A'DATE is merely the participle datum, which was written by the Romans at the bottom of their epistles. AS DEBT is the past participle of debere; so DUE is the past participle of devoir, and VALUE of valoir. DITTO (adopted by us together with the Italian method of bookeeping) DITTY (in imitation of "As c, put for colde, and o, for olde, "K, is for knaue, thus diuers men holde, "As the first finder mente I am sure "C, for Calot, for of, we haue o, "L, for Leude, D, for Demeanure, "The crafte of the enuentour ye may se lo, Remedye of Loue, fol. 341, pag. 2, col. 1, Junius, Vossius, and Skinner are equally wide of the mark. "Inepte autem Celta, eosque imitati Belge, CUCULUM "vocant illum qui, uxorem habens adulteram, alienos liberos "enutrit pro suis: nam tales Currucas dicere debemus, ut paret ❝ ex natura utriusque avis, et contrario usu vocis cuCULI apud "platum." Vossii, Etym. Lat. "Hi plane confuderunt CUCULUM et Currucam.” Junius. "Certum autem est nostrum CUCKOLD, non a cuculo ortum duxisse tales enim non cuculi sunt, sed Curruca: non sua "ova aliis supponunt; sed e contra, aliena sibi supposita "incubant et fovent." Skinner. The whole difficulty of the etymologists, and their imputation upon us of absurdity, are at once removed by observing, that, in English, we do not call them CUCULI, but cuculati (if I may coin the word on this occasion) i. e. We call them not cuckows but cuckowed. the Italian verses), BANDITE, BANDETTO, BANDITTI, EDICT, VERDICT, INTERDICT, are past participles of dicere and dire. "No savage fierce, BANDITE, or mountaneer Comus, v. 426. "A Roman sworder and BANDETTO slaue 2d Part of Henry VI. 1st fol. pag. 138. ALERT (as well as erect) is the past participle of erigere, now in Italian ergere: all' erecta, all'erta. "Il palafren, ch'avea il demoneo al fianco, "Che non pote arestarla fiume, e manco all'ercta, Orlando Fur. Cant. 27, st. 5. "Tu vedrai prima A L'ERTA andare i fiumi, Orlando Fur. Cant. 33, st. 60. "Chi mostra il pie scoperto, e chi gambetta, Morgante, Cant. 19, st. 173. "Or ritorniamo a Pagan, chi stupiti "Per maraviglia tenean gli occhi ALL'ERTA." Morgante, Cant. 24, st. 114. All'ercta (by a transposition of the aspirate) became the French alberte, as it was formerly written; and (by a total suppression of the aspirate) the modern French alerte. S. Johnson says...." ALERT adj. [alerte Fr. "perhaps from alacris; but probably from a l'art, according to art, or rule.] "1. In the military sense, on guard, watchful, "vigilant, ready at a call. "2. In the common sense, brisk, pert, petulant, "smart; implying some degree of censure and " contempt." By what possible means can any one extract the smallest degree of censure or contempt from this word? Amyot, at least, had no such notion of it; when he said...." C'est une belle et bonne chose que "la prevoyance, et d'estre touiours a l'herte.” (Καλον δε η προνοια και το ασφαλες) most appositely translating aσaλs, i. e. not prostrate, not supine, by a l'herte, i. e. in an erect posture. See Morales de Plutarque. De l'esprit familier de Socrates. I see that POST....aliquid POSIT-um (as well as its compounds apposite, opposite, composite, impost, compost, deposit, depôt, repose, and pause) however used in English, as substantive, adjective, or adverb, As......A POST in the ground, To take POST, A POST under government, The POST for letters, POST chaise or POST horses, To travel POST, is always merely the past participle of ponere. And thus, in our present situation, intelligence of the landing of an enemy will probably be conveyed by POST: for, whether positis equis, or positis hominibus, or positis ignibus, or positis telegraphs or beacons of any kind; all will be by posit or by POST. I agree with Salmasius, Vossius, Ferrarius, and Skinner (though Menage feebly contests it) that POLTROON and paltry are likewise past participles. "Iidem imperatores (scil. Valentinianus et "Valens) statuerunt flammis ultricibus combur"rendum eum, qui, ad fugienda sacramenta mili"tiæ, truncatione digitorum damnum corporis "expetisset. Multi enim illo tempore, quia "necessitate ad bellum cogebantur, præ ignavia "sibi pollices truncabant, ne militarent. Inde pollice truncos hodieque pro ignavis et imbecilli"bus dicimus; sed truncatâ voce POLTRONES." Similar times, similar practices. We too have many POLTROONS in this country; qui sacramenta militiæ fugiunt; for want of rational motive, not want of courage. In October 1795, "One Samuel Caradise, who "had been committed to the house of correction "in Kendal, and there confined as a vagabond "until put on board a king's ship, agreeable to the "late act, sent for his wife, the evening before "his intended departure. He was in a cell, and "she spoke to him through the iron door. After "which he put his hand underneath, and she with "a mallet and chissel, concealed for the purpose, "struck off a finger and thumb, to render him "unfit for his majesty's service."(') () There was some affection between this able bodied vagabond and his wife....(able bodied was the crime which, by the operation of a late act, cast him into this cell with the iron door.) To avoid separation they both subjected themselves to very severe treatment. Some lawyers maintained that they I see that CLOSE, a CLOSE, with its diminutive a CLOSET, a CLAUSE, a RECLUSE, a SLUICE, are past participles of claudere and clorre. "He rose fro deth to lyfe in his sepulture CLOSE." Lyfe of our Lady, by Lydgate, pag. 59. "And whan the angell from her departed was, "And she alone in her tabernacle, "Right as the sonne percssheth thorowe the glasse "Without harme, right so by myracle "Into her CLOSET the fathers sapyence "Or any wemme unto her maydenhede Lyfe of our Lady, pag. 54. DUCT, AQUEDUCT, CONDUCT, PRODUCE, PRODUCT, CONDUIT, of ducere and conduire. FACT, EFFECT, DEFECT, PREFECT, PERFECT, FIT, a FIT, FEAT, a FEAT, DEFEAT, COUNTERFEIT, SURFEIT, FORFEIT, BENEFIT, PROFIT, of facere and faire. "Faythe withoute the FEATE is right nothing worth." Vision of P. Ploughman, pass. 2, fol. 7, pag. 2. MINUTE and a MINUTE, of minure. were both liable to death, under the Coventry act. The husband and wife, would have thought it merciful "To take them both, that it might neither wound." Such a sentence however, in such a case, has not yet, I believe, been put in execution. For a similar performance now, upon a husband in his majesty's service....(I submit it to the attornies general)....might not a wife, by a still later act, be condemned to death for this new method of seduction? Or will a new statute be necessary (it would soon be made, and may be expected flammis ultricibus comburendum eum....et eam. |