Green vegetation (III)

FOR the third week running, we present the same material for analysis in the hope that the matters arising therefrom would be exhausted today. The excerpt is retained as sample 1.

Sample 1: “From north to west and all across the country charcoal production and selling is the order of the day. Many logs are felled in droves for the production of charcoal in commercial quantity but none is planted in replacement. Sina Fadare who visited some of the villages report that danger is looming as forests are becoming empty and vegetation are getting thinner…Today, he searches all the nooks and crannies of the villages in his surrounding and even goes as far as Niger State to produce charcoal. In Kwara, Niger, Oyo and Benue states some of the trees used for charcoal production includes Aayan tree…and iroko tree. It was also gathered that there are other species of trees used for this purpose in the country…These include prosobis Africana…which are popular and most frequently used among the inhabitants as fuel woods…Karim regretted that both the producers and exporters of charcoal paid about four different levies to the state, the local government and the forest guides, which they claimed was revenue to the government before charcoal could be transported from any of the villages.”(Nigeria Forests…Going, Going and Going, The Nation, Sunday, December 3, 2017)

Let’s note the word woods which occurs in the following context: “which are popular and most frequently used among the inhabitants as fuel woods.” What is actually remarkable about this word is its plural form. The word is rarely used in its plural form except in contexts to which we shall soon draw attention.Wood in its ordinary everyday usage must be used in its singular, uncountable form.

Meanwhile, read the following sentences: 1) There are two boxes there: one made of wood, the other of brass. 2)After some time, the wood was eaten by termites. 3) We must differentiate properties of wood from those of metals. 4) More than half of the vehicle consists of wood. 5) Sculptors work with wood and stones. 6) The use of gas should gradually supersede firewood.7) The widespread use of firewood is partly responsible for the destruction of forests. 8) She makes a lot of money from the sale of firewood. 9) The government has banned the importation of wood. 10) Wood has many industrial uses.

The word wood can be used in the singular or plural when its reference is to a forest: 1) The wood has become a hideout for dangerous criminals. 2) There are dangerous animals in the woods. 3) The government should do everything to preserve the wood. 4) We often hold prayer meetings in the woods. 5) The woods hold a scare for me at night.

Next, we note the word fell which occurs in the following context: “why can’t they plough the revenue back to replace the fell trees?”Let’s pay a close attention to the phrase “the fell trees.” It is obvious that the writer thinks the word fell in that context is a past participle, one that can serve appropriately as a modifier to the noun trees. This is erroneous. The appropriate past participle is felled. The basic verb is fell. (Interestingly, what is in contemplation here is not fell as the past tense of the verb fall; the word fell is a basic verb in its own right, which, though may have a semantic relationship to the verb fall, is distinct from it.)

The following sentences illustrate the usage of the verb fell: 1) More than fifty trees were felled yesterday. 2) There is a limit to the number of trees you can fell in a day. 3) Forests are destroyed by unrestrained felling of trees. 4) The trees here are too young to be felled now. 5) Government representatives are noting the number of trees being felled every day. 6)The trees should not be felled until the next ten years. 7) Some trees are too strong to be felled using cutlasses and axes. 8) New trees should be planted in the place of those being felled. 9) Permission should be sought from government before trees are felled. 10) You should not fell trees if you are not licensed by the appropriate agency of government.

The phrase should read: “the felled trees”. In other words, the past tense of the verb fell is felled; its past participle is also felled.

Sample 2: “Her experience spans through oil and gas, banking, health and safety, management consulting, research, human capital development and international development.” (Gloria Ita-Ikpeme, The Nation, Sunday, 3 December, 2017)

The expression that interests us is span through: “her experience spans through oil and gas…”  Let us note immediately that the preposition through should not be part of that expression. With the addition of that preposition, the expression has lost its idiomatic character. Actually, the preposition some Nigerians frequently attach to the verb span is across. They would say: XYZ spans across. This is unacceptable. The verb span does not take any preposition at all. It should be noted, however, that the verbs spread and cut each take the particlesacross and through. It may well be that the usage of these two verbs is confused with that of span when people choose the particlesacrossandthrough in relation to the latter.

Now read the following sentences: 1) The deadly activities of the Boko Haram insurgents have spanned four years now. 2) She had a brilliant career that spanned almost thirty years. 3) The Old Oyo Empire spanned almost the entire geographical area now known as Western Region of Nigeria. 4) The marine scientist claims that the pollution spans up to one hundred nautical miles. 5) The pipelines conveying fuel to various parts of the country span over one thousand kilometres. 6) The desert, we are told, spans more than five thousand square miles. 7) The proposed Fourth Mainland Bridge will span thirty kilometres. 8) The Prophet Elisha’s ministry was said to have spanned fifty years. 9) Wole Soyinka is unique as a writer in that his writings span all the genres of literature. 10) His career as a civil servant spanned the tenures of five Heads of State.

As we have noted, both spread and cut take prepositions. The following sentences illustrate the usage of the word spread: 1) Before he knew what was happening, the bad news had spread across the entire nation. 2) The management has allowed the payment to be spread over two years. 3) We should not allow the fire to spread to the cocoa plantation. 4) In view of the heat, the butter spread quickly over the slice of yam. 5) His political influence spread over a wide geographical area. 6) By that time, Christianity had spread through the cities to the remotest part of the country. 7) The pain has spread from the back to the neck and the head. 8) The crime of kidnapping which started from the South East has spread to the northern part of the country. 9) Our listeners spread across the nation. 10) The disease is spread through infected blood.

The important point to note is that the word spread can take a number of particles/prepositions.

Now we turn to the word cut: 1) The reduction in salaries cuts across all salary scales. 2) Those who voted for the president cut across all parties. 3) The problem cuts across all strata of society. 4) The disease cuts across all age groups. 5) President Muhammadu Buhari’s fight against corruption cuts across party lines. 6) The president’s political influence should cut across party lines. 7) The issue of immorality cuts across religious boundaries. 8) It is sad that exam malpractices cut across all levels of education. 9) The retrenchment cuts across all departments. 10) Racial discrimination cuts across all segments of the society.