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PRELIMINARY NOTICE ! On Monday next there will be published in " The Press " the first announcement of "The Times ,, (London) New Offer of II The (Jentury Dictionary and Cyclopaedia and Atlas." In Ten Boyal Octavo Volumes, with details of the plan of Sale and the Prices. The impartial judgments of skilled critics show how admirably the important and difficult task of bringing up to date an exhaustive dictionary of the English language based on the encyclopaedia idea has been accomplished. It is with regret that the interesting and illuminative comments of the Press of Great Britain and elsewhere are quoted in so condensed a form, but when it is stated that five hundred columns would not contain all the reviews of the work recently published by the British journals, the necessity for quoting a few words only from each of a few papers will be recognised.

The Verdict of Those who Know! "A Work of Pine Scholarship." " The Standard." Thii monumental work of reference has at length been brought to a satisfactory and honourable conclusion. Broadly epetking, theee volumes contain a comprehensive diotioa«y of the English language adapted to the requirements of every form of literary expression. We are not aware of any work which throws more light on tht teohnieal term 3 now in vogue In the ioiencee, arts, professions, and trades of our complex modern society. In fact, the possessor of this dictionary is practically independent of speoial glossaries. "Invaluable for the Student." " Christian World." , For the student who wishes to be able to refer to the immense multitude of modern soientlfio terms, and the obsolete words and significations of our older literature, it will (rare invaluable. " Some Characteristic Features." " The Literary World." Dr. Whitney's etymologies, tracked with sleuth-hound keenness of scent to the fountain head, his happy conjeotures, his grouping of synonyms and. keen differentiations of their shade* of meaning, are among the most characteristic features of The Cehtobt DictionabS. "The Impress of Careful Study." ' i " Gaillgnanl's Ueuenjer." , ,- <. . ■■ ; The present worlc bears the impress of the most Careful study of every onward step in philology, as in every other science olaiming the hourly attention of the lexicographer. "A Book for the Whole English Race." " The Sooteman." Will be welcome wherever the English language is read, written, or spoken. "A Monument of Philological Industry." •• Sally Telegraph." If it be true that in the course of the next century one thousand millions of people will be speaking the English language, there is abundant .reason for welcoming the completion of \ book of reference like Tub Century Dictionary, which professes to give an exhaustive account of words of Englieh origin. In ten handsome volumes, with over seven thousand Illustrations, defining and describing more than two hundred thousand words, the work in question, which is edited by Professor Whitney, is one of the most notable monuments of tot philological industry of the age. • "A Work of Genius." "Illustrated London New*." It lit notable monument of industry—nay, of genius. "The Greatest Book." % " The Christian Leader." In some important aspects the greatest book that we have yet received. The work will foflne 200,000 words, a large addition to the vocabulary of all preceding dictionaries, for the editor has acted pn the principle that the first duty of a comprehensive dictionary is colleotion not 'seleotion. Here, then, we may confidently expect to find every word, inoluding •yen obsolete terms and a reasonable supply of slang; and a somewhat careful examination pf the first part justifies the statement that this expectation will not be disappointed. "The Largest and Best.". "The Athenaeum." ■ . . . Far and away the largest and best general and Encyclopedic Dictionary of the English language. . . . The work, notwithstanding incalculable variety and .difficulty, is singularly free from error of any kind. The typography is thoroughly satisfactory, and the general appearance of the volume is handsome and attractive. The selection of the subjects for the pictorial illustrations cannot be too highly praised. " A Stupendous Magazine of Information." " Birmingham Sally Post." Br. Whitney's Dictionary is suoh that neither consideration of spaoe nor coet need keep It out of a modest private library. The complete work extends now over more than 7,000 large quarto pages, closely printed, in triple columns, defining and describing and giving the etymology of over 200,000 words, and-illustrating the meaning of these by more than 7,000 delicate and carefully executed, as they are always' apposite and instructive, engravings. The book is something more than a dictionary in the old sense of the word—a word book. It Is a stupendous magazine of information on all matters that can engage the human intellect. n That Magnificent Book." •• The Graphic.' , * , This dictionary is almost encyclopaedic in its soope, and does not confine itself to the written language, but includes also the spoken language, with its colloquialisms, provincialisms, and Americanisms. It docs not profess to decide what words ought to be used, but records the forma.that are actually in use, and, as is natural in a work of American origin, gives prominence to American expressions and peculiarities of spelling. To the English student it is especially useful, as it gives explanations and frequently the origin, of American sling terms, the meaning of which is not always obvious at first sight, and also traoes those Trords which are survivals of the older or provincial English of two or three centuries ago. " Praise for its Accuracy." " Sheffield Independent. ,, This dictionary has passed triumphantly through the ordeal. Men competent to speak td Its treatment of particular arts or sciences, or 'ologies being loud in praise of its accuracy. " The Greatest Work of the Kind." " The Guardian," Manchester. The greatest work of the kitid yet achieved. "Complete and Full.'* , "The Spectator." • . Such a book of reference, more complete and full than anything ever before attempted, »ay be found in The Century Dictionaet. , ,r A Whole Library." ■* The Post." Liverpool. It is much more than a dictionary. It is a whole library. There is no branch of knowledge that it does not inclade within its pages. It is, in fact, a standard reference book for the student, the artist, the litterateur, the man of business, and the man of science, tad for all who wish to have at hand a convenient book of universal information. "Outstrips All Competitors." •' National Observer." To say that it is unrivalled were to give faintest praise. In completeness, scholarship, •B* typography it far outstrips all English competitors. " By far the Most Comprehensive." " JLrtfus," Melbourne. By far the most comprehensive general and technical dictionary of the English language tb*t has yet been published. What People say of "THE CENTURY" Wght Hon. W. E. H. Lecky.—"Few works can be more useful in a literary household. 81* John Blundell Maple.—" The most detailed dictionary I have ever seen." Blr Leslie Stephen.—" A valuable addition to my library." Six JL C. Mackenzie.—"Contains most valuable, comprehensive, and reliable informa- ;■/.. . tlon on the subject tot mnsla.,'' .:.;_;-;., : . ;•■.'.■■'.,.;.;, .'■,;'■■■•..'• ■ l_^ll^__li_i___L^^

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19030214.2.23.1

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Press, Volume LX, Issue 11508, 14 February 1903, Page 5

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,151

Page 5 Advertisements Column 1 Press, Volume LX, Issue 11508, 14 February 1903, Page 5

Page 5 Advertisements Column 1 Press, Volume LX, Issue 11508, 14 February 1903, Page 5

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