made said to be taken? Give the sentences in which this is again referred to. Read stanza two, and tell how the sight of the flag affects the soldiers marching to battle. How is the flag described in the first line of this stanza? In the first line of the last stanza? What do the stirring words of the last selection command us to do? Why should we do this? Under what conditions should we stand by the flag? Can you mention a time when men have faced death to defend the flag of our country? What does the American flag stand for? Is this a reason why every one who loves freedom should reverence it? A STUDY OF WORDS AND SENTENCES Write all the sentences in which the color of the flag is referred to in these selections. Give the words that are used in speaking of each of these colors. Notice which of these are used in prose and which in poetry. Write all the sentences in these selections in which the motion of the flag is referred to. Give the exact words in which each motion is mentioned. What hope regarding the flag does each of these writers express? Give the words in which each states this. How may you help to fulfil this wish or hope for the flag ? NOTE. If desired, a composition exercise may follow. The teacher may give such outline for this as is thought best. For additional study, "The American Flag," by Henry Ward Beecher; "Union and Liberty," by O. W. Holmes. CORRECT LANGUAGE FORMS 83 LESSON L COMPOSITION THE FLAG'S STORY Write the story which a flag, carried at the mast-head of one of our war vessels in the Spanish-American War, might tell of where it went, what it saw, and how it felt. Use such words in your composition as will make your description clear and exact. Try to present the pictures so that they can be actually seen. NOTE. The writing of this story will afford an excellent opportunity for the exercise of the imagination and the expression of the emotions. LESSON LI CORRECT LANGUAGE FORMS Learn and teach are often incorrectly used, the one for the other. Teach means to give instruction; learn, to gain or receive knowledge. For example, in speaking of giving instruction, you may say, "I will teach you to sing," or, "I will teach you to write." If you wish to speak of receiving instruction yourself, you say, “I am learning to sing," or, "I am learning to sew." Explain the use of the words teach and learn in the fol lowing quotations: Lord, teach me to pray. Learn to do well. Learn to live, and live to learn. Most wretched men Are cradled into poetry by wrong; They learn in suffering what they teach in song.-SHELLEY. No man will learn any thing at all, Unless he first will learn humility. — MEREDITH. Copy the following, filling the blank spaces with teach and learn:· The boy who uses his eyes on his book, and observes the words and letters of his lesson most accurately and carefully, that is the boy who his lesson best. CHARLES KINGSLEY. me thy ways, O Lord. - Psalm xxvii. 11. Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will of the Lord. - Psalm xxxiv. 11. you the fear We must to use our eyes, if we would see the wonderful things all about us. Write four sentences containing teach; four containing learn. The word guess is often incorrectly used for think. As guess means to judge without knowing, and think means to believe, to consider, we should be careful in the use of these words. We guess what some one holds in his closed hand, or we guess the answer to a riddle, but we think we shall go to the concert, or we think we shall read the book. Explain the use of the words think and guess in the following sentences: Columbus said, "I think that the earth is round; and if I only had a good ship or two, and some trusty sailors, I would prove it." VARIETY OF EXPRESSION 85 After asking the children to guess what he had in the cage, John showed them two frisky squirrels. be "Yes," said the father, "I think my son is willing to pure and true, brave and unselfish." Mary said, "I guess that there are six peas in this pod." Copy the following, filling the blank spaces with think and guess: I Cooper's "Deerslayer" is very interesting. We cannot I I the answer to the riddle. the prize will be a silver cup. you will find that the picture was painted by Millet. Can you how many books I have? Write four sentences containing think; four containing guess. LESSON LII VARIETY OF EXPRESSION SUNRISE The golden sun salutes the morn, SUNSET Softly the evening came. The sun from the western horizon The starry heaven never fails to excite an idea of grandeur. This cannot be owing to anything in the stars themselves, separately considered. The number is certainly the cause. Many a night I saw the Pleiads, rising thro' the mellow shade, Glitter like a swarm of fire-flies tangled in a silver braid. -TENNYSON. Write sentences about the sun rising, expressing the thought in as many ways as you can. Write sentences about the sun setting, expressing your thought in different ways. Write sentences, using as many different expressions as you can, in speaking of the moon. Write sentences, using different expressions in speaking of the stars. NOTE. Additional exercises of this kind should be given. LESSON LIII COMBINATION OF SENTENCES Several short sentences may often be combined into one, to avoid the broken effect of short incomplete statements. In combining them they may be arranged in such a way |