j. Terza Rima.-Like the last, borrowed both in name and nature from the Italian, and scarcely yet naturalized in England.

The Spirit of the fervent days of old,

When words were things that came to pass, and Thought

Flash'd o'er the future, bidding men behold

Their children's children's doom already brought
Forth from the abyss of Time which is to be,
The chaos of events where lie half-wrought
Shapes that must undergo mortality:

What the great seers of Israel wore within,
That Spirit was on them and is on me;
And if, Cassandra-like, amidst the din

Of conflicts, none will hear, or hearing heed
This voice from out the Wilderness, the sin
Be theirs, and my own feelings be my meed,

The only guerdon I have ever known.-BYRON.

k. Alexandrines.-Six measures; like the last, generally, perhaps always, with rhyme. The name is said to be taken from the fact that early romances upon the deeds of Alexander of Macedon, of great popularity, were written in this metre. One of the longest poems in the English language is in Alexandrines, viz. Drayton's Poly-olbion.

Ye sacred bárds that to your hárps' melódious strings
Sung th' ancient héroes' deeds, the mónuménts of kings;
If, as those Drúids taught who kept the British rítes,
And dwélt in dárksome groves, there cóunselling with sprítes,
When thése our souls by death our bodies dó forsáke,
They instantly again to other bodies take,

I could have wish'd your souls redoubled ín my breast,

To give my vérse applause to tíme's etérnal rést. - DRAYTON.

1. Spenserian Stanza.-A stanza consisting of nine lines, the eight first heroics, the last an Alexandrine.

It hath been through all ages ever seen,
That with the prize of arms and chivalrie
The prize of beauty still hath joined been,
And that for reason's special privitie;
For either doth on other much rely.
For he meseems most fit the fair to serve
That can her best defend from villanie;
And she most fit his service doth deserve,
That fairest is, and from her faith will never swerve.

SPENSER.

Childe Harold and other important poems are composed in the

Spenserian stanza.

I

m. Service Metre.-Couplets of seven measures. This is the common metre of the Psalm versions. It is also called Common Measure, or Long Measure. In this metre there is always a pause after the fourth measure, and many grammarians consider that with that pause the line ends. According to this view, the service metre does not consist of two long lines with seven measures each; but of four short ones, with four and three measures each alternately. The Psalm versions are printed so as to exhibit this pause or break.

The Lord descended from above, and bow'd the heavens most high,

And underneath his feet He cast the darkness of the sky.
On Cherubs and on Seraphim | full royally He rode,
And on the wings of mighty winds came flying all abroad.
STERNHOLD AND HOPKINS.

When the

In this matter the following rule is convenient. last syllable of the fourth measure in the one verse rhymes with the corresponding syllable in the other, the long verse should be looked upon as broken up into two short ones; in other words, the couplets should be dealt with as a stanza. Where there is no rhyme except at the seventh measure, the verse should remain undivided. Thus :

Turn, gentle hermit of the glen, and guide thy lonely way
To where yon taper cheers the vale | with hospitable ray-

constitute a single couplet of two lines, the number of rhymes being two. But,

Turn, gentle hermit of the dale,

And guide thy lonely way

To where yon taper cheers the vale

With hospitable ray.-GOLDSMITH.

constitute a stanza of four lines, the number of rhymes being four.

n. Ballad Stanza.-Service metre broken up in the way just indicated. Goldsmith's Edwin and Angelina, &c., from which the last stanza was an extract.

o. Poulterer's Measure.-Alexandrines and service metre alternately.

115

PARSING.

§. Parse from the Latin per se (by itself). It meant, originally, to take, in teaching the alphabet, each letter separately. It now means to take each word separately.

§. There are two kinds of Parsing-Logical Parsing and Grammatical Parsing.

§. Grammatical Parsing deals with the words which constitute sentences as so many Nouns, Pronouns, Verbs, Participles, &c., taking cognizance of them as Parts of Speech.

EXAMPLE OF GRAMMATICAL PARSING.

"The abbot on the threshold stood,

And in his hand the holy rood;

Back on his shoulders flow'd his hood."

The-Definite Article, same root as the Demonstratives this,

that.

Abbot-Substantive Common, nominative to stood, Singular.
On-Preposition, governing threshold.

The-Definite Article.

Threshold Substantive Common, Singular, Objective case, governed by on.

Stood-Third person, Singular, Past Tense, Indicative Mood, from the Verb stand, Intransitive, strong Conjugation.

And-Conjunction Copulative.

In-Preposition, governing hand.

His-Possessive Case of Personal Pronoun, Singular, third

Person.

Hand-Substantive Common, Singular, Objective Case, governed The-Definite Article.

by in.

Holy-Adjective, belonging to rood.

Rood-Substantive Common, Singular.

Back-Adverb.

("Was" is understood here.)

On-Preposition, governing shoulders.

His-Possessive Case of the Personal Pronoun, third Person, Singular.

Shoulders-Substantive Common, Plural, Objective Case, governed by on.

Flowed-Third Person, Singular, Past Tense, Indicative Mood, from flow, a Verb, Intransitive, weak Conjugation.

His Possessive Case of the Personal Pronoun, third Person, Singular.

Hood-Substantive Common, Singular, nominative to flowed.

§. Logical Parsing deals with the words which constitute propositions as Terms and Copulas; taking cognizance of them as Subjects or Predicates, or as parts thereof. Under this view

For practical purposes it is useful, as well as customary, to combine the two sorts.

§. The simplest sentences are those which consist of single simple propositions; as

1. The Sun is shining.

2. The Moon is shining.

3. The Sun is red.

4. The Sun is bright.

§. Sentences like

1. The Sun and Moon are shining;
2. The Sun is red and bright,

are anything but simple; for although, when we consider them merely as sentences, they are both short and clear, they each consist of two propositions.

§. The simplest propositions are those that consist of the simplest terms; as

1. Fire is burning,

2. Summer is coming,

3. Man is mortal,

4. I am glad,

and the like; wherein the number of words is threethree and no more; one for the Subject, one for the Predicate, and one for the Copula.

§. The shortest propositions are not always the simplest. When each word represents either a term or copula, their grammatical elements coincide accurately with their logical, as was the case with the preceding examples. When, however, these contain fewer than three words, it is clear that either something must be supplied or that a term and copula are combined in the same word, as is the case with such expressions as

1. Fire burns,

2. Summer comes,

where comes and burns are both Predicate and Copula

at once.

In such expressions as

1. Come,

2. Go, &c.,

the subject is understood.

§. The simplest propositions, then, are those that consist of what is called single-worded terms. Most terms, however, are many-worded. If it were not so, what would become of those words which, though incapable by themselves of forming a name, are still used for forming a part of one-words like the, of, and the like?