chief points of the compass, we have so many adjectives,
and so many modes of varying or comparing them, that it is difficult to
tell their number, or to know which to choose in practice. (1.) _North,
south, east_, and _west_, are familiarly used both as nouns and as
adjectives. From these it seems not improper to form superlatives, as
above, by adding _most_; as, "From Aroar to Nebo, and the wild of
_southmost_ Abarim."--_Milton_. "There are no rivulets or springs in the
island of Feror, the _westmost_ of the Canaries."--_White's Nat. Hist._
(2.) These primitive terms may also be compared, in all three of the
degrees, by the adverbs _farther_ and _farthest_, or _further_ and
_furthest_; as, "Which is yet _farther west_."--_Bacon_. (3.) Though we
never employ as separate words the comparatives _norther, souther, easter,
wester_, we have _northerly, southerly, easterly_, and _westerly_, which
seem to have been formed from such comparatives, by adding _ly_; and these
four may be compared by the adverbs _more_ and _most_, or _less_ and
_least_: as, "These hills give us a view of the _most easterly, southerly_,
and _westerly_ parts of England."--GRAUNT: _in Joh. Dict._ (4.) From these
supposed comparatives likewise, some authors form the superlatives
_northermost, southermost, eastermost_, and _westermost_; as, "From the
_westermost_ part of Oyster bay."--_Dr. Webster's Hist. U. S._, p. 126.
"And three miles southward of the _southermost_ part of said
bay."--_Trumbull's Hist. of Amer._, Vol. i, p. 88. "Pockanocket was on the
_westermost_ line of Plymouth Colony."--_Ib._, p. 44. "As far as the
_northermost_ branch of the said bay or river."--_Ib._, p. 127. The
propriety of these is at least questionable; and, as they are neither very
necessary to the language, nor recognized by any of our lexicographers, I
forbear to approve them. (5.) From the four primitives we have also a third
series of positives, ending in _ern_; as, _northern, southern, eastern,
western_. These, though they have no comparatives of their own, not only
form superlatives by assuming the termination _most_, but are sometimes
compared, perhaps in both degrees, by a separate use of the adverbs: as,
"_Southernmost, a_. Furthest towards the south."--_Webster's Dict._ "Until
it shall intersect the _northernmost_ part of the thirty-first degree of
north latitude."--_Articles of Peace_. "To the _north-westernmost_ head of
Connecticut river."--_Ib._ "Thence through t