"I have seldom if ever seen him" is the equivalent of "I have seldom seen him, if I have ever seen him," while "I have seldom or never seen him" is the equivalent of "I have seldom seen him, or possibly I have never seen him." Each of these phrases has its meaning; not so, however, the phrases seldom or ever and rarely or ever: they are meaningless.

Rarely or ever is equally objectionable, the correct locution being rarely if ever, or rarely or never.

Seraphim. This is the plural of seraph. "One of the seraphim." "To Thee, cherubim and seraphim continually do cry." See CHERUBIM.

Set-Sit. Set is often incorrectly used for sit. Το set; imperfect tense, set; participles, setting, set. To sit; imperfect tense, sat; participles, sitting, sat. To set, means, to put, to place, to plant; to put in any place, condition, state, or posture. We say, to set about, to set against, to set out, to set going, to set apart, to set aside, to set down (to put in writing). To sit, means, to rest on the lower part of the body, to repose on a seat, to perch, as a bird, etc. We say, "Sit up"-i. e., rise from lying to sitting; "We will sit up"-i. e., will not go to bed; "Sit down"-i. e., place yourself on a seat. We sit a horse and we sit for a portrait. Garments sit well or otherwise. Congress sits, so does a court. "I have sat up long enough." "I have set it on the table." We set down figures, but we sit down on the ground. We set a hen, and a hen sits on eggs. We should say, therefore, "As cross as a sitting [not, as a setting] hen."

Setback. "They are, however, met at the outset with. some discouraging setbacks."-N. Y. Times.

Since we place the adverb first in all such compound words as outset, inset, upset, outcast, outcome,

and the like, why should we not do likewise with backset?

Settle. This word is often inelegantly, if not incorrectly, used for pay. We pay our way, pay our fare, pay our hotel bills, and the like. See also LOCATE.

Shall and Will. The nice distinctions that should be made between these two auxiliaries are, in some parts of the English-speaking world, often disregarded, and that, too, by persons of high culture. The proper use of shall and will can much better be learned from example than from precept. Many persons that use them, and also should and would, with well-nigh unerring correctness, do so unconsciously; it is simply habit with them, and they, though their culture may be limited, will receive a sort of verbal shock from Biddy's inquiry, "Will I put the kettle on, ma'am?" when your Irish or Scotch countess would not be in the least disturbed by it.

SHALL, in an affirmative sentence, in the first person, and WILL, in the second and third persons, merely announce future action. Thus, "I shall go to town to-morrow." "I shall not; I shall wait for better weather." "We shall be glad to see you." "I shall soon be twenty." set out early, and shall try to arrive by noon." be pleased." "You will soon be twenty." him honest." "He will go with us."

“We shall

"You will "You will find

SHALL, in an affirmative sentence, in the second and third persons, announces the speaker's intention to control. Thus, "You shall hear me out." "You shall go, sick or well." "He shall be my heir." 'They shall go, whether they

want to go or not."

WILL, in the first person, expresses a promise, announces the speaker's intention to control, proclaims a determination. Thus, "I will [I promise to] assist you." "I will [I am

determined to] have my right." "We will [we promise to] come to you in the morning."

SHALL, in an interrogative sentence, in the first and third persons, consults the will or judgment of another; in the second person, it inquires concerning the intention or future action of another. Thus, "Shall I go with you?" "When shall we see you again?" "When shall I receive it?" "When shall I get well?" "When shall we get there?" "Shall he come with us?" "Shall you demand indemnity?" "Shall you go to town to-morrow?" "What shall you do about it?"

WILL, in an interrogative sentence, in the second person, asks concerning the wish, and, in the third person, concerning the purpose or future action of others. Thus, "Will you have an apple?" "Will you go with me to my uncle's?" "Will he be of the party?" "Will they be willing to receive us?" "When will he be here?"

Will can not be used interrogatively in the first person singular or plural. We can not say, "Will I go?" "Will I help you?" "Will I be late ?" Will we get there in time?" "Will we see you again soon?"

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Official courtesy, in order to avoid the semblance of compulsion, conveys its commands in the you-will form instead of the strictly grammatical you-shall form. It says, for example, "You will proceed to Key West, where you will find further instructions awaiting you."

A clever writer on the use of shall and will says that whatever concerns one's beliefs, hopes, fears, likes, or dislikes, can not be expressed in conjunction with I will. Are there no exceptions to this rule? If I say, "I think I shall go to Philadelphia to-morrow," I convey the impression that my going depends upon circumstances beyond my control; but if I say, "I think I will go to Philadelphia to-morrow,"

I convey the impression that my going depends upon circumstances within my control-that my going or not depends on mere inclination. We certainly must say, “I fear that I shall lose it"; "I hope that I shall be well"; I believe that I shall have the ague"; "I hope that I shall not be left alone"; "I fear that we shall have bad weather"; "I shall dislike the country"; "I shall like the performance." The writer referred to asks, “How can one say, 'I will have the headache'?" I answer, "Very easily, as every young woman knows. Let us see: 'Mary, you know you promised John to drive out with him to-morrow; how shall you get out of it?' 'Oh, I will have the headache!'" We request that people will do thus or so, and not that they shall. Thus, "It is requested that no one will leave the room."

Shall is rarely, if ever, used for will; it is will that is used for shall. Expressions like the following are common: "Where will you be next week?" "I will be at home." "We will have dinner at six o'clock." "How will you go about it?" "When will you begin?" "When will you set out?" "What will you do with it?" In all such expressions, when it is a question of mere future action on the part of the person speaking or spoken to, the auxiliary must be shall, and not will.

Should and would follow the regimen of shall and will. Would is often used for should; should rarely for would. Correct speakers say, "I should go to town to-morrow if I had a horse." "I should not; I should wait for better weather." "We should be glad to see you." "We should have started earlier if the weather had been clear." should like to go to town, and would go if I could." "I would assist you if I could." "I should have been ill if I had gone." "I would I were home again!" "I should

"I

go fishing to-day if I were home." "I should so like to go to Europe!" "I should prefer to see it first." "I should be delighted." "I should be glad to have you sup with me." "I knew that I should be ill." "I feared that I should lose it." "I hoped that I should see him." "I thought I should have the ague." "I hoped that I should not be left alone." "I was afraid that we should have bad weather." "I knew I should dislike the country." "I should not like to do it, and will not [determination] unless compelled to."

In indirect discourse, will is much misused for shall; would much misused for should. Indeed, it is safe to say that in indirect discourse the auxiliaries are commonly misused. See WILL-WOULD.

Shimmy. "We derive from the French language our word chemise-pronounced shemmeeze. In French, the word denotes a man's shirt, as well as the under garment worn by women. In this country it is often pronounced by people who should know better, shimmy. Rather than call it shimmy, resume the use of the old English words shift and smock. Good usage unqualifiedly condemns gents, pants, kids, gums, and shimmy.”—Vulgarisms and Other Errors of Speech.

Shire. This word means a territorial division, and is the equivalent of county. We should therefore say, as the English always do, "The county of York or of Berks," and not "of Yorkshire or of Berkshire," which is pleonastic. Should. See Ought.

Sick-Ill. These words are often used indiscriminately. Sick, however, is the stronger word, and ordinarily the better word to use. Ill is used in England more than with us: there, sick is commonly limited to the expressing of nausea; as, "sick at the stomach."