sentences into a single sentence by changing some of them into modifying words or clauses:

I. Years passed away. Paul grew up; he was a quiet boy. He was unpretending. He had a shy look and awkward behavior.

2. Generally he kept apart. He took care of the twins. He would sit for hours and work at some wood-carving. 3. Meanwhile, he would not say a word to anyone. He had little intercourse with boys of his own age even at school.

4. The old seaman sat before the fire. It threw fantastic shadows on the walls.

5. He wore his hair in a tarry pigtail. This fell over the shoulders of his soiled blue coat.

6. Every day he would come back from his stroll. He would ask if any sea-faring men had gone along the road.

7. I remember the wooden sea-chest. It stood in his room. It was fastened with a heavy lock. None of us had ever seen it open.

8. I remember the appearance of his coat. He patched it himself. Before the end it was nothing but patches.

9. It was already candle-light. We reached the hamlet. We hoped to find aid there.

SECTION V. THE TOPIC AND THE PARAGRAPH

In writing a composition, then, you must know what subject you are going to write about; you must treat that subject and nothing else. Very often you will find that your subject contains but one topic. Many editorials, many an

ecdotes, some poems, treat only one topic. Generally, however, you will find that your subject falls into two or three main topics.

Suppose you were going to write about how you spent your holiday. You would probably find that your subject divided into two topics; what happened in the morning, and what happened in the afternoon. If the morning had been dull, but the afternoon had been interesting because of three things that happened, you would doubtless begin your composition with the statement that there was nothing to tell about the morning, and then you would go on to treat the three interesting events of the afternoon. If you were telling how you cooked a meal, your first topic might be an account of how you planned your courses, and the second, how you carried out your plan. Or your first topic might be, "Collecting and Preparing the Different Articles of Food," and the second, "Cooking and Serving the Meal."

Most subjects, then, contain several topics, or main parts. In order to make these easily evident to the eye, compositions are divided into paragraphs. Each paragraph states a topic and then discusses it.

Just as you must deal with one subject in your whole composition, so you must deal with one part of your subject in each paragraph. A paragraph must treat of one topic and one only; it must stick to the point.

THE LAST LESSON

[After the Franco-Prussian war the French provinces of Alsace and Lorraine were ceded to the Germans.]

That morning it was quite late before I started for school, and I was terribly afraid I should be scolded, for Monsieur Hamel had told us that he would question us upon participles, and I did not know the first thing about

them. The blackbirds whistling upon the outskirts of the woods, the Prussians drilling in the meadow, tempted me, but I went on my way. When I reached the town hall, I saw a group of people who loitered before the little grating, reading the placards posted upon it. For two years, every bit of bad news about our lost battles had been announced to us from that grating. As I hurried across the square, the blacksmith told me that I should reach Monsieur Hamel's soon enough, but I thought he was making fun of me. I was all out of breath when I arrived.

Usually the place was full of uproar, all of us reciting lessons at the top of our voices, all shouting together, and each of us stopping his ears that he might hear better. But on this day a Sabbath stillness reigned. I entered in the midst of that deep silence, blushing, but Monsieur Hamel, without anger, told me to take my seat quickly. When I had recovered from my fright, I noticed that our master had on his handsome green frock-coat, and his finest frilled shirt which he wore only upon inspection days, or upon those occasions when prizes were distributed. But the greatest surprise of all came when my eye fell upon the benches at the farther end of the room. Usually, they were empty, but this morning, the villagers sat there, solemn as ourselves.

"My children," said Monsieur Hamel, in a grave and gentle tone, "this is the last day I shall teach you. The order has come from Berlin that henceforth in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine all instruction shall be given in German. Your new master will arrive to-morrow. Today you hear the last lesson you will receive in French, and I beg you will be most attentive."

My last French lesson! and I scarcely knew how to write! How I grudged every moment I had lost! And those books which a moment before were so dull and heavy seemed now to wear the faces of old friends to whom I could not bear to bid farewell. Now I understood why Monsieur Hamel wore his finest clothes, why the villagers had come. I was busied with these reflections when Monsieur Hamel called on me to recite. Ah! what would I not have given then had I been able to repeat from beginning to end that famous rule for the use of the participles;

but I became entangled in the first few words. Monsieur Hamel, however, did not chide me. Instead, he began to speak of the French language, saying it was' the clearest, most beautiful language in the world, which we must keep as our heritage, never allowing it to be forgotten, telling us that when a nation has become enslaved, she holds the key which shall unlock her prison as long as she preserves. her native tongue. Then he took a grammar and read our lesson to us, and I was amazed to see how well I understood. After that, he set us at writing, giving us copies on which he had written in a beautiful round hand, "France, Alsace! France, Alsace!" Not a sound was heard but the scratching of our pens. Once, some cockchafers entered the room, but not even the tiniest pupils paid the least attention to them. They were absorbed in tracing their straight strokes as conscientiously as if these, too, were written in French. Whenever I looked up from my page, I saw Monsieur Hamel gazing fixedly about the little school where he had taught for forty years.

Suddenly, we heard the church clock strike twelve, and the Angelus. At the same moment, a trumpet blast under our windows announced that the Prussians were returning from drill. Monsieur Hamel rose in his chair. He was very pale; never before had he seemed to me so tall as at that moment. He tried to speak, but he could not finish his sentence. Then he took a piece of chalk, and wrote in his largest hand, "Vive la France!" He remained standing at the blackboard, his head resting against the wall. He did not speak again, but a motion of his hand said to us, "That is all. You are dismissed."

Adapted from the French of Daudet.

The first paragraph tells how Francois set out for school, and what he saw on the way. The second relates how he entered the silent room, and what he saw there. The third is a short paragraph of conversation in which Monsieur Hamel tells the children that they are studying their last French lesson. The fourth long paragraph gives an account of the lesson, and the fifth tells of the dismissal. Each para