their bodies, observe little of their construction, unless there is
something singular or fine in their appearance. The common parts are
unobserved, yet as important as the small words used in the common
construction of language, the vehicle of thought. As the apostle says of
the body politic, "those members of the body, which seem to be more
feeble, are necessary;" so the words least understood by grammarians are
most necessary in the correct formation of language.

It is an easy matter to get along with the words called prepositions,
after they are all learned by rote; but when their meaning and use are
inquired into, the best grammarians have little to say of them.

A list of prepositions, alphabetically arranged, is found in nearly
every grammar, which scholars are required to commit to memory, without
knowing any thing of their meaning or use, only that they are
prepositions when an objective word comes after them, _because the books
say so_; but occasionally the same words occur as adverbs and
adjectives. There is, however, no trouble in "parsing" them, unless the
list is forgotten. In that case, you will see the pupil, instead of
inquiring after the meaning and duty of the word, go to the book and
search for it in the lists of prepositions or conjunctions; or to the
dictionary, to see if there is a "_prep._" appended to it. What will
children ever learn of language in this way? Of what avail is all such
grammar teaching? As soon as they leave school it is all forgotten; and
you will hear them say, at the very time they should be reaping the
harvest of former toil, that they once understood grammar, but it is all
gone from them. Poor souls! their memory is very treacherous, else they
have never learned language as they ought. There is a fault somewhere.
To us it is not difficult to determine where it is.