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CONSTRUCTIONS

INTRODUCTORY NOTE

The preceding part of this book has been concerned chiefly with forms and vocabulary. There remain still to be learned the forms of the Subjunctive Mood, the Participles, and the Gerund of the regular verb, and the conjugation of the commoner irregular verbs. These will be taken up in connection with the study of constructions, which will be the chief subject of our future work. The special vocabularies of the preceding lessons contain, exclusive of proper names, about six hundred words. As these are among the commonest words in the language, they must be mastered. They properly form the basis of the study of words, and will be reviewed and used with but few additions in the remaining lessons.

For practice in reading and to illustrate the constructions presented, a continued story has been prepared and may be begun at this point (see p. 204). It has been divided into chapters of convenient length to accompany progress through the lessons, but may be read with equal profit after the lessons are finished. The story gives an account of the life and adventures of Publius Cornelius Lentulus, a Roman boy, who fought in Cæsar's campaigns and shared in his triumph. The colored plates illustrating the story are faithful representations of ancient life and are deserving of careful study. 148