Manual Latin Grammar

The book, intended for reference, as a complete treatise on etymology and syntax, very correctly contains a lot of material that would be out of place in a short manual like this one. The authors did not believe that it is best for the student to start with a book as large as he may later require. In addition, if principles are to be taught rather than dead rules, then it is a clear advantage to abandon any particular form of words. While this book is intended to be a sufficient textbook for the student — at least until a more extensive systematic treatise is required during the college course — it is not enough for the teacher. For day-to-day use in the classroom, as well as for more accurate information, he needs more material, so diligently collected in many of the excellent manuals used. But, despite such a short course of classical education, the authors believe that the language itself and the literature contained in it are a real object of study; and that every hour spent studying grammar details that do not directly contribute to it is detrimental to student achievement and detrimental to intelligence. This book is not intended for children. According to the authors, most students would be better off waiting until at least thirteen or fourteen before trying to systematically learn such a difficult language. At this age, an intelligent boy or girl who studies it at all should be immediately brought to those forms of it that can be easily understood and enjoyed.