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IT has been a question for some time past,
what would be the best means to fix the English language.
Some have thought of Dictionaries; others
of Institutes, for that purpose. Swift, I think it was,
who proposed, in his letters to the Earl of Oxford,
the forming an academy of learned men, in order
by their observations and rules, to settle the true
spelling, accentuation, and pronunciation, as well as
the proper words, and the purest, most simple, and
perfect phraseology of language. It has always appeared
to me, that if some great master of stile
should arise, and without regarding sentiment, or
subject, give an example of good language in his
composition, which might serve as a model to future
speakers and writers, it would do more to fix
the orthography, choice of word, idiom of phrase,
and structure of sentence, than all the Dictionaries
and Institutes that have been ever made. For certainly,
it is much more conducive to this end, to
place before the eyes what is good writing, than to
suggest it to the ear, which may forget in a short
time all that has been said.

It is for this reason, that I have undertaken this
work; and that it may attain the end the more perfectly,
I shall consider language only, not in the
least regarding the matter of the work; but, as

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musicians, when they are about to give the most excellent
melody, pay no attention to the words that are
set to music; but take the most unmeaning phrases,
such as sol, fa, la; so here, culling out the choicest
flowers of diction, I shall pay no regard to the idea;
for it is not in the power of human ingenuity to attain
two things perfectly at once. Thus we see,
that they mistake greatly, who think to have a clock
that can at once tell the hour of the day, the age of
the moon, and the day of the week, month, or year;
because the complexness of the machine hinders
that perfection which the simplicity of the works
and movements can alone give. For it is not in nature
to have all things in one. If you are about to
chuse a wife, and expect beauty, you must give up
family and fortune; or if you attain these, you must
at least want good temper, health, or some other advantage:
so to expect good language and good
sense, at the same time, is absurd, and not in the
compass of common nature to produce. Attempting
only one thing, therefore, we may entertain the
idea of hitting the point of perfection. It has been
owing to an inattention to this principle, that so many
fail in their attempts at good writing. A Jack of
all Trades, is proverbial of a bungler; and we
scarcely ever find any one who excels in two parts
of the same art; much less in two arts at the same
time. The smooth poet wants strength; and the
orator of a good voice, is destitute of logical reason
and argument. How many have I heard speak,
who, were they to attempt voice only, might be respectable;
but undertaking at the same time, to carry
sense along with them, they utterly fail, and become
contemptible. One thing at once is the best
maxim that ever came into the mind of man. This
might be illustrated by a thousand examples; but I

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shall not trouble myself with any; as it is not so
much my object to convince others as to shew the
motives by which I myself am governed. Indeed
I could give authority which is superior to all examples;
viz. that of the poet Horace; who, speaking
on this very subject of excellence in writing, says,
Quidvis, that is, whatever you compose, let it be
simplex duntaxit & unum: that is, simple, and one
thing only.

It will be needless for me to say any thing about
the critics; for as this work is intended as a model
or rule of good writing, it cannot be the subject of
criticism. It is true, Homer has been criticised by
a Zoilus and an Aristotle; but the one contented
himself with pointing out defects; the other, beauties.
But Zoilus has been censured, Aristotle praised;
because in a model there can be no defect;
error consisting in a deviation from the truth, and
faults, in an aberration from the original of beauty;
so that where there are no faults there can be no
food for criticism, taken in the unfavourable sense
of finding fault with the productions of an author.
I have no objections, therefore, to any praise that
may be given to this work; but to censure or blame
must appear absurd; because it cannot be doubted
but that it will perfectly answer the end proposed.

Being a book without thought, or the smallest degree
of sense, it will be useful to young minds, not
fatiguing their understandings, and easily introducing
a love of reading and study. Acquiring language
at first by this means, they will afterwards
gain knowledge. It will be useful, especially to
young men of light minds, intended for the bar or
pulpit. By heaping too much upon them, stile and
matter at once, you surfeit the stomach, and turn
away the appetite from literary entertainment, to

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horse-racing and cock-fighting. I shall consider
myself, therefore, as having performed an acceptable
service to all weak and visionary people, if I
can give them something to read without the trouble
of thinking. But these are collateral advantages of
my work, the great object of which is, as I have
said before, to give a model of perfect stile in writing.
If hereafter any author of super-eminent abilities,
should chuse to give this stile a body, and
make it the covering to some work of sense, as you
would wrap fine silk round a beautiful form, so that
there may be, not only vestment, but life in the object,
I have no objections; but shall be rather satisfied
with having it put to so good a use.