21/71 "Some words, from the different ways in which they are used, belong sometimes to one part of speech, sometimes to another."-- _M'Culloch's Gram._, p.37. "And so say all other Grammarians."-- _Tooke, as above_. The history of _Dr.Webster_, as a grammarian, is singular. He is remarkable for his changeableness, yet always positive; for his inconsistency, yet very learned; for his zeal "to correct popular errors," yet often himself erroneous; for his fertility in resources, yet sometimes meagre; for his success as an author, yet never satisfied; for his boldness of innovation, yet fond of appealing to antiquity. His grammars are the least judicious, and at present the least popular, of his works. |