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32. Where is the fire (at)?
33. Did you sleep in church? Not that I know (of).
34. I never before (in my life) met (with) such a stupid man.
35. (For) why did he postpone it?
36. Because (why) he could not attend.
37. What age is he? (Why) I don't know.
38. He called on me (for) to ask my opinion.
39. I don't know where I am (at).
40. I looked in (at) the window.
41. I passed (by) the house.
42. He (always) came every Sunday.
43. Moreover, (also) we wish to say he was in error.
44. It is not long (ago) since he was here.
45. Two men went into the wood (in order) to cut (down) trees.
Further examples of redundancy might be multiplied. It is very common in
newspaper writing where not alone single words but entire phrases are
sometimes brought in, which are unnecessary to the sense or explanation
of what is written.
GRAMMATICAL ERRORS OF STANDARD AUTHORS
Even the best speakers and writers are sometimes caught napping. Many of
our standard authors to whom we have been accustomed to look up as
infallible have sinned more or less against the fundamental principles of
grammar by breaking the rules regarding one or more of the nine parts of
speech. In fact some of them have recklessly trespassed against all nine,
and still they sit on their pedestals of fame for the admiration of the
crowd. Macaulay mistreated the article. He wrote,--"That _a_ historian
should not record trifles is perfectly true." He should have used _an_.
Dickens also used the article incorrectly. He refers to "Robinson Crusoe"
as "_an_ universally popular book," instead of _a_ universally popular
book.
The relation between nouns and pronouns has always been a stumbling block
to speakers and writers. Hallam in his _Literature of Europe_ writes,
"No one as yet had exhibited the structure of the human kidneys, Vesalius
having only examined them in dogs." This means that Vesalius examined
human kidneys in dogs. The sentence should have been, "No one had as yet
exhibited the kidneys in human beings, Vesalius having examined such
organs in dogs only."
Sir Arthur Helps in writing of Dickens, states--"I knew a brother author
of his who received such criticisms from him (Dickens) very lately and
profited by _it_." Instead of _it_ the word should be _them_ to agree
with criticisms.
Here are a few other pronominal errors from leading authors:
"Sir Thomas Moore in general so writes it, although not many others so
late as _him_." Should be _he_.--Trench's _English Past and Present_.
"What should we gain by it but that we should speedily become as poor as
_them_." Should be _they_.--Alison's _Essay on Macaulay_.
"If the king gives us leave you or I may as lawfully preach, as
_them_ that do." Should be _they_ or _those_, the latter
having persons understood.--Hobbes's _History of Civil Wars_.
"The drift of all his sermons was, to prepare the Jews for the reception
of a prophet, mightier than _him_, and whose shoes he was not worthy
to bear." Should be than _he_.--Atterbury's _Sermons_.
"Phalaris, who was so much older than _her_." Should be _she_.--Bentley's
_Dissertation on Phalaris_.
"King Charles, and more than _him_, the duke and the Popish faction were
at liberty to form new schemes." Should be than _he_.--Bolingbroke's
_Dissertations on Parties_.
"We contributed a third more than the Dutch, who were obliged to the same
proportion more than _us_." Should be than _we_.--Swift's _Conduct of the
Allies_.
In all the above examples the objective cases of the pronouns have been
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