HOW TO LEARN PROPER NAMES IN A CERTAIN ORDER OF SUCCESSION.

The true way to learn such lists as those of the Popes of Rome, the Kings of England and of the American Presidents is to learn them in their places in History, as parts of the Historical order of events to which they belong, as facts in the chain of causes and effects.

Their Terms, Administrations, or Reigns are, however, used by historians as landmarks, and to follow the historians to the best advantage, it may be desirable to know the series as such, as a useful preparation for the study of the Times and age. But whatever the advantages of knowing the order of the American Presidents, I deal with it here solely for the training effect in Analysis and as an example of a method of dealing with any list of mere names.

The mode of dealing with this Presidential series will show how all similar Series may be handled during the period of the pupil’s training. I divide the series or list of the twenty-four American Presidents into three Groups: the first Group containing seven names, the second having eight names, and the third having nine names. The number of names in each Group is easily remembered: 7, 8 and 9.

The first Group contains the names of

George Washington,

John Adams,

Thomas Jefferson,

James Madison,

James Monroe,

John Q. Adams,

Andrew Jackson.

‌If the student has mastered the previous exercises, he ought to be able to analyse this Group of names with the greatest ease. Let him try, and if he fail, then let him study my Analysis as given below. Points of Analysis that appear weak to me may be strong for him, or vice versa. At all events, let him if possible learn each of the three Groups by his own Analysis, looking at my work afterwards.

FIRST GROUP. Period of Organisation and Consolidation.

George WashingTON. JOHN Adams. } In.

“Ton” and “John” make a fairly good In. by sound.

JOHN Adams. THOMas Jefferson. } In.

“John” and “Thom” (the “h” is silent in both names) make an In. by sound, imperfect but adequate if noticed.

Thomas JefferSON. James MadiSON. } In.

Both names terminating with the same syllable, “son”, makes a clear case of In. by sound and spelling.

JAMES Madison. JAMES Monroe. } In.

This pair of names furnishes an example of perfect In. by sound and spelling in the Christian names.

James MONroe. JOHN Q. Adams. } In.

“Mon” and “John” give us a good In. by sound.

JOHN Q. Adams. Andrew JACKson. } In.

“Jack” is a nickname for John—a case of Synonymous In.

Now let the pupil repeat from memory the series from George Washington to Andrew Jackson at least five times, each time recalling and realizing how each pair of names was linked together. After this let the list be recalled‌ several times forward and backward, and more rapidly each time, without recalling the analysis.

Remarks.

1. This group may well be termed the “Long-Term Group,” since all of the seven Presidents except John Adams and his son, John Q. Adams, served two terms.

2. Three of the members of this group died after the close of their terms of office, on the natal day of the Republic, viz., John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, on the 4th of July, 1826, and James Monroe on the 4th of July, 1831.

3. This group also might be called the “J” group, since the initial letter of the Christian name or surname of every member of it begins with “J” or its phonetic equivalent, soft G, as George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, John Q. Adams, and Andrew Jackson.

SECOND GROUP. Period of Territorial Expansion and the Growth of Internal Dissension.

ANDREW Jackson. Martin VAN BUren. } In.

Two examples of In.: “An” and “Van”, and “rew” and “Bu.”

Martin Van BuREN. William HENry Harrison. } In.

A good Inclusion occurs in the case of “ren” and “Hen.” The name William belonged to no other of the twenty-four Presidents.

William HENry Harrison. John TYler. } In.

A fair example of In. by Sight [“y” occurs in both names] is furnished by the syllables “ry” and “Ty.”

John TyLer. James K. PoLk. } In. & Con.

The letter “l” belongs to both surnames but there is no other letter in common. John and James is a case of Con., for both occur together many times in the New Testament.

‌ James K. Polk. Zachary TAYlor. } In.

“K” is pronounced as if spelled “Kay,” a good In. with “Tay.”

ZachARy Taylor. MillARd Fillmore. } In.

The letters “ar” occur in both the Christian names.

MillARd Fillmore. FrANklin Pierce. } Con.

The “ar” of Millard and the “an” of Franklin is a case of Con. reversed, i.e., “an” and “ar” is Con. since “n” precedes “r” in the Alphabet. Here the alphabetical order is reversed.

FrANklin Pierce. James BuchANAN. } In.

The “an” in Franklin is identical in spelling and in sound with the two “ans” in Buchanan.

Let the student recall the series of names from Andrew Jackson to James Buchanan several times, and at each recall let him also recall the relation which bound the pairs together, and then let him recall the series from Washington to Buchanan, both forward and backward, without consciously reviving the relations.

Remarks.

1. This may be called the “Single Term Group,” since none of the group served more than one term.

2. The group is notable for the fact that it is the only one in which two Presidents (William Henry Harrison and Zachary Taylor) died natural deaths while in office.

THIRD GROUP. Period of Civil War and Reconstruction.

JAMes Buchanan. AbrahAM Lincoln. } In.

This pair of names furnishes an In. by spelling, not sound, “am” in both, but not pronounced alike. This must be noticed, as it is a weak In.

‌ Abraham LinCOLN. Andrew JOHNson. } In.

The “l” in “coln,” and the “h” in “John” are silent. It is a case of In. by sound. To the ear the sound of “Con.” is like that of “Jon.”

ANdrew Johnson. Ulysses S. GrANt. } In.

“An” in Andrew and in Grant has the same sound.

UlyssES S. Grant. Rutherford B. HayES. } In.

“Es” in Ulysses and in Hayes is the same in spelling—but not in sound. It must be noticed, as it is the weakest of all. A stronger tie has heretofore been given.

Rutherford B. HAYes. James A. GarFIELD. } Con.

There is a strong association between Hay of Hayes and and the field of Garfield, as in the familiar word “Hayfield.”

James A. GARfield. Chester A. ARthur. } In.

In “Gar” and “Ar” there is a strong In. by sound.

Chester A. ArTHUR. GroVER Cleveland. } In.

Between “thur” and “ver” there is a clear In. by sound.

Grover ClevelANd. BenjAMin Harrison. } Con.

There is a fair In. by sound between “an” and “am;” but as they are alphabetically reversed, it makes a case of Con. reversed.

BenjAMin Harrison. Grover ClevelANd. } In. & Ex.

Here “am” and “an” occur in alphabetical order, and is a case of In., and “jam,” meaning pressing together, and “cle(a)ve” meaning to separate, are opposites, hence it is also an example of Exclusion.

Let the student, as in the case of the other groups, recall this list several times, and each time revive the relation by which each pair of names was cemented together, and‌ after this let him recall this list several times both ways without reviving the cementing relations, and finally let him recall several times, both ways, the entire series of Presidents from Washington to Cleveland, and from Cleveland to Washington.

Remarks.

1. This group furnishes the notable fact that two Presidents (Lincoln and Garfield) were assassinated while in office.

2. Another peculiarity of this group is that, for the first time since the days of Washington, there was a widespread discussion and effort made to push the claims of a President (Grant) for a third term.

3. This group contains the name of the grandson (Benjamin Harrison) of William Henry Harrison, of the second group. The only other instance of relationship between the Presidents was in the case of John Adams and his son, John Quincy Adams of the first group.

4. This group contains the name of the only President (Andrew Johnson) who was ever sought to be impeached. The prosecution failed to convict, having lacked one vote of the number necessary for a conviction.

5. Grover Cleveland affords the first instance where the two terms of a President are separated by the full term of another President (Benjamin Harrison). ←ToC