taining a beauty. I fhall take notice of fuch as most frequently occur.

Apoftrophe, addreffing, leaves the theme:

He dies-Fade, ye fair flow'rs; be dry, thou ftream!

The word fignifies a turning afide; for by this figure a perfon in a vehement commotion turns off from the subject in hand, and addreffes heaven, earth, groves, rivers, things animate and inanimate; thereby interefting, as it were, univerfal nature in his caufe, and appealing to all the creation for the juftnefs of his tranfport.

Prolepfis, to prevent, objects and answers too:
Great things, you'll fay, but not too great for you.

The meaning of the word is prevention; for by this figure an orator starts an objection, which he forefees may be made against any thing he affirms, defires, or advifes to, and gives an answer to it. We have an example of the prolepfis in the following words of St. Paul. "But fome men will fay, How are the dead raised up, and with what body do they come? Thou fool, that which thou fowest is not quickened except it die; and that which thou foweft, is not that body which shall be, but bare grain, perhaps of wheat, or fome other grain :

But God giveth it a body as it pleaseth him, and to every feed its own body."

Periphrafis takes many words for one :

Now night's pale emprefs quits her filver throne.

The term means a circumlocution, or speaking round about, that is, ufing more words to exprefs any thing than are abfolutely neceffary. Thus in the example, the moon is expreffed by night's pale emprefs; and the sense of the whole line might be comprehended in thefe few words, "It is daylight."

Climax afcends by steps; folly breeds laughter,

Laughter difdain, disdain makes shame her daughter.

The literal meaning of the term is a ladder, the figure being a gradation or amplification by steps, till the argument and period be beautifully finished.

"The boy despises the infant, the man the boy, the philofopher both, and the Christian all."

The anticlimax has a very difagreeable effect, as appears from the two following specimens.

"Not only London echoes with thy fame, "But alfo Islington has heard the fame."

4

« Queen

1

Queen Semiramis was the f under of Babylon, conqueror of the east, and an excellent housewife."

In oxymoron contradictions meet:

What's love? A pleafing pain, a bitter-fweet.

The name itself implies a contradiction, fignifying much the fame as witty-foolish, or fharp-blunt. But we muft obferve, that the contradictions in this figure are only feeming ones; for the members of a period may difagree in appearance and found, but perfectly agree and be confiftent in fenfe.

Profopopeia fpeech to things doth give :

The ones cry out, "Let not the traitor live."

This figure, as the name implies, is the fiction of a perfon. Hereby good and bad qualities, virtues and vices, are introduced into difcourfe as real beings; and by this we likewife give life and voice to things inanimate, making rocks, woods rivers, buildings, and the like, exprefs the paffions of rational creatures. "There lies that murderous knife."" His ftature reached the fkies, and on his creft fat horror plumed."

Virgil's defcription of fame is a beautiful profopopeia:

Fame, of all ills the fwifteft in its course, "By motion gathers and augments its force;

"Low creeps at first, but fwells t' enormous size, "Stalks through the world, and towers into the "fkies."

The facred writings abound with specimens of this figure.

"Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the fea roar, and the fulness thereof; let the field be joyful, and all that is therein. Then fhall all the trees of the wood rejoice before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth. He fhall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth."

Antithefis, which fignifies an oppofition of words or thoughts, illustrates a fubject by the introduction of

contraries.

"Who fees with equal eye as God of all, "A hero perish, and a fparrow fall :

"Atoms, or systems, into ruin hurl'd,

"And now a bubble burft, and now a world."

СНАР.

CHAP. LXXXIX.

OF QUANTITY, ACCENT, AND EMPHASIS.

BY quantity I mean the distinction of fyllables

into long or short, in reading either profe or verfe. This depends on the various founds of the vowels.

By accent is meant that particular stress or force of found, which the voice lays upon any fyllable; and though the accent is more frequently laid on a long fyllable than a fhort one, it is not fo always; nor is the accent always upon the fame fyllables in the fame words. The fame word when it is a verb, has the accent upon the last fyllable, as to convért, to rebél, to recórd; but when it is a noun, it is accented on the first, as a cónvert, a rébel, a récord.

In order to read well, obferve the following directions. 1. Take pains to acquire a perfect knowledge of the founds of all the letters in general. 2. Pronounce every word clearly and diftinctly. 3. Let the tone of your voice in reading be the fame as in fpeaking. 4. Do not read in a hurry, for fear of learning to ftammer. 5. Read