9. "More Presently"

     A friend of mine called my attention to what he called a mistake in a biographical sketch of a literary man: the name of a person followed by "of whom more presently". In fact, there is no mistake at all in the expression. "More presently" is elliptical for "more will be said presently". My friend did not know this idiomatic ellipsis, having apparently taken "more" to be adverb modifying “presently” and thought a subject and verb ought to have been supplied so as to make a complete clause.  

     Equipped with a knowledge of grammar, Chinese learners of English are apt to think they are quite able to read general literature without much difficulty so long as they have a good dictionary within reach. What is more, they are too ready to dismiss as wrong any combination of words that does not seem to him to be capable of grammatical analysis.  

     Important as grammar is, there are many turns of expression that are generally considered blameless English though they are not quite defensible form a narrowly grammatical point of view. So that the mastery of English grammar in its narrow sense dose not enable one so much as to read English intelligently.  

     When you come across in good writing any construction that you do not find grammatical, I would advise you to note it down instead of calling it a mistake, and to see if you will not meet with a similar one in your reading. You will very soon, perhaps, and then you will most likely understand the construction.

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NOTES

1. called my attention to 使我注意

2. biographical sketch 传略

3. elliptical 省略语的

4. Equipped with 备着...；有了...

5. within reach 在附近的；可以取用的

6. What is more 而且

7. too ready to... 太易于...的

8. dismiss as wrong 把...看作错误而置于不顾

9. capable of grammatical analysis 可能在语法上分析的

10. Important as grammar is 虽然语法时重要的

11. turns of expression 结构；说法

12. defensible 可被辩护的

13. narrowly grammatical point of view 狭隘的语法观点

14. So that 因而

15. so much as 即使

16. come across 碰到

17. instead of 而不

18. if=whether

19. one=construction

20. will=will meet with a similar one in your reading