Patronize. This word and its derivatives would be much less used by the American tradesman than they are, if he were better acquainted with their true meaning. Then he would solicit his neighbors' custom, not their patronage. A man can have no patrons without incurring obligations—without becoming a protégé; while a man may have customers innumerable, and, instead of placing himself under obligations to them, he may place them under obligations to him. Princes are the patrons of those tradesmen whom they allow to call themselves their purveyors; as, "John Smith, Haberdasher to H. R. H. the Prince of Wales." Here the Prince patronizes John Smith.
Pell-mell. This adverb means mixed or mingled together; as, "Men, horses, chariots, crowded pell-mell." It can not properly be applied to an individual. To say, for example, "He rushed pell-mell down the stairs," is as incorrect as it would be to say, "He rushed down the stairs mixed together."
Per. This Latin preposition is a good deal used in English, as, for example, in such phrases as per day, per man, per pound, per ton, and so on. In all such cases it is better to use plain English, and say, a day, a man, a pound, a ton, etc. Per is correct before Latin nouns only; as, per annum, per diem, per cent., etc.
Perform. "She performs on the piano beautifully." In how much better taste it is to say simply, "She plays the piano well," or, more superlatively, "exceedingly well," or "admirably"! If we talk about performing on musical instruments, to be consistent, we should call those who perform, piano-performers, cornet-performers, violin-performers, and so on.
Perpetually. This word is sometimes misused for continually. Dr. William Mathews, in his "Words, their Use and Abuse," says: "The Irish are perpetually using shall for will." Perpetual means never ceasing, continuing without intermission, uninterrupted; while continual means that which is constantly renewed and recurring with perhaps frequent stops and interruptions. As the Irish do something besides misuse shall, the Doctor should have said that they continually use shall for will. I might perhaps venture to intimate that perpetually is likewise misused in the following sentence, which I copy from the "London Queen," if I were not conscious that the monster who can write and print such a sentence would not hesitate to cable a thunderbolt at an offender on the slightest provocation. Judge, if my fears are groundless: "But some few people contract the ugly habit of making use of these expressions unconsciously and continuously, perpetually interlarding their conversation with them."
Person. See [Party]; also, [Individual].
Personalty. This word does not, as some persons think, mean the articles worn on one's person. It is properly a law term, and means personal property. "There is but one case on record of a peer of England leaving over $7,500,000 personalty."
Personification. That rhetorical figure which attributes sex, life, or action to inanimate objects, or ascribes to objects and brutes the acts and qualities of rational beings, is called personification or prosopopœia.
"The mountains sing together, the hills rejoice and clap their hands." "The worm, aware of his intent, harangued him thus."
"See, Winter comes to rule the varied year,
Sullen and sad with all his rising train."—Thomson.