Article
Most grammarians have given the article the first rank among the parts of speech. To me this arrangement appears very incorrect; for the article is a mere appendage of the noun, and without it cannot even be defined. The noun is the primary and principal part of speech, of which the article, pronoun and adjective are mere adjuncts, attendants, or substitutes, and the latter therefore should follow the former in grammatical order and definition.
Under this head I will introduce a few observations on the use of a. Grammarians have supposed that a, in the phrases a going, a hunting, is a corruption of the preposition on; a supposition, which, if we attend to the sense of the phrases, appears highly absurd, but which etymology, in a great measure, overthrows.
In the first place, the preposition is not among the original parts of language; its use, and consequently its formation, are not necessary among rude nations; it is a part of speech of a late date in the progress of language, and is itself a derivative from other words. I have, in another place,102 given some reasons to prove on to be an abbreviation of the numeral one, or top one. It is very evident that on is a contraction of upon, which was formerly written uppone; and there are good reasons for believing the latter to be derived from top one. In addition to the authorities quoted in the Institute, an example or two from Chaucer will almost place the question beyond a doubt.
“There lith on—up myn hed.”
Cant. Tales, 4288.
That is, there lieth one upon my head; where up is used for upon, as it is in other places.
“No more, up paine of losing of your hed.”
Ibm. 1709.
That is, upon pain of losing your head.
The word up is undoubtedly but a corruption of top, or a noun derived from the same root, and this hypothesis is supported by the true theory of language; which is, that rude nations converse mostly by names. Up myn hed, is top mine head. An improvement of this phrase would be the use of one, ane or an, to ascertain particular things; uppone, upon. In the progress of language, these words would be contracted into on, which we denominate a preposition.
I am very sensible that Chaucer used on in the manner mentioned by Lowth; on live for alive; on hunting; on hawking; which would seem to warrant the supposition of that writer, that a is a contraction of on, considering on originally as a preposition. But it is contrary to all just ideas of language to allow such a primitive part of speech. On the other hand, Chaucer uses on for other purposes, which cannot be explained on Lowth’s hypothesis.
“His brede, his ale, was alway after on.”
Cant. Tales, 343.
So also in line 1783. In this example on is allowed on all hands to be a contraction of one; after one (way, manner) that is, alike, or in the same manner.
“They were at on;” line 4195. They were at one; that is, together or agreed.
“Ever in on;” line 1773, and 3878; ever in one (way, course, &c.) that is, continually.
If therefore we suppose on to be merely a corruption of one, we can easily explain all its uses. On hunting, or contractedly, a hunting, is one hunting. On live, on life, or alive, is merely one life. This form of expression is very natural, however childish or improper it may appear to us. It seems very obvious to resolve ashore, abed, into on shore, on bed; but even Lowth himself would be puzzled to make us believe that adry, athirst, came from on dry, on thirst; and Wallis would find equal difficulty to convince us that they came from at dry, at thirst. If we suppose a to be a contraction of one, or the Saxon ane or an, the solution of all these phrases is perfectly easy, and corresponds with Horne’s theory of the particles. For if rude nations converse without particles, they must say go shore, or go one shore; he is bed, or he is one bed; he is dry, or one dry; I am thirst, or I am one thirst. Indeed every person who will attend to the manner of speaking among the American savages, must believe this explanation of the phrases to be probably just.
That on was formerly used both as a preposition and an adjective, is acknowleged by the Editor of the British Poets;103 but its uses in all cases may be easily explained on the single principle before mentioned.
This hypothesis however will be confirmed by the fact, that the English article a, “is nothing more than a corruption of the Saxon adjective, ane or an (one) before a substantive beginning with a consonant.” Editor of Chaucer’s works, Gloss. p. 23. And the article a and the numeral one have still the same signification. That ane or an, and one are originally the same, is a point not to be controverted. We have therefore the strongest reason to believe that a in the phrases a going, a hunting, a fishing is derived from one. On, as a contraction of upon, has, in modern language, a different sense, and cannot be well substituted for a; for on going, on fishing, have an awkward appearance and will not obtain in the language, to the exclusion of a going, a fishing. The vulgar practice is more correct than Lowth’s correction, and ought by no means to be rejected.
“O let my life, if thou so many deaths a coming find,
With thine old year its voyage take.”——
Cowley’s Ode to the New Year.
“But these fantastic errors of our dream,
Lead us to solid wrong;
We pray God, our friend’s torments to prolong,
And wish uncharitably for them,
To be as long a dying as Methusalem.”
Cowley.
If the foregoing opinion of the origin of a in such phrases, should not be deemed satisfactory, we may perhaps ascribe its origin to a mere custom of forming expletive sounds in the transition from one word to another.104
The following phrases, three shillings a piece, a day, a head, a bushel, it is said are elliptical forms of speech; some preposition being implied, as, for or by. This assertion can proceed only from an imperfect view of the subject. Unless grammarians can prove that some preposition was formerly used, which is now omitted, they cannot prove that any is implied, nor should they have recourse to implication to find a rule to parse the phrases. The truth is, no such preposition can be found, nor is there need of any. A, in this form of speech, carries the full meaning of the Latin per, and the substitution of the latter, for want, as it is said, of an English word, in the phrases, per day, per head, per pound, is a burlesque upon the English to this day. We see continually a wretched jargon of Latin and English in every merchant’s book, even to the exclusion of a pure English phrase, more concise, more correct, and more elegant. It is to be wished that a might be restored to its true dignity, as it is used by some of the purest English writers.
“He had read almost constantly, twelve or fourteen hours a day;” that is, one day.—— Bolingbroke on History, letter 4.
“To the sixteen scholars twenty pounds a piece.”——Cowley.
This is pure elegant English, and the common people have the honor of preserving it, unadulterated by foreign words.