"Radical pamphleteer, journalist, politician and farmer" (Wiki)

I seem to remember we had something to read from his "Rural Rides" early
in my education (high school?!).

Anyhow, he also wrote an English grammar, in the form of a series of
letters to his young son. I picked up a copy of this a couple of years
ago, and commented on a.u.e.: "not much of a grammarian, but his
political asides are interesting".

I won't amend that, but Crystal points out that the intentions of his
grammar are also interesting and unusual for the time. Most existing
grammars were directed at gentlepersons, to teach them how to write and
converse in a manner befitting their class.

Cobbett's subtitle is: "Intended for the Use of Schools and of Young
Persons in General, but more especially for the Use of Soldiers,
Sailors, Apprentices and Plough-Boys".

Not so that they could pretend to be gentlemen, though:
"The possession of this branch of knowledge raises you in your own
esteem, gives just confidence in yourself, and prevents you from being
the willing slave of the rich and titled parts of the community."

And finally, a memory of how he spent his time when he was in the army
(1783-91):

"I procured me a Lowth's grammar [see 8 February] and applied myself to
the study of it with unceasing assiduity and not without some profit...I
wrote the whole grammar out two or three times. I got it by heart; I
repeated it every morning and every evening, and, when on guard, I
imposed on myself the task of saying it all over once every time I was
posted sentinel."

Ar an deichiú lá de mí Márta, scríobh Ross Clark:

> [...] And finally, a memory of how he spent his time when he was in the army
> (1783-91):
>
> "I procured me a Lowth's grammar [see 8 February] and applied myself to the
> study of it with unceasing assiduity and not without some profit...I wrote
> the whole grammar out two or three times. I got it by heart; I repeated it
> every morning and every evening, and, when on guard, I imposed on myself the
> task of saying it all over once every time I was posted sentinel."

Very unusual to do that with one’s first language these days.

A Brazilian of my acquaintance (grandparents moved to Rio Grande do Sul in a
hurry in 1946, had native German with a Black Forest accent), in Dublin to
learn English, would get up at 05:00 every morning to do exra prep for her
language classes, I could well imagine her doing that, and I am sure there are
other second-language learners that take things that seriously. But first
language?

--
‘As I sat looking up at the Guinness ad, I could never figure out /
How your man stayed up on the surfboard after fourteen pints of stout’
(C. Moore)