German composition

Section 36 The⁠ Air-Ocean. I.1

Enveloping⁠2 this solid globe of ours are two oceans, one⁠3 partial, and the other universal. There is the⁠4 ocean of water, which has⁠5 settled down into all the depressions⁠6 of the earth’s surface⁠7, leaving⁠8 dry above it all the high lands, as mountain-ranges, continents, and islands; and⁠9 there is an ocean of air, which enwraps⁠10 the whole in one transparent mantle.

Through⁠11 the bosom of that ocean, like fishes with their fins (App. § 14), birds⁠12 and other winged creatures swim; whilst man⁠13 and other mammalia creep like⁠14 crabs at the bottom of this aerial sea⁠15.

Notes

1 Das Luftmeer.

2 Say ‘Two oceans envelop (umgeben) our solid globe (Erdkugel).

3 the one partial (teilweise) and the other universal (ganz). The subsequent sentence is best introduced by a colon (:), which we use to direct attention to what is following. The words ‘There is’ must then be omitted.

4 das Weltmeer.

5 ‘which — all’, say ‘which fills (erfüllen) all’.

6 Vertiefung, f.

7 To render ‘of the earth’s surface’, form a compound noun by combining the corresponding German terms of the nouns ‘earth’ and ‘surface’.
A. When the component parts of Compound Nouns are substantives, we combine them often without any connecting link; as—das Lasttier, beast of burden; das Stadtviertel, the quarter of a town, ward.
B. Neither do we require a connecting link for the formation of Compound Nouns the first component of which is an adjective or a particle; as—die Großmutter, grandmother; das Unglück, misfortune; der Urquell, fountain-head.
C. The Gender of Compound Nouns (with the exception of a few compounds with Mut, m.) is determined by the last component, which is always a noun.

8 ‘leaving — islands’. This passage may be rendered thus: ‘so that all the high lands (Erhöhungen), as (wie) mountain-ranges, etc.... rise dry above the same; to rise, sich erheben.

9 und das Luftmeer.

10 umhül´len; say ‘the whole globe’ (Kugel, f.); ‘in’, here mit.

11 In this ocean of air.

12 Since the four subsequent nouns in this passage represent a whole class, the def. art. is required before each (S. 3, N. 2).

13 Use this noun in the plural, since the noun with which it is connected by the conj. ‘and’ stands in the same number.

14 gleich Krebsen; to creep, umher kriechen. The word ‘whilst’ being a subordinative conj., the verb must be placed?

15 Luftmeer.