l,
uphill_ and _downhil_." This occasional excision of the letter _l_ is
reprehensible, because it is contrary to general analogy, and because both
letters are necessary to preserve the sound, and show the derivation of the
compound. Walker censures it as a "ridiculous irregularity," and lays the
blame of it on the "_printers_," and yet does not venture to correct it!
See Johnson's Dictionary, first American edition, quarto; Walker's
Pronouncing Dictionary, under the word _Dunghil_; and his Rhyming
Dictionary, Introd., p. xv.

OBS. 3.--"Dr. Johnson's Dictionary" has been represented by some as having
"nearly fixed the external form of our language." But Murray, who quotes
this from Dr. Nares, admits, at the same time, that, "The orthography of a
great number of English words, is far from being uniform, even amongst
writers of distinction."--_Gram._, p. 25. And, after commending this work
of Johnson's, as A STANDARD, from which, "it is earnestly to be hoped, that
no author will henceforth, on light grounds, be tempted to innovate," he
adds, "This Dictionary, however, contains some orthographical
inconsistencies which ought to be rectified: such as, _immovable, moveable;
chastely, chastness; fertileness, fertily; sliness, slyly; fearlessly,
fearlesness; needlessness, needlesly_."--_Ib._ In respect to the final _ck_
and _our_, he also _intentionally departs from_ THE STANDARD _which he thus
commends_; preferring, in that, the authority of _Walker's Rhyming
Dictionary_, from which he borrowed his rules for spelling. For, against
the use of _k_ at the end of words from the learned languages, and against
the _u_ in many words in which Johnson used it, we have the authority, not
only of general usage now, but of many grammarians who were contemporary
with Johnson, and of more than a dozen lexicographers, ancient or modern,
among whom is Walker himself. In this, therefore, Murray's practice is
right, and his commended standard dictionary, wrong.

OBS. 4.--Of words ending in _or_ or _our_, we have about three hundred and
twenty; of which not more than forty can now with any propriety be written
with the latter termination. Aiming to write according to the best usage of
the present day, I insert the _u_ in so many of these words as now seem
most familiar to the eye when so written; but I have no partiality for any
letters that can well be spared; and if this book should ever, by any good
fortune, happen to be reprinted, after _ho