LATIN FOR BEGINNERS

BY

BENJAMIN L. D’OOGE, Ph.D.

PROFESSOR IN THE MICHIGAN STATE NORMAL COLLEGE

GINN AND COMPANY

BOSTON · NEW YORK · CHICAGO · LONDON

COPYRIGHT, 1909, 1911 BY BENJAMIN L. D’OOGE

ENTERED AT STATIONERS’ HALL ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 013.4

The Athenæum Press GINN AND COMPANY · PROPRIETORS · BOSTON · U.S.A.

CONTENTS

PART I. THE PRONUNCIATION OF LATIN

Alphabet, Sounds of the Letters, Syllables, Quantity, Accent, How to Read Latin

PART II. WORDS AND FORMS

First Principles—Subject and Predicate, Inflection, Number, Nominative Subject, Possessive Genitive, Agreement of Verb, Direct Object, Indirect Object, etc.—Dialogue

First or Ā-Declension—Gender, Agreement of Adjectives, Word Order

Second or O-Declension—General Rules for Declension—Predicate Noun, Apposition—Dialogue

Adjectives of the First and Second Declensions

Nouns in -ius and -ium—Germānia

Second Declension (Continued)—Nouns in -er and -ir—Italia—Dialogue

Possessive Adjective Pronouns

Ablative Denoting With—Cause, Means, Accompaniment, Manner—The Romans Prepare for War

The Nine Irregular Adjectives

The Demonstrative is, ea, id—Dialogue

Conjugation—Present, Imperfect, and Future of sum—Dialogue

Present Active Indicative of amō and moneō

Imperfect Active Indicative of amō and moneō—Meaning of the Imperfect—Niobe and her Children

Future Active Indicative of amō and moneō—Niobe and her Children (Concluded)

Review of Verbs—The Dative with Adjectives—Cornelia and her Jewels

Present Active Indicative of regō and audiō—Cornelia and her Jewels (Concluded)

Imperfect Active Indicative of regō and audiō—The Dative with Special Intransitive Verbs

Future Active Indicative of regō and audiō

Verbs in -iō—Present, Imperfect, and Future Active Indicative of capiō—The Imperative

Passive Voice—Present, Imperfect, and Future Indicative of amō and moneō—Perseus and Andromeda

Present, Imperfect, and Future Indicative Passive of regō and audiō—Perseus and Andromeda (Continued)

Present, Imperfect, and Future Indicative Passive of -iō Verbs—Present Passive Infinitive and Imperative

Synopses in the Four Conjugations—The Ablative Denoting From—Place from Which, Separation, Personal Agent

Perfect, Pluperfect and Future Perfect of sum—Dialogue

Perfect Active Indicative of the Four Regular Conjugations—Meanings of the Perfect—Perseus and Andromeda (Continued)

Pluperfect and Future Perfect Active Indicative—Perfect Active Infinitive

Review of the Active Voice—Perseus and Andromeda (Concluded)

Passive Perfects of the Indicative—Perfect Passive and Future Active Infinitive

Review of Principal Parts—Prepositions, Yes-or-No Questions

Conjugation of possum—The Infinitive used as in English—Accusative Subject of an Infinitive—The Faithless Tarpeia

The Relative Pronoun and the Interrogative Pronoun—Agreement of the Relative—The Faithless Tarpeia (Concluded)

The Third Declension—Consonant Stems

Review Lesson—Terror Cimbricus

Third Declension—I-Stems

Irregular Nouns of the Third Declension—Gender in the Third Declension—The First Bridge over the Rhine

Adjectives of the Third Declension—The Romans Invade the Enemy’s Country

The Fourth or U-Declension

Expressions of Place—Place to Which, Place from Which, Place at or in Which, the Locative—Declension of domus—Dædalus and Icarus

The Fifth or Ē-Declension—Ablative of Time—Dædalus and Icarus (Continued)

Pronouns—Personal and Reflexive Pronouns—Dædalus and Icarus (Concluded)

The Intensive Pronoun ipse and the Demonstrative īdem—How Horatius Held the Bridge

The Demonstratives hic, iste, ille—A German Chieftain Addresses his Followers—How Horatius Held the Bridge (Continued)

The Indefinite Pronouns—How Horatius Held the Bridge (Concluded)

Regular Comparison of Adjectives

Irregular Comparison of Adjectives—Ablative with Comparatives

Irregular Comparison of Adjectives (Continued)—Declension of plūs

Irregular Comparison of Adjectives (Concluded)—Ablative of the Measure of Difference

Formation and Comparison of Adverbs

Numerals—Partitive Genitive

Numerals (Continued)—Accusative of Extent—Cæsar in Gaul

Deponent Verbs—Prepositions with the Accusative

PART III. CONSTRUCTIONS

The Subjunctive Mood—Inflection of the Present—Indicative and Subjunctive Compared

The Subjunctive of Purpose

Inflection of the Imperfect Subjunctive—Sequence of Tenses

Inflection of the Perfect and Pluperfect Subjunctive—Substantive Clauses of Purpose

Subjunctive of possum—Verbs of Fearing

The Participles—Tenses and Declension

The Irregular Verbs volō, nōlō, mālō—Ablative Absolute

The Irregular Verb fīō—Subjunctive of Result

Subjunctive of Characteristic—Predicate Accusative

Constructions with cum—Ablative of Specification

Vocabulary Review—Gerund and Gerundive—Predicate Genitive

The Irregular Verb eō—Indirect Statements

Vocabulary Review—The Irregular Verb ferō—Dative with Compounds

Vocabulary Review—Subjunctive in Indirect Questions

Vocabulary Review—Dative of Purpose or End for Which

Vocabulary Review—Genitive and Ablative of Quality or Description

Review of Agreement—Review of the Genitive, Dative, and Accusative

Review of the Ablative

Review of the Syntax of Verbs

READING MATTER

Introductory Suggestions

The Labors of Hercules

P. Cornelius Lentulus: The Story of a Roman Boy

APPENDIXES AND VOCABULARIES

Appendix I. Tables of Declensions, Conjugations, Numerals, etc.

PREFACE

To make the course preparatory to Cæsar at the same time systematic, thorough, clear, and interesting is the purpose of this series of lessons.

The first pages are devoted to a brief discussion of the Latin language, its history, and its educational value. The body of the book, consisting of seventy-nine lessons, is divided into three parts.

Part I is devoted to pronunciation, quantity, accent, and kindred introductory essentials.

Part II carries the work through the first sixty lessons, and is devoted to the study of forms and vocabulary, together with some elementary constructions, a knowledge of which is necessary for the translation of the exercises and reading matter. The first few lessons have been made unusually simple, to meet the wants of pupils not well grounded in English grammar.

Part III contains nineteen lessons, and is concerned primarily with the study of syntax and of subjunctive and irregular verb forms. The last three of these lessons constitute a review of all the constructions presented in the book. There is abundant easy reading matter; and, in order to secure proper concentration of effort upon syntax and translation, no new vocabularies are introduced, but the vocabularies in Part II are reviewed.

It is hoped that the following features will commend themselves to teachers:

The forms are presented in their natural sequence, and are given, for the most part, in the body of the book as well as in a grammatical appendix. The work on the verb is intensive in character, work in other directions being reduced to a minimum while this is going on. The forms of the subjunctive are studied in correlation with the subjunctive constructions.

The vocabulary has been selected with the greatest care, using Lodge’s “Dictionary of Secondary Latin” and Browne’s “Latin Word List” as a basis. There are about six hundred words, exclusive of proper names, in the special vocabularies, and these are among the simplest and commonest words in the language. More than ninety-five per cent of those chosen are Cæsarian, and of these more than ninety per cent are used in Cæsar five or more times. The few words not Cæsarian are of such frequent occurrence in Cicero, Vergil, and other authors as to justify their appearance here. But teachers desiring to confine word study to Cæsar can easily do so, as the Cæsarian words are printed in the vocabularies in distinctive type. Concrete nouns have been preferred to abstract, root words to compounds and derivatives, even when the latter were of more frequent occurrence in Cæsar. To assist the memory, related English words are added in each special vocabulary. To insure more careful preparation, the special vocabularies have been removed from their

respective lessons and placed by themselves. The general vocabulary contains about twelve hundred words, and of these above eighty-five per cent are found in Cæsar.

The syntax has been limited to those essentials which recent investigations, such as those of Dr. Lee Byrne and his collaborators, have shown to belong properly to the work of the first year. The constructions are presented, as far as possible, from the standpoint of English, the English usage being given first and the Latin compared or contrasted with it. Special attention has been given to the constructions of participles, the gerund and gerundive, and the infinitive in indirect statements. Constructions having a logical connection are not separated but are treated together.

Exercises for translation occur throughout, those for translation into Latin being, as a rule, only half as long as those for translation into English. In Part III a few of the commoner idioms in Cæsar are introduced and the sentences are drawn mainly from that author. From first to last a consistent effort is made to instill a proper regard for Latin word order, the first principles of which are laid down early in the course.

Selections for reading are unusually abundant and are introduced from the earliest possible moment. These increase in number and length as the book progresses, and, for the most part, are made an integral part of the lessons instead of being massed at the end of the book. This arrangement insures a more constant and thorough drill in forms and vocabulary, promotes reading power, and affords a breathing spell between succeeding subjects. The material is drawn from historical and mythological sources, and the vocabulary employed includes but few words not already learned. The book closes with a continued story which recounts the chief incidents in the life of a Roman boy. The last chapters record his experiences in Cæsar’s army, and contain much information that will facilitate the interpretation of the Commentaries. The early emphasis placed on word order and sentence structure, the simplicity of the syntax, and the familiarity of the vocabulary, make the reading selections especially useful for work in sight translation.

Reviews are called for at frequent intervals, and to facilitate this branch of the work an Appendix of Reviews has been prepared, covering both the vocabulary and the grammar.

The illustrations are numerous, and will, it is hoped, do much to stimulate interest in the ancient world and to create true and lasting impressions of Roman life and times.

A consistent effort has been made to use simple language and clear explanation throughout.

As an aid to teachers using this book a “Teacher’s Manual” has been prepared, which contains, in addition to general suggestions, notes on each lesson.

The author wishes to express his gratitude to the numerous teachers who tested the advance pages in their classes, and, as a result of their experience, have given much valuable aid by criticism and suggestion. Particular acknowledgments are due to Miss A. Susan Jones of the Central High School, Grand Rapids, Michigan; to Miss Clara Allison of the High School at Hastings, Michigan; and to Miss Helen B. Muir and Mr. Orland O. Norris, teachers of Latin in this institution.

BENJAMIN L. D’OOGE

Michigan State Normal College

TO THE STUDENT—BY WAY OF INTRODUCTION

What is Latin? If you will look at the map of Italy on the opposite page, you will find near the middle of the peninsula and facing the west coast a district called Latium,1 and Rome its capital. The Latin language, meaning the language of Latium, was spoken by the ancient Romans and other inhabitants of Latium, and Latin was the name applied to it after the armies of Rome had carried the knowledge of her language far beyond its original boundaries. As the English of to-day is not quite the same as that spoken two or three hundred years ago, so Latin was not always the same at all times, but changed more or less in the course of centuries. The sort of Latin you are going to learn was in use about two thousand years ago. And that period has been selected because the language was then at its best and the greatest works of Roman literature were being produced. This period, because of its supreme excellence, is called the Golden Age of Roman letters.

The Spread of Latin. For some centuries after Rome was founded, the Romans were a feeble and insignificant people, their territory was limited to Latium, and their existence constantly threatened by warlike neighbors. But after the third century before Christ, Rome’s power grew rapidly. She conquered all Italy, then reached out for the lands across the sea and beyond the Alps, and finally ruled over the whole ancient world. The empire thus established lasted for more than four hundred years. The importance of Latin increased with the growth of Roman power, and what had been a dialect spoken by a single tribe became the universal language. Gradually the language changed somewhat, developing differently in different countries. In Italy it has become Italian, in Spain Spanish, and in France French. All these nations, therefore, are speaking a modernized form of Latin.

The Romans and the Greeks. In their career of conquest the Romans came into conflict with the Greeks. The Greeks were inferior to the Romans in military power, but far superior to them in culture. They excelled in art, literature, music, science, and philosophy. Of all these pursuits the Romans were ignorant until contact with Greece revealed to them the value of education and filled them with the thirst for knowledge. And so it came about that while Rome conquered Greece by force of arms, Greece conquered Rome by force of her intellectual superiority and became her schoolmaster. It was soon the established custom for young Romans to go to Athens and to other centers of Greek learning to finish their training, and the knowledge of the Greek language among the educated classes became universal. At the same time many cultured Greeks—poets, artists, orators, and philosophers—flocked to Rome, opened schools, and taught their arts. Indeed, the preëminence of Greek culture became so great that Rome almost lost her ambition to be

original, and her writers vied with each other in their efforts to reproduce in Latin what was choicest in Greek literature. As a consequence of all this, the civilization and national life of Rome became largely Grecian, and to Greece she owed her literature and her art.

Rome and the Modern World. After conquering the world, Rome impressed her language, laws, customs of living, and modes of thinking upon the subject nations, and they became Roman; and the world has remained largely Roman ever since. Latin continued to live, and the knowledge of Latin was the only light of learning that burned steadily through the dark ages that followed the downfall of the Roman Empire. Latin was the common language of scholars and remained so even down to the days of Shakespeare. Even yet it is more nearly than any other tongue the universal language of the learned. The life of to-day is much nearer the life of ancient Rome than the lapse of centuries would lead one to suppose. You and I are Romans still in many ways, and if Cæsar and Cicero should appear among us, we should not find them, except for dress and language, much unlike men of to-day.

Latin and English. Do you know that more than half of the words in the English dictionary are Latin, and that you are speaking more or less Latin every day? How has this come about? In the year 1066 William the Conqueror invaded England with an army of Normans. The Normans spoke French—which, you remember, is descended from Latin—and spread their language to a considerable extent over England, and so Norman-French played an important part in the formation of English and forms a large proportion of our vocabulary. Furthermore, great numbers of almost pure Latin words have been brought into English through the writings of scholars, and every new scientific discovery is marked by the addition of new terms of Latin derivation. Hence, while the simpler and commoner words of our mother tongue are Anglo-Saxon, and Anglo-Saxon forms the staple of our colloquial language, yet in the realms of literature, and especially in poetry, words of Latin derivation are very abundant. Also in the learned professions, as in law, medicine, and engineering, a knowledge of Latin

is necessary for the successful interpretation of technical and scientific terms.

Why study Latin? The foregoing paragraphs make it clear why Latin forms so important a part of modern education. We have seen that our civilization rests upon that of Greece and Rome, and that we must look to the past if we would understand the present. It is obvious, too, that the knowledge of Latin not only leads to a more exact and effective use of our own language, but that it is of vital importance and of great practical value to any one preparing for a literary or professional career. To this it may be added that the study of Latin throws a flood of light upon the structure of language in general and lays an excellent foundation for all grammatical study. Finally, it has been abundantly proved that there is no more effective means of strengthening the mind than by the earnest pursuit of this branch of learning.

Review Questions. Whence does Latin get its name? Where is Latium? Where is Rome? Was Latin always the same? What sort of Latin are we to study? Describe the growth of Rome’s power and the spread of Latin. What can you say of the origin of Italian, French, and Spanish? How did the ancient Greeks and Romans compare? How did Greece influence Rome? How did Rome influence the world? In what sense are we Romans still? What did Latin have to do with the formation of English? What proportion of English words are of Latin origin, and what kind of words are they? Why should we study Latin?

PART I

THE PRONUNCIATION OF LATIN

THE ALPHABET

1. The Latin alphabet contains the same letters as the English except that it has no w and no j.

2. The vowels, as in English, are a, e, i, o, u, y. The other letters are consonants.

3. I is used both as a vowel and as a consonant. Before a vowel in the same syllable it has the value of a consonant and is called I consonant.

Thus in Iū-li-us the first i is a consonant, the second a vowel.

SOUNDS OF THE LETTERS1

4. Latin was not pronounced like English. The Romans at the beginning of the Christian era pronounced their language substantially as described below.

5. The vowels have the following sounds:

ă like the first a in aha´, never as in hat

ū as in rude, or as oo in boot

ŭ as in full, or as oo in foot

Note. It is to be observed that there is a decided difference in sound, except in the case of a, between the long and the short vowels. It is not merely a matter of quantity but also of quality.

6. In diphthongs (two-vowel sounds) both vowels are heard in a single syllable.

eu as ĕ´o͝o (a short e followed by a short u in one syllable)

ui like o͝o´ĭ (a short u followed by a short i in one syllable. Cf. English we)

Note. Give all the vowels and diphthongs their proper sounds and do not slur over them in unaccented syllables, as is done in English.

7. Consonants are pronounced as in English, except that

c is always like c in cat, never as in cent

g is always like g in get, never as in gem

i consonant is always like y in yes

n before c, qu, or g is like ng in sing (compare the sound of n in anchor)

qu, gu, and sometimes su before a vowel have the sound of qw, gw, and sw. Here u has the value of consonant v and is not counted a vowel

ĭn´-quĭt, quī, lĭn´-guă, săn´-guĭs, suā´-dĕ-ō

t is always like t in native, never as in nation

v is like w in wine, never as in vine