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The man was in a brown study when he went into the drug store.

"What can we do for you?" inquired the clerk.

"I want black-- something of something," he said; "have you got any?"

"Probably we have," replied the clerk, "but you'll have to be more definite than that to get it."

The farmer thought for a moment.

"Got any black sheepskin of something?" he asked.

"No; we don't keep sheepskins. We have chamois-skins, though."

"That ain't it, I know," said the customer. "Got any other kind of skins?"

"No."

"Skins-- skins-- skins!" slowly repeated the man, struggling with his slippery memory. "Calfskin seems to be something like it. Got any black calfskins of anything?"

"No, not one," and the clerk laughed.

The customer grew red in the face.

"Confound it!" he said, "if it ain't a skin, what in thunder is it?"

"Possibly it's a hide?" suggested the clerk.

"That's it! That's it!" exclaimed the man.

"Have you got any black hides of something or anything?"

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The clerk shook his head sadly as the man tramped up and down the store.

"Got any black cowhide of anything?" he asked, after a moment's thought.

The clerk's face showed a gleam of intelligence, and then broke into a smile.

"Possibly it's black oxide of manganese you want?" he said, quietly.

"Of course, that's it!" he exclaimed, as he threw his arms around the clerk's neck. "I knowed blamed well there was a skin or hide or something somewhere about the thing," and he calmed down quietly and waited for what he wanted.

Accord, Give

"They accorded him due praise." "They gave him the desired information."

Act, Action

"The best portion of a good man's life is his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and of love." "Suit the action to the word." Action suggests the operation; act, the accomplished result.

Adherence, Adhesion

These words were once interchangeable, but are now distinct. Adhesion relates to physical bodies; adherence to mental states.

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Adopt, Take

"What course will you take?" is better than "What course will you adopt?"

Affect, Effect

These words are sometimes confounded. "The climate affected their health." "They sailed away without effecting their purpose."

Aggravate, Exasperate

To aggravate means to intensify, to make worse; to exasperate means to provoke, to irritate. "To aggravate the horrors of the scene." "His remarks exasperated me." "His conduct aggravates me" should be "His conduct annoys (or displeases, or irritates, or exasperates) me."

Alleviate, Relieve

These words differ chiefly in degree. The latter is the stronger word.

Proposal, Proposition

A proposition implies consideration or discussion; a proposal contemplates acceptance or rejection. "Your proposition to build our new warehouse has received favorable consideration, and we are ready to receive your proposals."

Providing, Provided

"You may go to skate, providing you first finish your task."

Incorrect. You should say provided.

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Proved, Proven

Proven is sometimes incorrectly used for proved. "The evidence was complete and his guilt was fully proved." Not proven is a legal term used in England to denote that the guilt of the accused is not made out, though not disproved.

Quantity, Number

Quantity refers to the how much; number to the how many. "He purchased a large quantity of wheat, corn, apples, lime, and sand, and a number of houses, stores, chairs, and books." It is, therefore, incorrect to say, "There was a large quantity of bicycles in the yard," "He sold a large quantity of books at auction."

Quite a few