are complex and general 
 terms, each not expressive of an idea, but of various collections of 
 ideas — never combined, by any chemical process, either into one 
 complex or into one simple idea, — the absurdity is not the less wild 
 and ridiculous. 
 
 I have ever been at loss to reduce within comprehensible limits 
 the precise sentiments which Mr. Stewart entertains upon the ques- 
 tion of Abstraction. At sometimes he appears to confine this sup- 
 posed distinct faculty to the power of attention, in the sense ad- 
 mitted by Berkeley ; at other times to rush into the unlimited 
 wilderness of Locke, and to suspect that the soundness of general 
 conclusions is endangered by the rejection of this supposed operation 
 of the mind. In his last chaotick volume he declares, " * that the 
 dispute concerning abstract general ideas is now reduced to this simple 
 question of fact, Could the human mind, without the use of signs of 
 one kind or another, have carried on general reasonings, or formed 
 
 * Stewart's Elements of Philosophy, Vol. II. p. 126.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 283 
 
 general conclusions ?" — For my own part I cannot discover for those 
 who believe in the existence of abstraction as an operation of the 
 mind, and consequently of abstract ideas as creations of the mind, 
 any preservation from the triangle of Locke. Locke is at least 
 consistent with himself; he shuns no consequences, however ,Qut- 
 rageous, to which his principles evidently tend : and Mr. Stewart 
 will be an unthrifty guardian of his own honourable fame, if he 
 prefer the imposing arts of controversy to the fairness of philoso- 
 phic inquiry. If there is such a power of mind as abstraction, it 
 must manifest itself in the creation of abstract ideas : if there are 
 abstract ideas, this power of Abstraction must create them. Are 
 there, then, or are there not, abstract ideas ? If there are, yvh^X 
 are they, what can they be, except such as Mr. Locke has described ? 
 Whe;re is the ILne of separation to be drawn } I see no point where 
 discrimination is possible ; all appears one continuous depth and 
 breadth of error^ that cannot be disunited. 
 
 To these topicks, then, I would invite the earnest attention of 
 Mr. Stewart. If he has any anxiety to render an essential service 
 to the cause ,of sound philosophy, let him retrace his steps ; let 
 him direct his faculties to the right understanding, and the full 
 comprehension of a just theory of language ; let him re-study, and 
 I think I must have satisfied even him that he has very superficially 
 studied, that matchless production, the eitea htepoenta; — and re- 
 study it with a more willing disposition to be instructed ; let him not 
 waste his time in idle lamentations for the imperfections of speech, 
 
 o o 2
 
 284 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 while so many of its perfections remain unnoticed and unknown ;* 
 and let him bend faithfully and zealously the Avhole force of his 
 mind to the investigation of these plain but indispensable questions : 
 Is there, or is there not, such an operation of the mind as the com- 
 position of ideas ? Is not the only composition in the terms ? Is 
 there, or is there not, such an operation of the mind as the abstrac- 
 tion of ideas ? 
 
 Leaving these questions, then, to the consideration of Mr. 
 Stewart, in the hope that he will bestow upon them that deliberate 
 attention which I have ventured to claim for them, I will proceed 
 to particularize a few of the valuable consequences, Avhich might 
 result to him from an unprejudiced investigation of the Theory of 
 Language, as inculcated in the Diversions of Parley ; and among 
 these I do not hesitate to predict this unquestionably, — that he 
 would be awakened to a lively perception of the gross absurdity of 
 an hypothesis which he has hazarded, and which, expressed in 
 unequivocating and undisguised plainness, is no other than this : — 
 that the fewer the senses, the better the metaphysician.* He would 
 learn, that if a race of beings (for to suppose one such being is 
 nugatory,) " were formed in every other respect like man, but pos- 
 
 * " The perfections of language, not properly understood, have been one of the 
 chief causes of the imperfections of our philosophy." Diversions of Purley, Vol. I. 
 p. 37. 
 
 * Stewart's Elements, Vol. I. p. 100, et seq.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 285 
 
 sessed of no senses except those of hearing and smelling," instead 
 of possessing what he calls " a language appropriated to mind solely, 
 and not borrowed by analogy from material phaenomena," they 
 could not possess a single word in their whole vocabulary, which 
 would not be " the simple or complex, the particular or general 
 sign or name of one or more ideas," derived from those senses of 
 hearing and smelling, and from them alone. 
 
 Another error of no trifling nature, and which originates in Mr. 
 Stewart's entire unacquaintance with the just principles of philology 
 is this : — he conceives it to be one and the same thing, to inquire,* 
 In what manner it was first settled that certain names should be 
 imposed ? and. In what manner those names, when once intro- 
 duced, should be explained to a novice ? Questions, to my mind, 
 of a totally opposite nature. By the first, we are required to ascer- 
 tain the means by which a language was originally invented ; or, to 
 adopt Mr. Stewart's phraseology, " by which savages would com- 
 pose a conventional dialect ;" by the second, the way in which a 
 knowledge of their native tongue is acquired by children. The 
 business of the savage is to invent words for ideas ; that of the child 
 to obtain ideas for words. 
 
 To the first question he attempts no answer ; but directing his 
 views solely to the second, to that alone are his observations at all 
 
 * Stewart's Philosophical Essays — Essay V, c. i.
 
 2B6 LETTER THE THIIID. 
 
 applicable. " The meaning of many words" (he says,) " is gradu- 
 ally collected by a species of induction." Induction, however, it is 
 clear, can only be made from a number of particular instances, and 
 the first question requires that he should account for the manner in 
 which the particular instances obtained ai> existence ; but instead 
 of doing this, he assumes their existence, and then endeavours to 
 account for the means by which a " progressive approximation" is 
 made " towards their precise import," — by a child, — a novice, — or 
 a learner of a foreign language, unsupplied with a Dictionary. 
 
 I cherish the hope also, that, by the means which I have proposed, 
 the mind of Mr. Stewart will be restored to its accustomed serenity, 
 and rescued from the strange fears with which it is overcast, lest the 
 theory of morals should, by the philological hypothesis* of Mr. 
 Tooke, be foiuided upon some nostrum concerning past participles. 
 Does Mr. Stewart mean to allege, that we are required by Mr. 
 Tooke to acknowledge the will of God as the law of moral actions, 
 because right means ruled, and wrong, wrwig from the right, and 
 
 * This " pbilosophical hypothesis" (to use -the phraseology of Mr. Stewart,) would 
 " decide in a very few sentences," that the following distinction, to which Mosheim, 
 " exeraplo summorum et celeberrimorum theologorum," declares his assent is merely 
 verbal : — " Leges divinas non ideo tantum servandaiS esse quia auctoritate divina mu- 
 nitae sunt, verum etiam quia in se justissimae sunt et cum divina sanctiraonia congruunt, 
 nee idcirco mandata Dei justa esse, quia ipse vult, sed idcirco a Deo sancita, et rogata, 
 quoniam sanctitas et justitia ferri ea postulavit." De ^tern. et Imm. Rei Mor. Cud- 
 worth, Pref. Moshemii, Vol. II. p. 620.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 287 
 
 JUST means ordered. Perhaps in his zeal to disparage the system of 
 his adversaiy, he did not weigh very nicely the full force of his 
 expression. What theory, he, who is so peremptory a dissentient 
 from this origin of moral obligation, may have embraced, it is not 
 at present of much importance to inquire. But what, I ask, are 
 the theories of some, at least, of our best modern writers on moral 
 philosophy ? Do they not found them upon the will of God, upon 
 what God has ordered and commanded ? And what has Mr. Tooke 
 superadded to these theories more than this : — that the strict appli- 
 cation of the words in question to the moral conduct of man is per- 
 fectly consistent with " those general laws which govern human 
 thought in the employment of arbitrary signs }" 
 
 When, however, under the influence of these causeless apprehen- 
 sions, he arrives at the definition of truth, then indeed does the 
 prospect of some most paradoxical and alarming consequences, 
 which open upon his fancy, so far affright him from his propriety, 
 that the powers of his elocution advance too faintly and tardily to 
 the aid of his reason to enable him to deprecate the violence of an 
 assailant, whose march seems directed to the extirpation of all law, 
 morality, and religion. Whether Mr. Stewart will entrust himself 
 to the guidance of Johnson, (for he consults the Dictionary of 
 Johnson for the meaning of words,) or whether he is wandering in 
 the pathless mazes of Locke, his volumes supply me not the means 
 to determine : they furnish no standard of truth which might spare 
 me the exertion of my own understanding ; and I must still there-
 
 288 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 fore be content to inquire, and learn and judge for myself; and 
 whatever I shall firmly think and believe, must still to me continue 
 
 to be TRUTH. 
 
 Fears and perturbations still thicken around us. Obscure hints* 
 (it is alleged) have been thrown out of the momentous consequences, 
 to which the discoveries of Mr. Tooke were to lead, and they were 
 hailed with gratulations by the author of Zoonomia, and by other 
 physiologists of the same school ; and thus no doubt is left with 
 respect to the ultimate purpose to which they have been supposed 
 to be subservient. 
 
 Nature, it has been said, abhors a vacuum. The late Emeritus, 
 Professor of Moral Philosophy in the university of Edinburgh, 
 abhors a materialist. Nihil magnificum, nihil generosum sapit. 
 He has made man according to his own fancy, and those specula- 
 tions, which tend to discover that he has arrayed this creature of his 
 own creation with qualities, which God may have judged to be use- 
 less and unnecessary ; useless for this mortal life, and unnecessary 
 for the life immortal ; are to his mind ignoble and degrading to the 
 nature of man. Man must not soar on material wings : like the 
 mechanist in Rasselas he may mount the promontory, he may wave 
 his pinions to gather the air ; but, if he leap from his stand, in an 
 instant he will fall to the ground. 
 
 * Stewart's Philosophical Essays, Vol. II. p. 185.
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 289 
 
 " All the great ends of morality and religion," (says the immortal 
 author of the Essay on Human Understanding,*) " are well enough 
 secured without philosophical proofs of the soul's immateriality ; 
 since it is evident, that he who made us at first begin to subsist 
 here, — sensible intelligent beings, — and for several years continued 
 us in such a state, can and will restore us to the like state of sen- 
 sibility in another world, and make us capable there to receive the 
 retribution he has designed to men according to their doings in this 
 life. It is a point which seems to me to be put out of the reach 
 of our knowledge." 
 
 So wrote the excellent Mr. Locke ; but the guarded propriety of 
 expression, and unfeigned humility and resignation of spirit which 
 he displays, could not protect him from the misapprehension and 
 attack of a dignitary of the English church. Stillingfleet, Bishop 
 of Worcester, resting the philosophical demonstration of the soul's 
 immortality upon its supposed immateriality, and imagining the 
 creed of a Christian imperfect, unless his faith were strengthened by 
 certain deductions of general reasoning, — after dexterously mingling 
 the name of Locke with those of Hobbes and Spinoza, — requires 
 of Mr. Locke to consider whether his opinions did " not a little 
 affect the whole article of resurrection." 
 
 Mark the calm yet triumphant reply t of this truly Christian 
 
 * Locke's Works, Vol. I. p. 337. t Id. p. 758. 
 
 P p
 
 290 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 Philosopher ; it deserves the serious reflection of the controvertists 
 of the present age. — 
 
 " This your accusation of my lessening the credibility of these 
 articles of faith is founded on this : that the article of the immor- 
 tality of the soul abates of its credibility, if it be allowed that its 
 immateriality (which is the supposed proof from reason and philo- 
 sophy of its immortality,) cannot be demonstrated from natural 
 reason. Which argument of your Lordship's bottoms, as I humbly 
 conceive, on this, — that divine revelation abates of its credibility in 
 all those articles it proposes, proportionably as human reason fails 
 to support the testimony of God. And all that your Lordship has 
 said, when examined, will, I suppose, be found to import thus 
 much ; viz. Does God propose any thing to mankind to be believed ? 
 It is very fit and credible to be believed, if reason can demonstrate 
 it to be true. But if human reason comes short in the case, and 
 cannot make it out, its credibility is thereby lessened : which is in 
 effect to say, that the veracity of God is not a firm and sure foun- 
 dation of faith to rely upon, without the concurrent testimony of 
 reason ; i.e. with reverence be it spoken, God is not to be believed 
 on his own word, unless what he reveals be in itself credible, and 
 might be believed without him." 
 
 o 
 
 ^crain: — " God has revealed that the souls of men shall live for 
 ever : but, says your Lordship, ' from this evidence it takes off 
 very much, if it depends wholly upon God's giving that which of
 
 LETTER THE THIRD. 291 
 
 its own nature it is not capable of;' that is, the revelation and tes- 
 timony of God loses much of its evidence, if this depends wholly 
 upon the good pleasure of God, and cannot be demonstratively 
 made out by natural reason, that the soul is immaterial, and con- 
 sequently in its own nature immortal." 
 
 To the force of these observations I have nothing to add ; but 
 upon the philosopher, I mean the Christian philosopher, I would 
 most earnestly press a careful examination of the real value of the 
 inquiry into the nature of the human soul. Is it within the reach 
 of the human faculties to ascertain, (to state the question in terms 
 that may be approved by the disputants themselves,) whether our 
 " vital spark" be the mere result of material organization, or whe- 
 ther we are endowed with a distinct immaterial spirit ? Must we 
 not remain in the same ignorance of the substratum of our mental 
 qualities, as we are of the substratum of material qualities, and for the 
 same reason ? May we not rest piously, and, if piously, happily in 
 our ignorance ? Is the decision of the question of any importance 
 to our well being in this world, or to our happiness in the next ? 
 Our hopes of immortality rest not upon the subtilities of our own 
 poor and perishable intellects. God, who made us, by his word 
 alone has brought life and immortality to light ; and whatever may 
 be the wild imaginations or the rash conclusions of human under- 
 standing, our destinies are immutably declared by the promises of 
 God, made known to us in the revelations of the gospel. 
 
 '• Had Jesus Christ," (says Dr. Paley, in a passage which has been
 
 292 LETTER THE THIRD. 
 
 justly distinguished " for comprehension of remark, solidity of 
 thought, and solemn grandeur of diction,") — " Had Jesus Christ 
 delivered no other declaration than the following, ' The hour is 
 coming, in the which all that are in the grave shall hear his voice, 
 and shall come forth ; they that have done good luito the resurrec- 
 tion of life, and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of 
 damnation,' he had pronounced a message of inestimable impor- 
 tance, and well worthy of that splendid apparatus of prophecy and 
 miracles with which his mission was introduced and attested ; a 
 message, in which the wisest of mankind would rejoice to find an 
 answer to their doubts, and rest to their inquiries. It is idle to 
 say, that a future state had been discovered already. It had been 
 discovered, as the Copeniican system was — it was one guess among 
 many. He alone discovers who proves; and no man can prove 
 this point, but the teacher who testifies by miracles that his doc- 
 trine comes from God." 
 
 Farewell. 
 
 March, 1815. 
 To Samuel Lambrick, Esquire. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 W. Flint, Printer, Old Bailey, London.
 
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