3. The Proper Courtesies. When the time comes to break up, note the courtesies that mark the scene. Describe the leave-taking on the part of the members of the party. Write it in form of a letter. 4. Deference. In some homes when a lady, young or old, enters the room, you will note that every gentleman, even to the young boys, rises with marked deference and stands at the back of his chair until the lady chooses where she desires to sit, when all silently resume their seats. Is a little thing like that worth while? Discuss it orally, in a three-minute talk.

5. Hats Off-How about taking off your hats when you speak to a lady or to an old gentleman, on the street? Is it the custom in your school to raise your hat as you meet or pass your teacher or your principal? Oral, two minutes.

6. Politeness on the Street Cars.· - Should a boy rise and yield his seat to a woman, young or old? Discuss this topic. You may write it in one hundred and fifty words, or give it in a two-minute talk.

PART SIX

GRAMMAR

I. PARTS OF SPEECH

The whole fabric of grammar rests upon the classifying of words according to their functions in the sentence.

- BAIN.

Definition of Grammar. - Grammar is the study of the forms of words, and their relation one to another in sentences.1

An easy way to make clear this relation is to analyze the sentence. This consists of pointing out the subject and the predicate and their modifiers.2

1 Emphasis should be placed upon training in the recognition of the relationships of the various parts of the sentence to one another. Comparatively little study of grammatical theory from a text-book is necessary, but a brief outline of the more common uses of parts of speech, phrases, and clauses, may be placed in the pupils' hands as the basis of occasional lessons, and for reference. From the English Syllabus, Board of Regents, New York.

2 The Joint Committee on the Reorganization of High School English states definitely what has been agreed upon as the work of the two grades preceding the high school, under the old arrangement; or the first two grades of the junior high school, under the proposed arrangement. This will be found invaluable for reference by the instructor in English. Grade VII.-Grammar, including subject and predicate, object, predicate noun or adjective; recognition of the parts of speech by chief function of each; inflection of nouns and personal pronouns for number and case; the idea of tense; clauses and phrases as groups with functions of single words; spelling of words used; necessary punctuation.

Definition of the Subject. -The subject of a sentence is that word of which something is affirmed or denied. In the sentence, Wild flowers bloom in the spring, the word flowers is the subject.

Definition of the Predicate. The predicate of a sentence is the word which expresses what is affirmed or denied of the subject. In the sentence, Aladdin commanded the Genius to build him at once the most beautiful palace ever seen, the word commanded is the predicate.

NOTE. Sometimes the subject and all its modifiers are called the subject, and all the rest of the sentence, the predicate. Thus in the sentence above, all the words except Aladdin would be called the predicate.

Analysis of a Sentence. Take this sentence from Van Dyke's Fisherman's Luck:

A black eagle swings silently around his circle, far up in the cloudless sky.

This sentence tells about two things: an eagle; and what it does. The first three words tell about the eagle, while the rest of the sentence tells what the eagle does. It swings. The sentence may be said to be built up from the two words, eagle and swings, of which eagle is the subject, and swings is the predicate.

Two words of the sentence, a and black, belong to the subject, while everything in the sentence from swings to the end, belongs to the predicate. The sentence may be written thus: a black eagle

swings silently around his circle, far up in the cloudless sky

Grade VIII. — Grammar, including essential elements of the sentence (subject, predicate, modifiers, connectives), clauses as parts of compound and complex sentences; common and proper nouns; classes of pronouns ; person, number, and voice of verbs; comparison and classification of adjectives and adverbs; choice of prepositions; conjunctions as coördinating and subordinating; planning of themes; manipulation of sentences; spelling, punctuation.

Written in a still different form, to show how the sentence is built up, that is, to analyze it, it may take this form:

Take another sentence from Fisherman's Luck. Certain

poor fishermen, coming in weary after a night of toil, found their Master standing on the bank of the lake, waiting for them.

In this sentence, fishermen is the subject, and found is the predicate. The sentence is built upon these two words. Certain words seem naturally to belong to each of these two words. Such words are said to be modifiers of the words to which they belong. For instance, the first half of this sentence happens to belong to the subject, up to the word toil; the rest of the sentence, from the word found to the end, just as clearly belongs to the predicate. Simplifying it, it may be written thus:

KILLARNEY.

EXERCISES BASED ON PICTURES

Killarney. The Lakes of Killarney are exquisitely beautiful. Nor are they merely beautiful. The charm of romantic history clings to them. One island in the Killarney Lakes holds Ross Castle, and on another is "Sweet Innisfallen," celebrated by Thomas Moore. On still another is found an old Franciscan ruin, Muckross Abbey.

1. Write a description of the picture, or tell a story, the scene of which is laid in Ross Castle or Muckross Abbey.

2. "Killarney."-There is a song with this title. Let a good reader recite it; or better, let a good singer sing it.