OF THE MEANING. town? 3. At what time did she set out? 4. Did she reach the town? etc., etc. 3. QUESTIONS ON THE MEANINGS. (These are generally few in Wordsworth's poems; and very few in this.)-1. What is the difference between a mate and a comrade? [A mate may be a playmate, or a schoolmate; a comrade is a habitual companion.] 2. Meaning of spy? 3. Of minster? [A cathedral.] 4. Meaning of plied his work? etc., etc., etc. [A 4. QUESTIONS ON THE PAUSES.-1. What pause would you make in the second line? [A slight pause after dwelt.] 2. In the third line? [After thing.] 3. Would you make a pause at grew? [No; we should read that ever grew-besidea-cottage-door straight on.] 4. What pause in the first line of the second verse? [After yet, a slight pause.] 5. In the second? [After hare.] 6. In the third? A slight pause after face.] 7. In the fourth? [Two pauses-one after will and another after more.] 8. What pause in the first line of the third verse? [A slight pause after to-night.] 9. In the second line? [After town.] 10. What pauses in the third line? [Two pauses-where the commas are.] 11. Any pause at light? [No; the sense must run on.] 12. What pause in the last line? slight pause after mother.] 13. What pauses in the first line of the fourth verse? [Two-where the commas are.] 14. In the second line? [None.] 15. In the third line? [One after clock and one after just.] 16. In the last line? [One after yonder.] 17. What pause in the first line of the fifth verse? [A slight pause after this.] 18. In the second line? [None.] 19. In the third? [One where the comma is.] 20. Any at took? [No; the sense must run on.] 21. What pause in the first line of the sixth verse? [One after blither.] 22. In the second? [After stroke.] 23. In the third ? [None.] 24. In the last ? [After up.] 25. What pause in the first line of the seventh verse? [One after storm.] 26. In the second line? [After wandered a very slight pause.] 27. In the third? [After hill.] 28. In the last? [After never.] 29. In the first line of the eighth verse? [One after parents.] 30. In the second? [After shouting.] 31. In the third? [Two pauses-one after sound and the other after sight.] 32. In the last? [After them.] 33. What pauses in the first line of the ninth verse? [Three-one after daybreak, and one after hill, and one after stood.] 34. In the second? [None.] 35. In the third? [After thence.] 36. In the last ? [None.] 37. What pauses in the first line of the tenth verse? [Three-where the commas are.] 38. In the second? [One after heaven.] 39. In the third? [Two slight pauses-one after when, and the other after snow.] 40. Any pause after spied? [No; the sense must run on.] 41. In the last line? [None.] 42. What pauses in the first line of the eleventh verse? [Two-one at the comma, and another after edge.] 43. In the second line? [None.] 44. In the third ? [A slight pause after and.] 45. In the last? [A slight pause after and.] 46. What pauses in the first line of the twelfth verse? [Two-one after there, and another after crossed.] 47. In the second line? [After marks.] 48. In the third? [Two: where the commas are.] 49. In the last ? [A slight pause after and.] 50. What pauses in the first line of the thirteenth verse? [Two: one after followed, and another after bank.] 51. In the second line? [Three: two where the commas are, and another after the first one.] 52. In the third line? [One after middle.] 53. In the last? [Two; one after and, and another after further.] (The questions on the last verse will be the same as those on the second.) 5. QUESTIONS ON THE EMPHASIS. (These may be intermingled, if the teacher prefers it, with the questions on Pauses; but they are here kept distinct, for the sake, merely, of the proper division of the subject.)-1. What are the most emphatic words in the first line of the first verse? [No and no.] 2. In the second? There are no specially emphatic words.] 3. In the third ? [Sweetest and ever.] 4. Which of these two is the most emphatic? [Sweetest.] 5. In the last line? [None.] 6. In the first line of the second verse? [A quiet emphasis on yet.] 7. In the second? [None.] 8. In the third ? [On the words sweet face.] 9. In the last? [On never more.] 10. In the first line of the third verse? [None.] 11. In the second? [None.] 12. In the third? [None.] 13. In the last? [A mild emphasis on mother.] 14. What emphasis in the first line of the fourth verse? Two: one on that, and another on gladly.] 15. In the second? [A slight emphasis on afternoon.] 16. In the third? [On fast.] 17. In the last? [An emphasis of mild surprise-on yonder.] 18. Any emphasis in the first line of the fifth verse? [No.] 19. In the second? [No. 20. In the next two? [None at all.] 21. Any emphasis in the first line of the sixth verse? [One on not, and one on blither.] 22. In the next three lines? [None at all.] 23. What emphatic word is there in the first line of the seventh verse? [Time.] 24. In the second? [Two words: up and down.] 25. In the third? [A weighty emphasis on many.] 26. In the last ? [A sad emphasis on never.] 27. What emphasis in the first line of the eighth verse? [One on all.] 28. In the second? [None.] 29. In the third? [A slight emphasis on sound and on sight.] 30. In the last? [None.] 31. In the first line of the ninth verse? [A slight emphasis on hill.] 32. In the second ? [None.] 33. In the next two? [None.] 34. What emphatic word in the first line of the tenth verse? [Wept.] 35. In the second? [Heaven.] 36. In the next two? [A slight emphasis on feet.] 37. In the first line of the eleventh_verse? [Breathless.] 38. In the second? [None.] 39. In the next two? [None.] 40. In the first line of the twelfth verse? [None.] 41. In the second? [Two: one on still, and another on same.] 42. In the third ? [A slight emphasis upon on.] 43. In the last? [On bridge.] 44. In the first line of the thirteenth verse? [None.] 45. In the second? [One and one.] 46. In the last two? [A sad emphasis upon none.] 6. QUESTIONS ON CAUTIONS. (These may be intermingled with the QUESTIONS on PAUSES and EMPHASIS, if the teacher prefers it; but they are here kept distinct, for the sake of a clear division of the subject.)-1. First verse, second line. What word in this line must we take care not to accent? [The word on; we must say on-a-wide-moor.] 2. What danger is there in the second line of the second verse? [The danger of putting an accent on upon.] 3. How shall we best avoid it? [By making a slight pause after hare, and reading it thus: The hare upon-the-green.] 4. What wrong accent would naturally appear in the third line? [The accent on the.] 5. How avoid it ? [Make a slight pause after but, and then hurry on to sweet. Thus : But the sweet face of Lucy Gray.] 6. First line of the third verse. What wrong accent comes naturally to our minds here? [The accent on be.] 7. How shall we best avoid it? [By making a slight pause after to-night, and then hurrying on to stormy. We should read it thus: To-night will-be-a-stormy-night.] 8. What is the danger in the second line? [The danger is of putting the accent on to.] 9. How may we best avoid it? [By hurrying on to the word town, and reading the line You-to-the-town must go.] 10. What danger is there in the third line? [Of putting an accent or emphasis on take, which does not require one.] 11. How is this to be avoided? [By hastening on to the word lantern.] 12. What danger is there in the last line? [Of putting the accent, and therefore an emphasis, on through.] 13. How may this be avoided? [By making a pause after mother, and connecting the words through-the-snow together.] 14. The first line of the fourth verse-is there any danger here? [Yes; the verse-accent drives the voice upon I, and makes it too OF THE MEANING. 11 prominent.] 15. How can we get over this? [By making a rather longer pause than usual after father, and by hastening on to the emphatic word gladly. 16. Any danger in the second line? [No.] 17. In the third? [Yes; there is the danger of pronouncing struck two as one word, with the accent upon two.] 18. How shall we avoid this? [By making a slight pause after just, and another slight pause after struck.] 19. In the last line? [Yes; there is a danger of placing the accent, and therefore an emphasis, on is, which would quite destroy the sense.] 20. How avoid it ? [By making a slight pause after yonder, and by hastening on to the word moon.]21. The last line of the fifth verse. What is the danger there? [Of putting the accent, and therefore an emphasis, on in.] 22. How avoid it? [By making a slight pause after lantern, and by reading inher-hand as if it were one word.] 23. Any danger in the first line of the sixth verse? Yes; we must be very cautious not to place the accent on is.] 24. How can this be done? [By making a slight pause after blither.] 25. In the last line of this verse? We must avoid the accent on up.] 26. How? [By making a slight pause after up, and putting the accent upon rises. 27. What danger is there in the first line of the seventh verse? [The danger of placing the accent upon on.] 28. How avoid it? [By making a slight pause after storm, and by hastening on to the important word time. Thus: The storm came-on-before-its-time.] 29. What is the danger in the first line of the eighth verse? [There is a danger of sinking the importance of the word that in the phrase that night.] 30. How can we overcome this? [By pronouncing the three words all that night with the same weight of accent and emphasis.] 31. In the third line? [The accent strikes the word there, which is absurd.] 32. How shall we escape this? [By making a slight pause after but, and by hastening on to the two important words sound and sight.] 33. In the last line? [The danger of placing the accent on for.] 34. How avoid it? [By making a slight pause after them.] 35. In the first line of the eighth verse? [The accent strikes the word on, which is absurd.] 36. How escape it? [By making a slight pause after daybreak, and by reading on-a-hill as one word.] 37. In the second line? The danger is of placing the accent on over, whereas it ought to be on looked.] 38. In the third line? The accent strikes the word saw, which therefore seems to be emphatic.] 39. How avoid it? [By making a slight pause after thence, and by hastening on to the more important words bridge-of-wood.] 40. In the last line? [The accent strikes the word from, which therefore seems to be an emphatic word.] 41. How avoid this? [By making a slight pause after furlong, and by hastening on to the word door.] 42. The third line of the ninth verse, what is the danger? [Of placing the accent upon in.] 43. How escape it? [By making a slight pause after when and by hastening on to the word snow.] 44. In the first line of the tenth verse, what danger? [Of placing the accent, and therefore an emphasis, on from.] 45. How avoid this? [By making a proper pause after breathless, and by hastening on to the important words.] 46. In the third line? [Of placing the accent upon through.] 47. How escape this ? [By making a slight pause after and, and hastening on to the important words.] 48. In the last line? [The accent falls on by; and this is avoided by making a pause after and, and going on to the more important words long stone wall.] 49. Any other danger in this line? [Yes; of making stone-wall one word, and not giving stone its full allowance of sound.] 50. The last line of the eleventh verse. What danger is here? [Of placing the accent upon to.] 51. How avoid it? [By pausing after and, and going on to the important word bridge.] 52. What danger is there in the first line of the twelfth verse? [Of placing the accent upon from.] 53. How can we avoid this? [By a slight pause after followed, and by hastening on to the more important word bank.] 54. In the third line? [The danger is of placing the accent upon the last syllable of into.] 55. How evade it? [By reading it as if it were a piece of prose.] 56. In the last line? [The accent strikes there, which is absurd.] 57. How evade it? [By making a long pause after further, and then by hastening on to the all-important word none.] Or we may suppose the lesson to be read is Leigh Hunt's poem-JAFFAR.* The following will then be the proper course to pursue with it. 1. INTRODUCTION. (To be given to the class, the books shut.)-Jaffar was the Vizier, or Prime Minister, of an Eastern Caliph, called Haroun, who ruled over Persia and Arabia (A.D. 786). He was a member of the family of the Barmecides— a family which had always helped the Caliphs, and promoted their strength and power. Jaffar was the friend of poor men; and many a one had he raised, not so much by assistance in money, as by brotherly encouragement and sympathy, *JAFFAR. Jaffar, the Barmecide, the good Vizier, The poor man's hope, the friend without a peer,— 5 Of what the good, and e'en the bad might say, Should dare to speak his name on pain of death.- All but the brave Mondeer.-He, proud to show. "Bring me this man," the caliph cried: the man From wants, from shames, from loveless household fears; 25 Haroun, who felt that on a soul like this He said, "Let worth grow frenzied if it will; And hold the giver as thou deemest fit." "Gifts!" cried the friend. He took; and holding it 35 High towards the heavens, as though to meet his star, Exclaimed, "This, too, I owe to thee, Jaffar." from hopelessness and misery up to self-respect and cheerfulness. But the Caliph Haroun had become jealous of Jaffar, and had him put to death; and he also issued an edict that his name should never be uttered again throughout his dominions. All his subjects obeyed-except one, a man called Mondeer, who had been inspired and strengthened by the strong heart and noble soul of Jaffar. This man not only dared to disobey the caliph's order, but went every day and spoke in front of Jaffar's house to the crowd, of the great benefits which the country owed to the thoughtful and enlightened Jaffar. He was arrested and brought before the caliph. But Haroun very soon saw that he could not punish a man like this; and, on a sudden thought, handed Mondeer the richest gem in his imperial crown. Mondeer took it, did not thank him at all, but simply held it up and cried: "This is a gift from thee, too, Oдnoblest friend, my friend Jaffar!" 2. QUESTIONS ON THE STORY. (The books open.)-1. Who was Jaffar? 2. Who was Haroun ? 3. What was the relation between them? 4. What was the fate of Jaffar? 5. What edict did Haroun issue after putting Jaffar to death? 6. Who disobeyed this edict? 7. Why? 8. How far did Mondeer go in disobeying it? 9. What was the consequence? 10. What did Mondeer say when the mutes began to bind him? 11. What did Haroun, observing Mondeer's conduct, at once see? 12. What did he offer him? 13. What was Mondeer's only reply? 3. QUESTIONS ON THE MEANINGS.-1. What is a Vizier? [Prime Minister to an Eastern Caliph or Sultan.] 2. What is the meaning of the phrase without a peer? [Without an equal.] 3. Turn the phrase into one word. [Peerless.] 4. Meaning of doom? [Judgment.] 5. Explain the next two lines. [Haroun had a bad conscience, and it hurt him to think that people were talking about his wickedness and injustice to Jaffar.] 6. Meaning of held their breath? [Did not speak a word about Jaffar.] 7. Meaning of the line Facing death for very scorn and grief? [Mondeer felt so full of misery and sorrow for the death of his dear and noble friend, and so indignant at the injustice of the caliph, that he did not care a straw for his own life; and it would have been a real relief to him to die by the hands of the executioner.] 8. Meaning of harangued? [Addressed, made speeches to.] 9. The tremblers at the scymitar? [The people who were afraid that, if they spoke of Jaffar, they would be put to death.] 10. Meaning of the mutes? [They were the executioners, who perform their office without speaking.] 11. Meaning of put me on a par? [Put me on a level-made me his equal.] 12. Explain the line The mightiest vengeance could not fall amiss. [The most dreadful punishment would have no effect-he would simply triumph over it; and the people would now begin to talk, not only of the terrible injustice done to Jaffar, but of the still more terrible injustice done to Mondeer.] 13. Meaning of deigned? [Condescended.] 14. Meaning of frenzied? [Driven out of one's senses.] 15. Meaning of Let worth grow frenzied? [Let worthy or good people go out of their wits, the judgment of the caliph must always be calm, level, and conscientious-and so master of all.] 16. Meaning of as though to meet his star? [As if to salute the star which governed his life and fortunes.] 4. QUESTIONS ON PAUSES.-1. What pause would you make in the last half of the second line? [A slight pause after the friend.] 2. What pauses in the third line? [One after Jaffar-because it resumes the sense, and introduces the most important statement in the first part of the poem; and one after slain-to express the feeling.] 3. What pause in the fifth line? [One after bad-so as to give the words the bad a strong emphasis. Haroun was afraid of even what the bad -might say.] 4. Pause in the sixth line? [A slight pause after Ordained-to introduce the substance of the ordinance or edict.] 5. Any other? [Yes: a slight pause after living.] 6. Pause in the ninth line? [A long pause of feeling after All. The pause here is, in fact, so strong that the reader might dare to re |