you would have no difficulty in finding a great deal to say. You would chatter incessantly about your school life, the studies you like and do not like, the incidents of the schoolroom, and your plans after graduation. And if you were talking about your home life, you would tell the funny things that happen, the interesting events that occur from time to time; you would discuss your relations with your brothers and sisters and parents; and your studying at home, your home duties, and the parties and merrymakings that you go to would receive their share of attention. For a classroom exercise, then, write letters for several days to your friends. It would be well to write such letters as you can send.

REWORDING SENTENCES

212. Consider the following groups of sentences:

A

1. The old gray horse was pulling a wagon loaded with pumpkins.

2. The horse, which was old and gray, was pulling a wagon that was loaded with pumpkins.

3. The horse, old and gray, was pulling a wagon loaded with pumpkins.

B

1. Jackson's new tug came into the harbor towing a water-logged schooner.

2. Jackson's tug-the new one-came into the harbor towing a schooner that was water-logged.

3. Jackson's new tug came into the harbor with a water-logged schooner in tow.

C

1. During that long, cold winter there was not a day without snow and bitter, piercing winds.

2. During that winter, which was long and cold, there was not a day when there was no snow and bitter, piercing winds.

3. During that winter- a long and cold one- - there was no snowless day, and the winds were bitter and piercing. 4. During that long, cold winter there was no day that did not have its snow and its bitter, piercing winds.

D

1. Our reckless but fragile friend, Humpty-Dumpty, had a fall, and was broken into so many pieces that he could not be put together again.

2. Humpty-Dumpty, our reckless but fragile friend, had a fall, and was broken into too many pieces to be put together again.

3. Our friend, Humpty-Dumpty, who was both fragile and reckless, had a fall, and was damaged beyond repair.

Each of these groups of sentences represents different ways of saying practically the same thing. The question is, How does grammar account for the different forms of expression?

In the first sentence there are two words, "old" and "gray," which describe "horse." In the second sentence it is the clause, "which was old and gray," that describes "horse." In the third sentence the phrase, "old and gray," describes "horse." That is to say, there are three ways of describing-with words, with phrases, and with clauses.

Again, the phrase "loaded with pumpkins" describes "wagon" in the first and the third sentence;

but in the second sentence the clause, "that was loaded with pumpkins," is the descriptive element.

Such descriptive elements are called adjectives, adjective phrases, and adjective clauses. These different ways of describing account for most of the variation in expression that is found in the sentences given.

The purpose of such variation of expression is to find the way that sounds best. Sometimes, too, in writing a composition, you will want to reword a sentence simply because it is constructed like the one, or the two, or the three before it, which, of course, would give an unpleasant effect.

Study all the four groups of example sentences, determine how grammar accounts for their differences of structure, and consider whether some particular one of each group is better than the others.

213. Write several sentences and put each into different forms by first using words, then phrases, and then clauses as descriptive constructions. If you wish to change the order of the different parts of the sentences, do so. If you find it necessary to change altogether the wording of some parts of the sentences, do so. For an example, see the last sentence of the fourth group of example sentences. Determine which form of each sentence sounds

best.

Again, take the second line from Grey's "Elegy in a Country Churchyard,”—“The plowman homeward plods his weary way,"-and cast it into as many forms as possible by varying the order of the words and by enlarging "weary" to a clause.

Note that this word may modify "plowman." if you choose to make it do so; and if you choose, you can change it to wearily. "Homeward" may be enlarged to the phrase, to his home.

EXERCISE IN COMBINING SHORT SENTENCES 214. Here is a story about Bre'er Rabbit and Bre'er Lion:

Bre'er Lion had a very fine garden. He had planted carrots in it. He noticed every morning that some of the carrots were gone. All of the tops were chewed off. He thought at last that he would find out the thief. He hid behind a box. He waited for the thief.

He saw Bre'er Rabbit approaching. It was about twelve o'clock. Bre'er Rabbit began to eat the carrots. Bre'er Lion went up behind him. He said, “Ha, ha! you will steal my carrots, will you?" Then he put Bre'er Rabbit under the box. He said, "Now you can stay there and starve." But Bre'er Rabbit noticed that there was grass growing under the box. He could live on that.

Bre'er Lion thought after a while that Bre'er Rabbit was dead. He peeked into the box. Bre'er Rabbit had heard him coming. He pretended to be dead. Bre'er Lion kicked the box away. This left Bre'er Rabbit lying there. Bre'er Lion went into the house. Then Bre'er Rabbit jumped up. He said, "Good-by, Bre'er Lion! I can live on grass."

This is a very good story, but how monotonous and tiresome the sentences sound as you read them! It was written in this way in order that a pupil's version, written from memory after the teacher had read the original form of the story to the class, might

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be contrasted with it. The pupil's version is given below, with several slight corrections.

"Bre'er Lion had a very fine garden, in which he had planted some carrots. Every morning he noticed that some of his carrots were gone, and that all of the tops were chewed off. At last he thought he would find out who was stealing his carrots, so he hid himself behind a box to wait for the thief.

"About twelve o'clock he saw Bre'er Rabbit approaching his garden, and begin eating his carrots. While Bre'er Rabbit was eating the carrots, Bre'er Lion went up behind him and caught him and said, 'Ha, ha! you will steal my carrots, will you?' Then he put Bre'er Rabbit under the box, and said, 'Now you can stay there and starve.' But Bre'er Rabbit noticed that there was some grass growing under the box, and he knew he could live on that.

"At last, when Bre'er Lion thought Bre'er Rabbit was dead, he peeked into the box. Bre'er Rabbit heard him coming, so he lay down and pretended he was dead. Bre'er Lion kicked away the box, and left Bre'er Rabbit lying there, and he went into the house. As soon as he was in the house, Bre'er Rabbit jumped up and said, 'Good-by, Bre'er Lion! I can live on grass.'

The pupil's own work is much better than the other form of the story. The reason is that in one case the sentences nearly all begin with the subject, and are very short. In order to have smoothly flowing composition it is necessary to begin, sometimes at least, with other constructions than the subject, and to vary the length of sentences by combining those ideas that are closely related. Let