Skinner is often ignorant, but never ridiculous: Junius is always full of knowledge; but his variety distracts his judgment, and his learning is very frequently disgraced by his absurdities.
The votaries of the northern muses will not perhaps easily restrain their indignation, when they find the name of Junius thus degraded by a disadvantageous comparison; but whatever reverence is due to his diligence, or his attainments, it can be no criminal degree of censoriousness to charge that etymologist with want of judgment, who can seriously derive _dream_ from _drama_, because 'life is a drama and a drama is a dream'; and who declares with a tone of defiance, that no man can fail to derive _moan_ from [Greek: monos], _monos, single_ or _solitary_, who considers that grief naturally loves to be alone.
Our knowledge of the northern literature is so scanty, that of words undoubtedly Teutonic, the original is not always to be found in an ancient language; and I have therefore inserted Dutch or German substitutes, which I consider not as radical, but parallel, not as the parents, but sisters of the English.
The words which are represented as thus related by descent or cognation, do not always agree in sense; for it is incident to words, as to their authors, to degenerate from their ancestors, and to change their manners when they change their country.

It is sufficient, in etymological inquiries, if the senses of kindred words be found such as may easily pass into each other, or such as may both be referred to one general idea.
The etymology, so far as it is yet known, was easily found in the volumes, where it is particularly and professedly delivered, and, by proper attention to the rules of derivation, the orthography was soon adjusted.

But to COLLECT THE WORDS of our language was a task of greater difficulty the deficiency of dictionaries was immediately apparent, and when they were exhausted, what was yet wanting must be sought by fortuitous and unguided excursions into books and gleaned as industry should find, or chance should offer it, in the boundless chaos of a living speech.

My search, however, has been either skilful or lucky, for I have much augmented the vocabulary.
As my design was a dictionary, common or appellative, I have omitted all words which have relation to proper names, such as _Arian, Socinian, Calvinist, Benedictine, Mahometan_, but have retained those of a more general nature, as _Heathen, Pagan_.
Of the terms of art I have received such as could be found either in books of science or technical dictionaries, and have often inserted, from philosophical writers, words which are supported perhaps only by a single authority, and which, being not admitted into general use, stand yet as candidates or probationers, and must depend for their adoption on the suffrage of futurity.

The words which our authors have introduced by their knowledge of foreign languages or ignorance of their own, by vanity or wantonness, by compliance with fashion or lust of innovation, I have registered as they occurred, though commonly only to censure them, and warn others against the folly of naturalizing useless foreigners to the injury of the natives.
I have not rejected any by design, merely because they were unnecessary or exuberant, but have received those which by different writers have been differently formed, as _viscid_, and _viscidity, viscous_, and _viscosity_.
Compounded or double words I have seldom noted, except when they obtain a signification different from that which the components have in then simple state.
Thus _highwayman, woodman_, and _horsecourser_, require an explanation, but of _thieflike_, or _coachdriver_, no notice was needed, because the primitives contain the meaning of the compounds.
Words arbitrarily formed by a constant and settled analogy, like diminutive adjectives in _ish, as greenish, bluish_; adverbs in _ly_, as _dully, openly_; substantives in _ness_, as _vileness, faultiness_; were less diligently sought, and many sometimes have been omitted, when I had no authority that invited me to insert them; not that they are not genuine, and regular offsprings of English roots, but because their relation to the primitive being always the same, their signification cannot be mistaken.
The verbal nouns in _ing_, such as the _keeping_ of the _castle_, the _leading_ of the _army_, are always neglected, or placed only to illustrate the sense of the verb, except when they signify things as well as actions, and have therefore a plural number, as _dwelling, living_; or have an absolute and abstract signification, as _coloring, painting, learning_.
The participles are likewise omitted, unless, by signifying rather habit or quality than action, they take the nature of adjectives; as a _thinking_ man, a man of prudence; a _pacing_ horse, a horse that can pace: these I have ventured to call _participial adjectives_.