DEAR GEORGE, IX. REPLY TO THE PRECEDING. GORDONVILLE, CHELSEA, Wednesday Morning, 18th December 1865. I shall be very glad to join your party on Friday evening. I am in high spirits about 1 the merriment you expect, and as I have never seen a magic lantern, M. Isard's show will be a great treat to me." Mamma desires her compliments to your Mamma, and says, as my cousin, Tom Bell, from Liverpool, is staying with us just now, she will be happy if you will include him in your invitation for Friday. Tom is a capital reciter and mimic, and would enjoy the amusements very much. I am, dear George, Master George Rennie, Yours truly, WILLIAM GREGORY. 1 Je suis tout ravi à l'idée de. 2 Me sera une grande féte. X. A YOUNG GENTLEMAN AT SCHOOL, TO HIS PAPA. MY DEAR PAPA, WELLINGTON LODGE, 25th August 1866. This being our half-holiday, and the weather being unfavour able for taking the usual ramble in the country, I shall pleasingly occupy1 my leisure by giving you a short account of the arrangements of the school, and the way in which we employ our time. To begin at the beginning, the morning bell rings at half-past six o'clock, when we rise,2 get washed and dressed, and are seated at our benches by seven, to say our night-tasks. At eight we have prayers, and immediately afterwards, breakfast. Then we have a few minutes in the playground, and from nine to twelve are engaged in our various studies. The next hour is passed in the playground. At one we dine, and at half-past two resume our studies in the class-rooms till five. From five till seven we amuse ourselves as we best can,3 and prepare our night-tasks from seven to eight, to be repeated next morning as already mentioned. Besides Dr. Hood, who teaches mathematics and the classics, there are two assistant tutors, Messrs. Smith and Simpson-the former in the English, and the latter in the commercial department. Monsieur Dubois attends two hours every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for French; Mr. Paton for drawing, and Herr Noah for gymnastics on Tuesdays and Thursdays, one hour each per day. We have two half-holidays in the week, and on these occasions one or other of the masters accompanies us on an excursion to some interesting place in the vicinity, to a walk among the hills, or on the banks of the river. In my next letter I will try to give you some account of my fellowpupils, and the progress I am making in the branches I am studying. Meantime I remain, with love to Mamma, Your dutiful son, 1 Je me fais un bonheur d'employer. 2 Alors on se lève. FREDERICK. 3 Comme on peut. EDINBURGH T. CONSTABLE, THE EDUCATIVE READING BOOKS. (Constable's Educational Series.) WORKS BY JAMES CURRIE, A.M., Author of "Common School Education." Rudimentary English Grammar. Pp. 64, price 6d. The Practical School Grammar. Pp. 128, price 1s. 6d. A Practical Arithmetic for Elementary Schools. Price 1s. 6d. ; or in Two Parts, at 6d. and 1s. each. ANSWERS to the same, 1s. The Principles and Practice of Early and Infant-School Education. With an Part II., The Elements of Musical Analysis: A Manual of the Theory of Music for Schools Infant School Hymns and Songs, with Music. Part I., HYMNS, 4d. Part II., Practical Text-Book of English Composition. Cloth, price 1s. A Grammar of the English Language, with a Sketch of its History. By WILLIAM FRANCIS COLLIER, Esq., LL.D., Author of "History of English Literature,” &c. Cloth, price 1s. 6d. Spelling and Dictation Class-Book; with Etymological Exercises. By an INSPECTOR OF SCHOOLS. Cloth, price 1s. 6d. 1. Pupils' Register of Progress, for the DAY, MONTH, and YEAR. Price 2d. 2. Daily Register of ATTENDANCE, FEES, SCHOOL-WORK, and MERIT. Space for 48 Weeks, 4 Quarterly Summaries, and 1 Yearly Summary. Seventh Thousand. Price 6d. 3. Daily Register and Summary of ATTENDANCE AND FEES FOR INFANT-SCHOOL. Quarterly and Yearly Summaries for Two Years. Price 2s. Etymological Exercises for ELEMENTARY CLASSES, price 3d. Wall Maps, Coloured, Mounted on Cloth, Rollers, and Varnished, each 5s. The World. England. The following are published: Scotland. Europe. Africa. America. China. Outline of the Geography of Palestine, with Scripture References. By CHARLES MICHIE, M. A., Rector of Silver Street Academy, Aberdeen. 28 pp., price 4d. Easy Catechism for Little Children, 32 pp., price 2d. LAURIE'S BRITISH SCHOOL DESK, SEAT, AND TABLE, (combined.) (See Prospectus.) MANUSCRIPT WALL SHEETS, FOR TEACHING WRITING. Size 19 x 26, Sold Ready for Hanging up, 6d. each. No. 1. Small Letters, arranged according to form. No. 2. Small Letters, formed into Words. No. 3. Capital Letters, arranged according to form. 38 COCKBURN STREET, EDINBURGH, PRACTICAL TEXT-BOOK of ENGLISH COMPOSITION. Pp. 96. Cloth, price 18. THE object of this little work is to train the pupil by progressive steps in the art of Composition. In the first chapter he is initiated into the construction and composition of sentences. He is then shown that something more is wanted in the formation of sentences than mere correctness and intelligibility; that they must be constructed in a becoming manner or style; and the exercises under this head are intended to prevent him from falling into slovenly and inaccurate writing. The ornaments of Style, or Figures of Speech, are also explained, those, at least, that are chiefly employed in Prose Composition. The next point to be gained is Facility of Expression; and here ample space is allowed for practice in the ready use and application of words. The pupil is now ready to begin Composition Proper, which implies the power of expressing a train of thought in appropriate language. Numerous exercises are prescribed, many of them in the skeleton form, under the three different kinds of Composition,-Descriptive, Narrative, and Didactic; and, in the Theme or Essay, he is required to combine these in the manner best adapted for the elucidation of his subject. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. On the Composition of Sentences.-SECT. I. Explanation and Composition of Simple Sentences-II. Explanation and Composition of Compound Sentences-III. Explanation and Composition of Complex Sentences-IV. General Exercises in the Combination of Sentences. CHAPTER II. On the Elements of Style.-SECT. I. Explanation of the Elements of Style-II. Exercises upon Clearness of Style-III. Exercises upon Purity of Style -IV. Exercises upon Strength of Style. CHAPTER III. On the Ornaments of Style.-SECT. I. Exclamation-II. Interrogation -III. Antithesis-IV. Simile-V. Metaphor-VI. Hyperbole-VII. Personification. CHAPTER IV. On Punctuation.-SECT. I. The Period-II. The Comma-III. The Semicolon-IV. The Colon-V. Interrogation, Exclamation, Dash, Parenthesis. CHAPTER V. On Facility of Expression.-SECT. I.-Synonymous Words and Expressions-II. Elliptical Exercises-III. Direct and Indirect Speech-IV. Variation of Language-V. Conversion of Poetry into Prose. CHAPTER VI. On Composition Proper.-1. DESCRIPTIVE SUBJECTS: SECT. I. Minerals -II. Plants-III. Animals-IV. Manufactured Substances-V. Instruments or Machines-VI. Scenes and Appearances from Nature-VII. Miscellaneous Subjects for Descriptive Composition. 2. NARRATIVE COMPOSITION: SECT. I. Historical Subjects-II. Reigns-III. Biographical Subjects-IV. Miscellaneous Subjects for Narrative Composition. 3. DIDACTIC COMPOSITION: SECT. I. Reflective SubjectsII. Miscellaneous Exercises for Reflective Composition-III. Argumentative Subjects-IV. The Theme or Essay Proper. "I think highly of the Manual. The authors aim successfully at clearness, simplicity, and perspicuity."-Rev. H. C. STUBBS, Principal, Warrington Training College I have perused it carefully, and consider it an excellent little work, thoroughly practical, and certain to do much more good than many larger treatises. I shall not fail to recommend it."-JOHN E. SHERIDAN, Esq., Head Inspector of Schools. "It is the best book of the kind I have ever seen, and has been adopted here.”—A. M. MORELL, Queen's College Institution, London. "The work is a very useful one. The subject-matter is well classified, its exercises are various and graduated, and from its cheapness it will be welcomed by teachers generally. Owing to its simplicity and graduation, it is well suited for boys and girls in good upper schools, while our students in Training Colleges will be largely benefited by its use. I shall have great pleasure in introducing it here."-F. HEDGES, Teacher of Languages Lincoln Training College. Teachers wishing to examine it are requested to apply to the Publisher. 38 COCKBURN STREET, EdinburgH. |