s; and nouns
implying a general state, condition, or habit, must be used without the
article. It is not vaguely therefore, but on fixed principles, that the
article is omitted, or inserted, in such phrases as the following: 'in
terror, in fear, in dread, in haste, in sickness, in pain, in trouble; in
_a_ fright, in _a_ hurry, in _a_ consumption; _the_ pain of his wound was
great; her son's dissipated life was _a_ great trouble to
her."--_Churchill's Gram._, p. 127.

OBS. 30.--Though _the, an_, and _a_, are the only articles in our language,
they are far from being the only definitives. Hence, while some have
objected to the peculiar distinction bestowed upon these little words,
firmly insisting on throwing them in among the common mass of adjectives;
others have taught, that the definitive adjectives--I know not how
many--such as, _this, that, these, those, any, other, some, all, both,
each, every, either, neither_--"are much more properly articles than any
thing else."--_Hermes_, p. 234. But, in spite of this opinion, it has
somehow happened, that these definitive adjectives have very generally, and
very absurdly, acquired the name of _pronouns_. Hence, we find Booth, who
certainly excelled most other grammarians in learning and acuteness,
marvelling that the _articles_ "were ever separated from the class of
_pronouns_." To all this I reply, that _the, an_, and _a_, are worthy to be
distinguished as _the only articles_, because they are not only used with
much greater _frequency_ than any other definitives, but are specially
restricted to the limiting of the signification of nouns. Whereas the other
definitives above mentioned are very often used to supply the place of
their nouns; that is, to represent them understood. For, in general, it is
only by ellipsis of the noun after it, and not as the representative of a
noun going before, that any one of these words assumes the appearance of a
pronoun. Hence, they are not pronouns, but adjectives. Nor are they "more
properly articles than any thing else;" for, "if the essence of an article
be to define and ascertain" the meaning of a noun, this very conception of
the thing necessarily supposes the noun to be used with it.

OBS. 31.--The following example, or explanation, may show what is meant by
definitives. Let the general term be _man_, the plural of which is _men: A
man_--one unknown or indefinite; _The man_--one known or particular; _The
men_--some particular ones; _An