anner of adjectives: as, _soon, sooner, soonest; often, oftener,
oftenest;[310] long, longer, longest; fast, faster, fastest_.

The following are irregularly compared: _well, better, best; badly_ or
_ill, worse, worst; little less, least; much, more, most; far, farther,
farthest; forth, further, furthest. Rath, rather, rathest_, is now used
only in the comparative.

OBSERVATIONS.

OBS. 1.--Most adverbs that are formed from adjectives by the addition of
_ly_, will admit the comparative adverbs _more and most, less_ and _least_,
before them:, as, _wisely, more wisely, most wisely; culpably, less
culpably, least culpably_. This is virtually a comparison of the latter
adverb, but the grammatical inflection, or degree, belongs only to the
former; and the words being written separately, it is certainly most proper
to parse them separately, ascribing the degree of comparison to the word
which expresses it. As comparison does not belong to adverbs in general, it
should not be mentioned in parsing, except in the case of those few which
are varied by it.

OBS. 2.--In the works of Milton, and occasionally in those of some other
poets of his age,[311] adverbs of two syllables, ending in _ly_, are not
only compared regularly like adjectives of the same ending, but are used in
the measure of iambic verse as if they still formed only two syllables.
Examples:--

"But God hath _wiselier_ arm'd his vengeful ire."
--_P. Lost_, B. x, l. 1022.

"Destroyers _rightlier_ call'd and plagues of men."
--_Ib._, B. xi, l. 699.

"And on his quest, where _likeliest_ he might find."
--_Ib._, B. ix, l. 414.

"Now _amplier_ known thy Saviour and thy Lord."
--_Ib._, B. xii, l. 544.

"Though thou wert _firmlier_ fasten'd than a rock."
--_Sam. Agon._, l. 1398.

"Not rustic, as before, but _seemlier_ clad."
--_P. Reg._, B. ii, l. 299.

-------------------------"Whereof to thee anon
_Plainlier_ shall be reveal'd."
--_Paradise Lost_, B. xii, l. 150.

------------"To show what coast thy sluggish erare
Might _easiliest_ harbour in."
--_Shakspeare, Cymb._, Act IV.

"Shall not myself be _kindlier_ mov'd than thou art?"
--_Id., Tempest_, Act V.

"But _earthlier_ happy is the rose distill'd."
--_Id., M. S. N. Dream_, Act I.

OBS. 3.--The usage just cited is clearly analogical, and has the obvious
advantage of adding to the