Elementary Composition · Part 3

4. William Penn settled Pennsylvania and made a treaty with the Indians under a large elm, which is one of the most graceful of our trees. [Thoughts not closely related.]

5. William Penn, who was himself a Quaker, founded Pennsylvania as a place of refuge for the persecuted Quakers. [Thoughts closely related.]

Exercise 25.--Rewrite the following sentences:--

1. The wild strawberry has a delicious flavor, and we enjoy picking the berries, which belong to the rose family. 2. Mary has a new beaver muff which her father bought for her in Montreal, the largest city in Canada. 3. Sir Walter Raleigh was a favorite of Queen Elizabeth, called the Virgin Queen, and he introduced tobacco into England. 4. We visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where we saw the picture called "The Horse Fair," and met Mary, who is certainly the most discontented girl I know. 5. Once, a long time ago, in a little cottage beside a dark wood, lived a naughty little boy, and his mother told him repeatedly that the old witch that lived in the wood would get him.

8. The Formless Sentence.--There is still one other sort of sentence to be avoided; that is the ugly, shapeless sentence that results from placing together a number of complete statements loosely connected by and, but, or so. Sometimes this is called the and sentence or the so sentence, because these two connectives are so frequently used by inexperienced writers. Let us call it the formless sentence, meaning thereby a sentence which is deficient in form, or the form of which is ugly or distasteful to the trained eye and ear. You will have to acquire your sense or taste for form in sentences by practice and experience; but you will be helped by studying the sentences given below. Those in the left-hand column are well-written; those in the right-hand column are formless.

1. At half-past nine we 1. At half-past nine we reached Charles's house, and reached Charles's house and until half-past ten we were until half-past ten we were busy thinking what to do. busy thinking what to do, Finally, some one suggested until some one suggested a a climb up the Palisades, and climb up the Palisades, and we started off at eleven. so we started off at eleven.

2. As it was getting very 2. It was getting very cloudy, we put on some of cloudy, so we put on some of Charles's old clothes. Charles's old clothes.

3. When I returned, it 3. When I returned, it had stopped raining, and the had stopped raining, and the boys were receiving a lecture boys were receiving a lecture from the farmer's wife. She from the farmer's wife, told us that we had no right who told us that we had no on her property, and a few right on her property, and other things we didn't pay a few other things we didn't much attention to. But pay much attention to, but when she said that her husband one thing she told us was was a magistrate, and that her husband was a magistrate, that she could have us locked and that she could up, we got away as quickly have us locked up, and so we as we could. got away from there as quickly as we could.

4. I had been traveling 4. I had been traveling all day through the all day through the snow snow with one companion, with one companion, who who had now gone off to had now gone off to what what our compasses told us our compasses told us was was the south, in search of the south, in search of wood, wood. I was hungry and and I was thoroughly hungry thoroughly tired. More than and tired, for more than once during the day I once during the day I had had stepped on what seemed stepped on what seemed to be to be firmly packed snow, firmly packed snow, only to only to sink to my waist in sink to my waist in a soft a soft drift, and it was always drift, and it was always with with difficulty that difficulty that I had got out. I had got out.

You will see, then, that there is certain "knack" which you must acquire of giving a sentence a pleasing form. With a little patience, you will soon learn it, and you will gain it all the more easily by remembering that the ugly formless sentence, which you are to avoid, is simply a long loose sentence (see § 4).

Exercise 26.--Reconstruct the following sentences:--

1. There once reigned a queen, and in her garden were found the most glorious flowers of all seasons and from all lands, but she loved best the roses, and so she had the most various kinds of this flower, and they grew against the earth walls, and wound themselves round pillars and window frames, and all along the ceiling in all the halls, and the roses were various in fragrance, form, and color.

2. Many years ago there lived an emperor, and he cared enormously for new clothes, and he wanted to be very fine, so he spent all his money for clothes, and he did not care about his soldiers, but only liked to drive out and show his new clothes, and he had a coat for every hour of the day, and just as they say of a king, "He is in council," they said of him, "The emperor is in his wardrobe."

3. Napoleon's marshals came to him once in the midst of a battle and said, "We have lost the day and are being cut to pieces," but the great soldier drew out his watch, unmoved, and said, "It is only two o'clock in the afternoon, and though you have lost the battle you have time to win another," so they charged again and won a victory, and we should enter our battle-fields of difficulty with the same unconquerable spirit.

4. The highest courage is sustained courage, for the power of continuance adds to all other powers, and to face danger, appreciate the full demand and meet it to the end, is the height of brave living, for most young hearts can respond to a sudden demand for courage, but the long stretch finds them lacking.

5. A New York woman called on Emerson one morning and found the philosopher reading in his study, while near him on a plate there lay a little heap of cherry stones, and the visitor slipped one of these stones into her glove. Some months later she met Emerson again at a reception in Boston and recalled her visit to him and then she pointed to the brooch she wore, a brooch of gold and brilliants with the cherry stone set in the center and she said, "I took this stone from the plate at your elbow on the morning of my call," and Emerson replied, "Ah, I'll tell my amanuensis of that and he will be so pleased, for he loves cherries, but I never touch them myself."

6. John was a boy who wanted to be a ventriloquist, and one day he visited an old engineer in a factory and after a little conversation he imitated the squeak of badly oiled machinery, and the old engineer trotted to a certain valve and oiled it, so John let a few minutes pass and then emitted another series of squeaks and the engineer again oiled his machinery, and the third time John squeaked the engineer saw through the joke and, walking up quietly behind John, squirted a half-pint of oil down the back of his neck, saying, "There! There'll be no more squeaking to-day."

Exercise 27.--Reconstruct the following sentences, putting the underlined phrases in their proper places.

1. The musician was playing a sonata with long hair.

2. I saw at once that he was a villain with half an eye.

3. A woman desires a home for her dog going abroad for the summer.

4. The kind old gentleman lifted the trembling child with a gold-headed cane.

5. A wreath was made by a little girl of roses.

6. The house was painted brown with the tall flag-pole.

7. We saw a magnificent cedar tree entering the woods.

8. We found some golden-rod walking along the dusty road.

9. We saw the lakes climbing a tree.

10. The old lady gave alms to a young beggar with the white hair.

CHAPTER III

THE PARAGRAPH

9. The Use of the Paragraph.--Composition is the combining or grouping of words. We group our words in sentences. We also group our sentences in paragraphs.

A paragraph is a group of sentences which together express an important thought. In a way, of course, every sentence expresses a thought--a small thought, so to speak. But experience has shown that the educated mind can best understand written language if it can take in several of these smaller thoughts, in as many sentences, in rapid succession, provided only that these smaller thoughts, when taken together, make up a larger thought. A paragraph is, then, the expression of a large or important thought, made up of several smaller or less important thoughts, expressed in sentences.

Note.--Sometimes, but not often, a single sentence represents such an important thought that it can best stand by itself.

A paragraph is indicated to the eye by the fact that the beginning of the first sentence is placed a little way to the right of the left-hand margin; in other words, it is indented. On the printed page, a paragraph is indented only the space which would be occupied by two or three letters. In a written composition the paragraph is indented about an inch.

Another fact that makes it easy for the eye to recognize a paragraph is that it frequently does not close with the end of a line.

When, therefore, you look at a piece of printed or written composition, you see at once that you are to receive a certain number of thoughts or ideas, each of which is placed in a section or paragraph by itself. In listening to an address or oration you notice the separation between the thoughts by the fact that the speaker usually makes a pause of several seconds to indicate that he has finished the expression of one thought and is now ready to pass on to another.

Note.--In writing a long conversation, it is usually customary to make each speech of each person a paragraph by itself, even if it consists of only a few words. This is because it is of the utmost importance, in reading an account of a conversation, to know just who is speaking.

10. The Beginning.--We group our sentences. But how shall we begin? What sentences shall come first? Usually we shall express our thoughts most clearly if we begin with a sentence that shows in brief what the whole paragraph is about. This is sometimes called the topic sentence, because it is the sentence that states the topic or central idea of the paragraph.

EXAMPLES. 1. To the simple-hearted folk who dwelt in that island three thousand years ago, there was never a sweeter spot than sea-girt Ithaca. Rocky and rugged though it may have seemed, yet it was indeed a smiling land embosomed in the laughing sea. There the air was always mild and pure, and balmy with the breath of blossoms; the sun looked kindly down from a cloudless sky, and the storms seldom broke the quiet ripple of the waters which bathed the shores of that island home. On every side but one, the land rose straight up out of the deep sea to meet the feet of craggy hills and mountains crowned with woods. Between the heights were many narrow dells green with orchards, while the gentler slopes were covered with vineyards, and the steeps above them gave pasturage to flocks of long-wooled sheep and mountain-climbing goats.--JAMES BALDWIN: A Story of the Golden Age.

[Here the first sentence shows that the paragraph is to be about the beauty of the island.]

2. Upon the ridge above our tent was a third tiny clearing, where some trappers had once made their winter camp. It was there that I watched the rabbits one moonlight night from my seat on an old log, just within the shadow at the edge of the opening. The first arrival came in with a rush. There was a sudden scurry behind me, and over the log he came with a flying leap that landed him on the smooth bit of ground in the middle, where he whirled around and around with grotesque jumps, like a kitten after its tail. Only Br'er Rabbit's tail was too short for him ever to catch it; he seemed rather to be trying to get a good look at it. Then he went off helter-skelter in a headlong rush through the ferns. Before I knew what had become of him, over the log he came again in a marvelous jump, and went tearing around the clearing like a circus horse, varying his performance now by a high leap, now by two or three awkward hops on his hind legs, like a dancing bear. It was immensely entertaining.--WILLIAM J. LONG: Ways of Wood Folk.

[Here the first two sentences show that the paragraph is to be about watching rabbits in a clearing by moonlight.]

3. Soon after he was raised to the dignity of postmaster another piece of good fortune came in his way. Sangamon County covered a territory some forty miles long by fifty wide, and almost every citizen in it seemed intent on buying or selling land, laying out new roads, or locating some future city. John Calhoun, the county surveyor, therefore, found himself with far more work than he could personally attend to, and had to appoint deputies to assist him. Learning the high esteem in which Lincoln was held by the people of New Salem, he wisely concluded to make him a deputy, although they differed in politics. It was a flattering offer, and Lincoln accepted gladly. Of course he knew almost nothing about surveying, but he got a compass and chain, and, as he tells us, "studied Flint and Gibson a little, and went at it." The surveyor, who was a man of talent and education, not only gave Lincoln the appointment, but, it is said, lent him the book in which to study the art. Lincoln carried the book to his friend Graham, and "went at it" to such purpose that in six weeks he was ready to begin the practice of his new profession. Like Washington, who, it will be remembered, followed the same calling in his youth, he became an excellent surveyor.--HELEN NICOLAY: The Boys' Life of Abraham Lincoln.

[Here the first sentence shows that the paragraph is to be about a new piece of good fortune in Lincoln's life.]

When you are writing a composition in a single paragraph, you will find the topic sentence very useful. In no other way can you so quickly give the reader a notion of what to expect. But it is not necessary always to begin with a topic sentence. What is important is that you begin with a hint that will turn the reader's thoughts in the right direction. Look at the beginnings of several paragraphs in your reader, and you will see how the hint is given.

Exercise 28.--What do the opening sentences in the following paragraphs show?

1. One cold morning early in December, 1800, a party of tourists was crossing the Alps,--a pretty large party, too, for there were several thousands of them. Some were riding, some walking, and most of them had knapsacks on their shoulders like many Alpine tourists nowadays. But instead of walking sticks, they carried muskets with bayonets, and dragged along with them some fifty or sixty cannons.

2. There was one among them who seemed quite to enjoy the rough marching and tramping along through the deep snow and cold gray mist. This was a little drummer boy ten years old, whose fresh, rosy face looked very bright and pretty among the grim, scarred visages of the old soldiers. When the cutting wind hurled a shower of snow in his face, he dashed it away with a cheery laugh, and awoke all the echoes with a lively rattle on his drum, till it seemed as if the huge black rocks around were all singing in chorus.

3. Ezekiel made the first plea. His argument was a strong one against all wild and destructive animals in general, and against this woodchuck in particular. He called attention to the damage which had been done already to the growing vegetables, and to the further mischief which might be done if the animal were set free.

4. Between two cliffs lay a deep ravine, with a full stream rolling heavily through it over bowlders and rough ground. It was high and steep, and one side was bare, save at the foot, where clustered a thick, fresh wood, so close to the stream that the mist from the water lay upon the foliage in spring and autumn. The trees stood looking upwards and forwards, unable to move either way.

Exercise 29.--Supply topic sentences for the following paragraphs:--

1. He [George Washington] was very tall, powerfully made, with a strong, handsome face. He was remarkably muscular and powerful. As a boy, he was a leader in all outdoor sports. No one could fling the bar farther than he, and no one could ride more difficult horses.

2. It [the old-fashioned school] is a large, dingy room, with a sanded floor, and is lighted by windows that turn on hinges, and have little diamond-shaped panes of glass. The scholars sit on long benches, with desks before them. At one end of the room is a great fireplace, so spacious that there is room enough for three or four boys to stand in each of the chimney corners.

3. The hall [of the Imperial library] is two hundred and forty-five feet long, with a magnificent dome in the center. The walls are of variegated marble, richly ornamented with gold, and the ceiling and dome are covered with brilliant fresco paintings. The library numbers three hundred thousand volumes and sixteen thousand manuscripts, which are kept in walnut cases, adorned with medallions.

4. [The Country Boy's Vacation.] When school keeps he has only to "do chores and go to school," but between terms there are a thousand things on the farm that have been left for the boys to do. Picking up stones in the pastures and piling them in heaps used to be one of them.

5. [Recess in a Country School.] He is like a deer; he can nearly fly; and he throws himself into play with entire self-forgetfulness, and an energy that would overturn the world if his strength were proportioned to it. For ten minutes the world is absolutely his; the weights are taken off, restraints are loosed, and he is his own master.

Exercise 30.--Write short paragraphs to complete three of the following topic sentences:--

1. From the summit of the hill they saw the sun set.

2. When the flames were out, we saw how great the damage was.

3. In a moment, the storm was upon them.

4. At ten years old, I was taken to help my father in his business.

5. It was a beautiful little craft.

6. There stood Lincoln, a remarkable figure.