Preview
Creation Date
1822
Description
Inside Title Page. Created by Jedidiah Kingsbury. Source: Cordell Collection. Publisher: Munroe & Francis. Language: English. Text: "DEDICATION. TO ALL GOOD CHILDREN, WHO LOVE Their BOOKS. My dear little friends,. . For you this little book has: been written, and to you. it is dedicated. Offered to your particular notice and acceptance; not dedicated to you, to te11 you, or tell the world, how wise and good you are; but devoted to your special use, that it may help you to become wise: since it is well known, all little folks wish to- be men. and women. If you learn to know a great deal, you will be like men, though you are little: but it would be sad, indeed, to grow large as men, yet be ignorant and. illiterate, like little children!. To, acquire knowledge,, you must apply with the utmost assiduity, and learn- to understand what you read. The wisest man that ever lived, thought about little children; and caused upon them to attend to the voice of instruction, to get wisdom, and with all their getting, to get understanding. He tells us they are more value than silver and gold, and all precious· stones and jewels! / If you wish to possess such rich treasures,. you must not run hastily. over your lessons., but learn · well what they. mean. That you may; more readily comprehend them,. the writer of this hook,, has endeavored, · with unremitted industry,, to find such plain definitions as you would easy understand. But you must be told how to make these definitions most useful., When you find words in your lesson, you do not understand, mark them, and find their meaning, and, learn it- even should you find ten in a lesson; for when you have learned ten new words, they will help you to learn ten more, in half the time; and those twenty make it four times as easy to learn twenty more. And · · thus, it will ever be-the more learning you get, the easier will it be to learn. Thus, also, you -will get a habit of reading with attention, which will be a hundred times. more advantageous than reading without attention. It is chiefly attention, application, and perseverance, that render one man so much wiser, learned, and distinguished, than another. Should you look in- this book for a1l word you cannot find, examine that class of words that is like it, which you find included in one of the hooked lines, and learn their meaning, that will show you the use of the one you want; for you will see they are all derived from one word, and relate to the same things, and have nearly the same meaning; just ~s ·you know it is, with having learning, and being learned: -they are almost the same, and so it is with others. And by learning those classes, you will learn ·more easily to find any word you wish. If you look for a word, you cannot find, -beginning. with con, dis, mis, Il, im, in, un, pre, re, or sub, then look for the word; as it would be, without that syllable: as, if you cannot find disrespect, look for respect,; and instead of incomplete, look for complete; because all such compound words signify something opposite to the single ones, or such unlikeness as you will understand by other words like it; and by studying those explanations at the beginning of such syllables, that you. see separated from the rest, by Jong black lines. Many of these syllables are also joined to the rest of the word, by a hyphen to show you how such words are compounded. But when you write them,, the. hyphen must be left out, and the syllable joined to the word, like simple words. By studying all the different forms of the same word, you will really learn several; and make it easier to understand them, and easier to remember them. And, how pleasant will be your sensations of complacency, on finding you are able to acquire intellectual treasures, yourselves, without the aid of instructors! That you may remember all the good you learn, and grow rich in knowledge, is the desire and aim of your friend. J.K."
Keywords
Indiana State University, University Archives, Rare Books and Manuscripts, Education Exhibit