LECTURE II.

\

To this root some have traced "colonel," as having been originally the governor of a colony; but it would appear rather to be from colonna, a pillar. " Cultivate" is derived from cultus; as also " culture," usually applied metaphorically to the " cultivation" of the mind.

We have a few words from concilio, to unite, in the sense of making friends. Hence " con­ciliate," " conciliation," and " conciliatory;" also " reconcile," to unite again; and " irreconcileable" that cannot be so united.

Credo, to believe, and its participle, credǏtus, believed, supply a few words. "Credence" is belief, and " credible," worthy of belief. " Credit" means faith or confidence being reposed in a per­son; and is also applied to convey the idea of a good repute, or a favourable opinion of one whose conduct we pronounce to be " creditable" to him. On the other hand, " discreditable" conduct is that which takes all credit from the person who is guilty of it. A " creditor" is one who trusts another. " Credulous" and " credulity" have come to be applied in a bad sense as implying lightness of belief, being easily deceived; but " incredulity" signifies unbelief, even when there is good ground for faith—hard to be convinced. A man's "credentials" are the letters or papers that shew his title to credit—the warrant upon which authority is claimed. An ambassador is said to be "accredited" to a foreign court when

LECTURE II. 47

he brings his " credentials" to shew that his own sovereign gives trust to him, and demands the confidence of others to be accorded to his repre­sentations and pledges. An " incredible" story is one to which we find it hard to give credit. The well-known formulary of faith is called " The Creed," from the first word of it in Latin, credo, " I believe." The opprobrious term " miscreant" comes through the French, from mis and credo, meaning a misbeliever; and of similar signification is " recreant," denoting an unbeliever, the prefix re implying that he has gone back from his pro­fession of faith.

From creo, to create, creatus, created, we have " create," " creator," " creation" and " creature;" also " increate," " procreate," and " recreate;" from which last word we have " recreation," meaning creating again, that is, as we say, reanimating, or giving new life to. Innocent amusements and games are a source of " re-creation " to the working man or student. " All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy," is a true proverb. The man who toils, either mentally or bodily, has need of rest and diversion from labour; and hence such amusements are also called diversions. To " recreate"* may be

*.... " He hath left them you,

And to your heirs for ever; common pleasures, To walk abroad, and recreate yourselves."

Shakspeare: Julius Cæsar. Act iii. sc. 2.

LECTURE II.

found as a verb in Shakspeare, and is not alto­gether obsolete. A weekly day of rest is a source of reanimation for man and beast; and inde­pendently of religious obligations, eminent medical authorities have pronounced it to be physically necessary.

Cresco, to grow, with its past participle cretus, grown, gives us several words. The form of a " crescent" is so called, because it represents the appearance of the moon when she seems to be increasing, the present participle of the verb being crescens* That which "accrues"to an industrious man of business is, the increase of income, or the benefits growing out of his exertions. " Concrete " means to grow together; and the noun denotes a mass of any matter formed by the " concretion" of several substances or particles growing or col­lected together. In logic, concrete terms, as dis­tinguished from those which are called abstract, while they express the quality, also either express or imply some subject to which it belongs. A philosopher is a concrete, and philosophy the abstract term which belongs to it. Generally, however, concrete terms are adjectives, and the abstract, nouns, as white and whiteness. To " en-crease," now more commonly written " increase," means to grow, en or in augmenting the force of

* The word " crescent" is used by Shakspeare in the sense of increasing. " I have seen him in Britain; he was then of a crescent note."— Cymbeline. Act i. sc. 5. "My power's a crescent" — Antony

LECTURE II. 49

the word to which it is prefixed, being the oppo-

site to de or dis. Thus to " decrease" is to grow less.

" Increment" and " decrement" are of similar

meaning with the nouns increase and decrease. An

" excrescence" is that which grows out of; and is

applied to designate what grows out uselessly if

not injuriously. To " recruit" is another word

derived from this verb; meaning to grow back

again, or to increase more and more. Thus a

man is said to "recruit" his health, similarly to

recreating himself, by change of climate; and a

" recruiting" serjeant is one who re-increases the

number of men in the regiment by new "recruits,"

a term properly denoting men who join a regiment

to make up the deficiency in the number required,

after losses sustained. This word, as is usual with

military terms, comes to us through the French.

Cubo or cumbo, to lie down, to recline at table, gives us the word "incubation," applied to the sitting of a hen on her eggs. " Incubus" was the name given to a spirit to whom was ascribed the oppression known by the vulgar name of night­mare; and hence the term came to be applied, both literally and metaphorically, to any weight lying upon one and hindering progress. An " incumbent" means the person filling a place, reposing securely in it. " Recumbent" means reclining, or lying back upon a support. To " succumb" is to lie under, to submit. " Super-incumbent" means lying over upon.

LECTURE II.

Curro, to run, with the participle cursus, run, is the root of several English words. From hence we have "current," a running stream or flow of water; and the word is applied as an adjective to the circulating medium; the " current" coin of the realm, or the " currency" of the land, is that which passes from hand to hand.* A " current" report is one running from one person to another; and the " current" year is that now passing— which is at present in its " course." A " curricle" is a little carriage that runs along the road. A " cursitor" is an officer in the court of Chancery, also called clerk of " course," who makes out the writs which run in the several counties. A " cursory" or superficial view implies one that is hasty, quick, and inattentive. A "course" is a race, or the ground on which the race is run. The word is likewise applied to the " course" of a river; and the " course" or line of conduct which one pursues; also to the order of succession, as " every one in his course;" and to the natural bent, as we speak of a disease taking its " course." In architecture, the word is used to describe a range of stones or bricks running the whole length of the building; and the same term is applied to the number of dishes set at once upon the table, the " courses" running one after the other. Again, it is applied to the elements of an

♦ " Shekels of silver, current money with the merchant."— Gen xxiii. 16.

LECTURE II. 51

art explained in a series, as a " course" of mathe-matics; and we speak of a " course" of lectures running on in order. The phrase " of course," is applied to describe an empty form, called " a mere matter of course." It is also used to point out the consequence, as if by a settled rule, as things are said to happen " of course." As a verb, to " course" is to hunt with dogs running in pursuit of a hare. A " courier," equivalent to a running footman, and a " courser," applied to a swift-running horse, are borrowed from the French, but they had the word from the Latin, curro, to run. A " concourse" means a running together of people. To " concur" in any opinion implies a running together of the thoughts of two or more persons; and hence " concurrence" sig­nifies agreement. To " discourse" is to pass, or run, from thought to thought —from the premises to the conclusion; and a " discourse" is that in which this is done; but when this is attempted in a rambling desultory manner, the writer or speaker is said to be " discursive," that is, running away from the subject. This latter word was not originally restricted to a bad sense, but was for­merly written " discoursively," and applied to what was argumentative, and passing by inter­mediate steps from premises to consequences. An " excursion" is a going out from one's regular habitation— taking a run. To " incur" is to run against, or become liable to penalty or danger.

Дата добавления: 2015-07-19