bravely, or at least to fight obftinately, who fight for their own houses and farms, for their own wives and children.

A bill was therefore offered for the prevention of any future danger or invafion, or neceffity of mercenary forces, by re-eftablishing and improving the militia. It was paffed by the Commons, but rejected by the Lords. That this bill, the firft effay of political confideration as a fubject long forgotten, fhould be liable to objection, cannot be ftrange; but furely, justice, policy, common reafon require that we should be trufted with our own defence, and be kept no longer in fuch a helpless ftate as at once to dread our enemies and confederates.

*

By the bill, fuch as it was formed, fixty thousand men would always be in arms. We have fhewn how they may be upon any exigence eafily increased to an hundred and fifty thousand; and I believe, neither our friends nor enemies will think it proper to infult our coafts when they expect to find upon them an hundred and fifty thoufand Englishmen with fwords in their hands.

* See Literary Mag. N° ii. p. 6zi

PREFACE

PREFACE

ΤΟ ΑΝ

INTRODUCTION to the Game of DRAUGHTS.

By WILLIAM PAYNE, Teacher of Mathematics*.

Τ

IT is natural for a man to think well of the art which

he profeffes to teach, and I may therefore be expected to have fome efteem for the play of DRAUGHTS. I would not, however, be thought to over-rate it. Every art is valued in a joint proportion to its difficulty and ufefulness. The ufe of DRAUGHTS is the fame with that of any other game of skill, that it may amuse those hours for which more laudable employment is not at hand; and happy is the man whofe equability of temper and conftancy of perfeverance in better things, exempt him from the need of fuch reliefs.

Whatever may be determined concerning its ufe, its difficulty is inconteftible; for among the multitudes that practise it, very few understand it. There are indeed. not many who by any frequency of playing can attain a

• First published 1756.

moderate

moderate degree of skill without examples and inftructions. I have therefore here given a collection of the most artful games, the most critical fituations, and the moft ftriking revolutions, that have fallen within my notice; which are fuch as may, in fome refpects, fet this game even equal with that of Chess.

There is indeed one fecret boasted in the world, which I cannot teach. Some men pretend to an infallible method, by which he that moves first shall win the game; but no fuch hero has it ever been my fortune to encounter, and no fuch do I expect to find. Nor can it be proved that the first mover has any confiderable advantage over a perfon equally skilful with himself. In this opinion I have the concurrence of thofe excellent players Mr. James Randell, Captain John Godfrey, and Mr. William Wolly, my intimate and worthy friends, whofe examples have greatly contributed to my skill in the game; but in particular thofe of the great Randell, of whom it may with probability be afferted, that what he could not attain will never be discovered.

PREFACE

PRE FACE

TO THE

OCTAVO EDITION

O F THE

ENGLISH DICTIONARY.

HAVING been long employed in the study and

cultivation of the English language, I lately published a dictionary like those compiled by the academies of Italy and France, for the ufe of fuch as afpire toexactness of criticifm, or elegance of style.

But it has been fince confidered, that works of that kind are by no means neceffary to the greater number of readers, who, feldom intending to write or prefuming to judge, turn over books only to amuse their leifure, and to gain degrees of knowledge fuitable to lower characters, or neceffary to the common bufinefs of life: thefe know not any other ufe of a dictionary than that of adjusting orthography, and explaining terms of science, or words of infrequent occurrence, or remote derivation. For these purposes many dictionaries have been written by different authors, and with different degrees of fkill;

but none of them have yet fallen into my hands by which even the loweft expectations could be fatisfied. Some of their authors wanted industry, and others literature: fome knew not their own defects, and others were too idle to fupply them,

For this reafon a fmall dictionary appeared yet to be wanting to common readers; and, as I may without arrogance claim to myself a longer acquaintance with the lexicography of our language than any other writer has had, I fhall hope to be confidered as having more experience at least than most of my predeceffors, and as more likely to accommodate the nation with a vocabulary of daily use. I therefore offer to the public an abftract or epitome of my former work.

In comparing this with other dictionaries of the fame kind, it will be found to have feveral advantages.

I. It contains many words not to be found in any other.

H. Many barbarous terms and phrases, by which other dictionaries may vitiate the style, are rejected from this.

III. The words are more correctly fpelled, partly by attention to their etymology, and partly by obfervation of the practice of the best authors.

IV. The etymologies and derivations, whether from foreign languages or from native roots, are more diligently traced, and more diftinctly noted,

V. The fenfes of each word are more copiously enumerated, and more clearly explained.

VI. Many words occurring in the elder authors, fuch as Spenfer, Shakspeare, and Milton, which had been

8

hitherto