“I am convinced,” said he, writing to his Langholm friend [Andrew Little], “that the situation of Great Britain is such, that nothing short of some signal revolution can prevent her from sinking into bankruptcy, slavery, and insignificancy.” He held that the national expenditure was so enormous, arising from the corrupt administration of the country, that it was impossible the “bloated mass could hold together any longer”; and as he could not expect that “a hundred Pulteneys,” such as his employer, could be found to restore it to health, the conclusion he arrived at was that ruin was “inevitable.” [...]
It is only right to add, that as Telford grew older and wiser, he became more careful in jumping at conclusions on political topics. The events which shortly occurred in France tended in a great measure to heal his mental distresses as to the future of England.* When the “liberty” won by the Parisians ran into riot, and the “Friends of Man” occupied themselves in taking off the heads of those who differed from them, he became wonderfully reconciled to the enjoyment of the substantial freedom which, after all, was secured to him by the English Constitution.
Abridged
* A reference to the Reign of Terror in 1793-1794, in which 16,594 lawful death sentences were carried out across France. Tom Paine watched it from a prison cell, following his protest over the execution of King Louis XVI in January 1793. Despite his front-row seat, Paine remained committed to his revolutionary ideals, and before he returned to the United States of America in 1802 he assisted Napoleon Bonaparte in devising plans for the invasion of Britain. Paine died at New York in 1809.
Précis
Telford recommended Paine’s book to his friends back home in Galloway, and freely expressed his dismay at the country’s finances and the British constitution. Happily, for Smiles at any rate, Telford’s revolutionary ardour gradually cooled and soon he no longer had to explain how ‘liberty, equality and fraternity’ could justify the killing of so many people. (56 / 60 words)
Telford recommended Paine’s book to his friends back home in Galloway, and freely expressed his dismay at the country’s finances and the British constitution. Happily, for Smiles at any rate, Telford’s revolutionary ardour gradually cooled and soon he no longer had to explain how ‘liberty, equality and fraternity’ could justify the killing of so many people.
Variations: 1.increase the length of this precis to exactly 60 words. 2.reduce the length of this precis to exactly 50 words. 3.introduce one of the following words into the precis: about, besides, if, may, must, or, ought, until.
Archive
Word Games
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 So. Soon. Spring.
2 Many. Now. Year.
3 Into. Mass. Than.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
Subject and Object Find in Think and Speak
Use each word below in two sentences, first as the subject of a verb, and then as the object of a verb. It doesn’t have to be the same verb: some verbs can’t be paired with an object (e.g. arrive, happen), so watch out for these.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1. Topic. 2. Advice. 3. Man. 4. Conclusion. 5. Revolution. 6. Time. 7. Study. 8. Truth. 9. National.
Variations: 1.use your noun in the plural (e.g. cat → cats), if possible. 2.give one of your sentences a future aspect (e.g. will, going to). 3.write sentences using negatives such as not, neither, nobody and never.
Confusables Find in Think and Speak
In each group below, you will find words that are similar to one another, but not exactly the same. Compose your own sentences to bring out the similarities and differences between them, whether in meaning, grammar or use.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
Add Vowels Find in Think and Speak
Make words by adding vowels to each group of consonants below. You may add as many vowels as you like before, between or after the consonants, but you may not add any consonants or change the order of those you have been given. See if you can beat our target of common words.
bns (7+3)
bans. beans. bins. bones. bonus. boons. buns.
beanies. bonsai. boonies.
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