From Basic to Wider English
Book 2 : The English Family at Home.
by
Dr. William Bryant. Mumford
From the Letters by Mrs. Catherine M. Nesbitt

This series of six small books, each with several letters, comes after Basic English to expand Basic words and add new vocabulary.

Letter 5 . A VISIT FROM THE MINISTER

Dear Reader,
This afternoon while I was in the kitchen doing the ironing, the door-bell rang, and when I went to answer it, Mr. Lightfoot, our Minister, was standing there.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Lightfoot," I said, "Come in. I'm afraid I'm busy ironing. Do you mind coming into the kitchen ?"
"Not at all," he said. "I know you always have a lot to do Mrs. English."
so he sat down in the kitchen while I went on ironing.
[ picture of ironing ]

My husband is a member of the Parish Council, the committee which helps and advises the Minister about anything which has to do with the organization or business of the parish, so I was not surprised when Mr. Lightfoot said " "One thing I came for was to ask you to remind Mr. English about the Council meeting tomorrow evening at 8 o'clock. I forgot to send him a letter about it."
"Oh, he has not forgotten it," I said. "He said something about it to me last night,and of course he intends to be there."
"I am glad, " he said. "We have quite a lot of things to discuss and make decisions about."
"I suppose one thing you are going to do is fix a date for this year's Sale of Work," I said. "We have made some things already at the ladies' sewing meetings. we enjoy meeting every Thursday to talk and sew and have tea, but It is more interesting when there is a sale in view to get ready for.
"Yes," he said. "I have written that down among the subjects for discussion."
"We have spent quite a lot this year on repairs to the church building," he went on, "and next year we must paint both the church and the church hall inside. So it is important to try to make as much money as we can at this year's sale. we shall have to think of some other ways of making money as well."
"I promise you that our family will do all it can to help," I said. "As you know, we are not rich, so we cannot afford to give much money, but we can give our work."
"Have you heard from David and Janet recently ?" asked Mr. Lightfoot. "How are they ?"
They are both very well," I answered. "David was in New York when he wrote last time. He will not be returning to England for some months. Perhaps we shall not see him till about Christmas. Janet, of course, will be home for her summer holidays quite soon."
Mr. Lightfoot's daughter used to give Janet music lessons, so he knows her quite well. John and Anne he sees at Sunday School. He has not seen quite so much of David, who was away getting his training as a sailor when Mr. Lightfoot first came to Hilton.
[ picture of school ]

I am told that John is doing very well at school," he said now, In fact, I hear that he is at the top of his class. I hope he doesn't spend all his time over his books.
"Oh no," I said. "He is very fond of sport. Today, after school, he will go to the playing field for some practice in running. He is training for a race at the school sports next month, which he hopes to win."
Then Mr. Lightfoot go up to go. "Won't your stay and have a cup of tea ?" I asked. But he said the couldn't, because he was going to tea with the priest, who is a great friend of his.
"I will leave this with you," he said, putting a book on the table. "It is a history of Burford, which I promised to lend to your husband."
Our minister is a very busy man. He preaches in the morning and evening every Sunday, and teaches a Sunday-School class in the afternoon. All the church ceremonies -- marriages and funerals and christenings -- are part of his work, of course, and he also spends a lot of time visiting people in the parish, especially those who are ill or old or unhappy. If anyone is worried, he does his best to help them. Everyone likes and respects Mr. Lightfoot.

Dorothy English

Notes

the ironing: We know that 'ironing' is 'smoothing with a hot iron'. Note that ' the ironing' is a regular part of the work of the house, coming after ' the washing', and that we 'do the ironing' in the same way as we 'do the washing'.

rang : The Simple Past of the verb 'ring'. (Letter I)

answer it : That is 'answer the bell '. The verb 'answer' is used not only for putting in words an answer to a question or to the person asking it, but also for doing an act 'in answer to' a request or order. The ringing of the door-bell is a request for attention, so we 'answer the bell ' by going to the door. In the same way we may 'answer someone's knock'.

minister : This is a general word for 'man of religion in charge of a church'. 'Our minister' == ' the minister in charge of our church, that is, the church we go to regularly'. Ministers generally wear a special sort of collar, as in the picture, and are dressed in black or gray.

standing : This is the -ing form of a new verb 'stand ', the sense of which is 'stay in an upright position on one's feet in one place -- that is, not walking or running'.

mind : Though this verb is the same in form as the Basic noun mind, and in some uses has a connection with it in sense, there is no very clear one here, where the sense is "Have you any feeling against ?" or "Will you be troubled by ?" So we say : "I don't mind the cold", "Do you mind if I shut the window ?" A regular verb.

not at all : Basic learners may need reminding that in questions and 'negative' statements 'at all ' == 'in any degree'. 'Negative' statements, as was noted in connection with Letter 4, are statements using 'not ' or 'no', which words are themselves called 'negatives'.

went on ironing : Note that the word 'iron' is used as a regular verb in the sense 'get smoothed with a hot iron, do ironing'.

Parish Council : A 'parish' is a division of a town or of the country (or the people living in such a division) having a separate church building and a minister to look after it. Mr. Lightfoot's 'parish' is a certain part of Hilton and all those in it who are members of his church. A 'council ' is a body -- a 'committee', as Mrs. English says -- whose business it is to give advice on the government of anything.

advises : The regular verb "advise' has a clear connection with 'advice', its sense being 'give advice (to)', but note that its form and sound are not quite the same.

has to do with : ' Have to do with' == ' be about, be in relation to, have a connection with'.

forgot : The Simple Past of the verb ' forget ' (Letter 2). Note the Past Participle, ' forgotten', in the next statement.

intends : This form is from the regular verb 'intend', he sense of which is ' be purposing (to do so on)', or ' be purposing (some effect)', as in "He intended their death."

discuss == have a discussion about. A regular verb.

suppose == take as probable, have the idea that (something) is probable. A regular verb.

fix == get fixed. Another new regular verb having a clear connection with a Basic word.

Sale of Work : A 'sale' (here 'a public selling') of the work of members of the parish, that is, of things which they have made. Most churches have such 'sales of work' once of twice a year to get money, as we see from the letter, for church purposes.

subjects : A 'subject ' is a question for discussion, as here, or it may be any ' thing forming the material of talk, teaching and so on', as "You were not the subject of our talk" "Every teacher has to have a knowledge of more than one subject.".

repairs : A 'repair' is a 'putting back (something damaged) into good condition'. The plural is used here because, as more than one part of the church and so on would be needing attention, there would be more than one 'repair' to do.

paint : Here is a regular verb == 'put paint on, get painted '. Of course Mr. Lightfoot is not saying that the Council is going to do the painting itself. "We must paint" is here used loosely in the sense "We must have (the inside) painted."

make . . . money : We are said to 'make money' when we get a profit, make an increase in our money, or, simply, get money by doing something. 'Earning' money regularly is not generally talked of as 'making' it, but it may be if our pay is uncommonly high, so that we have a lot more than enough for our needs.

rich == having much money, well-off.

Have you heard from ? == have you had letters from. . . . ...

recently == in the near past, not long ago. This -ly form comes from the word 'recent', which == 'not long past, newly started'. So we talk of 'recent events', ' his recent loss', 'recent developments', and say that "This building is of a more recent date than that."

wrote : Note the Simple Past of the verb 'write'.

perhaps == possibly, it may be that.

used to give == regularly gave. We know in Basic the form '(be, get) used to' == 'experienced in, having seen much of ', but 'used to' is here used in a different way, as a Simple Past. There is, however, a connection in sense, because ' I used to go, be and so on' == ' In the past I regularly went, I always was, and so on', so the idea of 'custom' is present in both forms There is no Present of this use.

lessons : == A ' lesson' is 'a time, a piece, of teaching', so to give lessons is simply to give teaching, one part or division of the material after another over a stretch of time.

knows her : The verb ' know' is used of persons in the sense of ' have knowledge of to the degree that one has met, seen and talked to the person at least once'. When we know a person 'quite well ', we have been in his company quite often, and when we ' know him very well ' we have had a lot to do with him, in business or as a friend.

Sunday School == a school in connection with a church to which boys and girls go on Sunday for teaching about religion.

seen . . . much of : 'See much of a person' is 'see him (or her) frequently'.

I am told == someone has told me, it has come to my ears somehow.

in fact == the fact is, to give the full fact. This is a form of words used in making an addition to what one has said before so as to put the fact(s) more truly, clearly, fully. "The boy has been in trouble with the law. In fact, he has been in prison."

I hear that == news has come to me that. This is the use of ' hear' which was mentioned in the note on "Have you heard from". Note the use of the present here and in "I am told" earlier, and see again the note on "Your mother tells me". Letter 3. . . .

class : The general sense of this word is 'sort, group, division, marked off by common 'qualities' but here it has the very common special sense of 'group of learners having lessons together'. Most schools have divisions named 'classes', based on the different stages of learning to which the learners have got.

playing field == a field or stretch of land with places for playing games, running, jumping, and so on. It may be public, the property of a town, or, as here, be for the members of a school or some other organization.

practice == (experience got by) doing something again and again so as to become expert.

running : This is the -ing form of the verb 'run' of which we had the Simple Present and the Simple Past in Book I, Letter 4. Note the two 'n's'.

race == a competition (generally in running) to see who is the quickest.

win == do best, come first in (a race and so on). This verb may also be used in the sense 'get (a reward) for doing best or very well ' in something.

couldn't : Note this short form.

priest : This word may sometimes be used generally for 'minister, man of religion having a position in a church', but when it is used with a special sense, as it clearly is here, it == 'minister of the Roman Catholic Church'. This is the commonest use.

leave == let be (where it is), not take away. Mr. Lightfoot clearly puts the book on the table and goes away without it.

lend == let have the use of (a thing) for a time. We ' lend ' (a thing to a person)'.

preaches : The regular verb 'preach' has the sense 'give a talk in public about religion, specially in a church' -- which is a regular part of a minister's work.

teaches == gives teaching (about). The Basic noun ' teaching' comes from the verb ' teach'.

ceremonies : A 'ceremony' is a special form gone through for some purpose, specially in connection with religion.

marriages : A 'marriage' is the act or event of getting married, or the forms gone through by two people to become married to one another. If the man and woman are members of a church, they are married in agreement with the forms of their religion, put into operation by a minister, generally in a church building.

funerals : A ' funeral ' is the ceremony of taking a dead person to his last resting-place, sometimes putting him in the earth or sea, sometimes having his body burned.

christening : A 'christening' is a ceremony of making a baby or older person a member of a Christian church, at the same time giving him his "Christian name(s)' (for example, John James)

respects : The regular verb 'respect' of course == ' have respect for'.

Take note of the use in these notes of the special name 'negative' == 'not,' 'no' or any complex word or any statement using these.

Exercises

1 . In the picture on p. 36 :

In the Picture on p. 37.

2 .Give the Simple Past and Past Participle of these verbs :

(a) forget ; (b) write ; (c) ring ; (d) hear.
3. In the following statements, put the parts in sloping print in a different way :

have a letter

get news

on his feet

Her advice to me is

It may be that

well-off.

let me have the use of

putting in good condition.

Wasn't he troubled by

4 . Name six verbs used for the first time in this Letter which are the same in form as Basic nouns, or have a clear connection with them, and give the sense of each.

5 . Make use of each of these words in a separate statement :

6 . Make these statements complete :

Letter 6 . GARDENING

Dear Reader,
It is July now, and it stays light till ten o'clock, so I often garden in the evening.
The weather has been fine recently, and the grass was dry, so this evening I cut the lawn behind our house. Janet came out to help me.
"Have you a job for me ?" she asked, "The hedge needs cutting too."
"Yes," I said, "but you had better leave that to me. You are not tall enough to reach over the top. You may either pull the weeds out of the rose-bed or cut off the dead roses."
[ picture of gardening]

"I don't mind bending", she said, "I'll weed the roses."
So we both got to work and for a time nothing was heard but the sound of the lawn-mower. I had just finished the grass and started on the hedge when Janet stood up. "I am going to water the roses," she said, and she went to get the watering-pot.
"What about the front garden ?" asked Janet when she had finished watering.
"Oh, that's Anne's job," I said, "and she doesn't like anyone else to touch it." The front garden is very small, just a small square of lawn with a narrow bed of flowers round it, so Anne is well able to take care of it. She is very proud of her smooth lawn and her gay flower-bed.
"John has his own garden, too, nowadays," I added, "That bed at the side. I expect he has shown it to you."
Of course, at his age John doesn't know much about gardening, but he is proud of having a piece of ground of his own, and he is learning quickly. In the spring I gave him some seeds to sow, and to his great delight they all came up and have grown into fine plants.
I went to the shed where I keep my tools to put the mower away.
"Now I am going to put some fertilizer over the roots of the roses," I said when I came back.
I thought the proper time for fertilizing roses was in the winter," said Janet.
"That's right. But it is good to feed the roses a little in the summer too."
While I was doing this, Janet started to pick some of the roses. "Be careful not to prick yourself," I said. "The thorns on those roses are very sharp." "You are right," she said suddenly, giving a little cry, "I have pricked my finger badly, and it is starting to bleed." I told her to go into the house and let the cold water from the tap run on the wound to stop the bleeding.
At this point Mr. Green, our neighbour next door, looked over the hedge, and I went to speak to him. He, too, was gardening. He has a fine vegetable garden in which he grows potatoes, carrots, cabbages, tomatoes, onions, and many more things for the table.
"Your garden looks wonderful," I said. "Yes," he answered, "it is all right up to now, but unless we have some rain soon it is not going to produce much. Everything is drying up."
"If we don't have enough, it will do more harm than good. What we need is a whole night of rain."
"Have the insects done much harm to your roses this year ?" he went on.
No. I sprayed the bushes early in the year and killed all the harmful insects. Have you had any trouble ?"
No more than usual," he answered.
"it is very nice to grow your own vegetables," I said, "and have them fresh from the garden for the table. It saves money, too, for they are very dear in the shops. But I'm afraid I don't understand enough about growing them to have a garden like yours. My wife knows quite a lot about it, as she was brought up on a farm. but she has too much to do in the house to have time for gardening. The garden is my part of the work -- mine and Anne's."
"Would you like some tomatoes for supper tonight ?" he asked.
"Very much, thank you."
While he was getting them, I picked a bunch of roses for Mrs. Green.

Henry English

Notes

it stays light : it keeps light, it goes on being light. ' Light ' is here the opposite of 'dark ', and we know the use of 'it ' in connection with weather and so on ("It is raining", "It is dark", "It is light at five in the morning t this time of year"). But you may not have met this use of 'it ' with 'stay', though you probably have had it with 'get ' ("It is getting light {dark}").

garden == work in the garden, do gardening. Another regular verb which is the same in form as a Basic noun.

cut : The Simple Past of the verb 'cut '. The Past Participle has the same form. ("The grass has not been cut yet.")

lawn == a stretch of grass kept short and smooth in a garden, park, and so on.

leave that to me : We have seen that ' leave' == 'not take with one, let be where it is'. By a simple expansion it come to have the sense 'not do, let it be for some other person to do'. When the other person is named, note that to is frequently put before the word naming him, though for would not be wrong.

reach == get to, get (hand and son) stretched out as far as. A regular verb.

either . . . or : ' Either' has the sense 'one or the other of two', and, when the two things, acts, and so on are named, either is put before the first and or before the second, to give force to the fact that there is a chance of choosing between the two.

pull : As a verb, 'pull ' -- 'give a pull (to)' or 'get (something) pulled ', frequently, as here, in some direction, 'out ' or 'up' or 'down'. A regular verb.

weeds : A ' weed ' is a plant of the woods or fields which comes up in a garden or other place where it has not been planted and is not wanted.

rose-bed " A 'rose' is a sort of flower, very beautiful and generally sweet-smelling, or the bush or small tree producing it. We know that ' bed is used for naming a stretch of earth in a garden in which plants are put. Note the complex word.

bending: This is the -ing form of the verb ' bend'', of which the Basic word is ' bent ' is the Past Participle. Its sense is, naturally, 'get bent '. To pull the weeds up, Janet has to ' bend her back)'.

weed : This is the verb of the same form as the noun 'weed ', and its sense is ' take weeds out of, get weeds pulled up'. A regular verb.

got to work : Note this special use of 'get to' with 'work' in the sense of 'start, get started at (working)'. This is not a general use, so do not try to put it with other words.

lawn-mower : A 'mower' is a machine for cutting grass, and the word ' lawn' makes it clear that it is here of the sort used in gardens, not on farms.

finished : The Past Participle of the regular verb 'finish', Used first in Book I, Letter 4.

stood up : ' Stood ' is the Simple Past of the verb 'stand ', == ' be or get on one's feet, upright ' (Letter 5). ' Up' is frequently put after it, specially when the sense is 'get up' onto one's feet' (in the same way as we say 'sit down' for 'get seated '). Note that the Past Participle also is 'stood '. ("We had stood there for hours.")

water : As a verb, water == 'give water to (animals and so on), put water on (plants) or in (drinks)'. It is a regular verb. A watering-pot is a special pot with a pipe-like part for the water to come out of, used for watering plants.

What about the front garden ? == "What are we going to do about the front garden ?" or, more loosely "Is there anything to do about . . . ?" Note this forming of a question starting "What about', as a way of asking generally about something, bringing it to attention.

anyone else == any other person. ' Else' is used in this sense of 'other' only with complex words ending in -one or -body or with question words such as who or what. It is always put straight after them. ("Did you see anybody (nobody, someone, everyone) else ?", "Who else was there ?", "What else did he say ?")

touch it : Another verb which is the same in form as a Basic noun and regular. The sense is, naturally, 'give a touch to, be touching'. Here it is used loosely in the sense of 'do anything at all to'.

just : The sense he is 'only, no more and no less than'. (See Notes, Letter 2.)

well able to : Note this use of ' well ' before 'able to' to give the sense ' thoroughly'. ' having more than the power necessary to' do.

proud of : To be 'proud ' is to have a high opinion of oneself, and to be 'proud of ' anything is to have a high opinion of it and, generally, as here, to be pleased with oneself about it, to take credit for it.

his own : ' Own' is put after owner-forms, like 'my, his, our' and so on to give them special force, here ' his and nobody else's'. The connection with 'owner' will be clear, ' his, of which he is the owner'.

added : This is the Simple Past of the regular verb 'add ', the connection of which with the word 'addition' will be readily seen. The general sense of 'add ' is 'put as an addition to' or, in arithmetic, 'get the amount produced by putting (amounts) together'. It is frequently used in relation to talk, to give the sense 'say as an addition to what one has just said '.

expect : ' Expect ' is used here in somewhat less than its full sense, with almost no suggestion of looking forward. The idea is "I expect that you will tell me that he has . . .", but the effect is about the same as 'I suppose' (Letter 5).

has shown : Give attention to the Past Participle of the verb 'show'.

ground == land. The senses of the two words are almost the same, but 'ground ' is never used as the opposite of 'sea', and has the special idea of ' land as a base, the face of the earth by which our feet and so on are supported ', so we say "The house was burned to the ground", that is, down to its base.

of his own : Take note of this special word-group using 'own '; 'a piece of ground of his own' is a sense only the same as ' his own piece of ground ' but it puts the idea more strongly

sow == put (seed) in the earth. This verb is used only in talking of seeds, never in talking of putting plants in the earth.

to his . . . delight : ' Delight ' == 'great pleasure'. The use of ' to his (my and so on)' is seen in Basic with other names of feelings, such as 'surprise', 'disgust', 'regret'. The sense of course is : 'causing him (that is, 'working to his') great delight '.

came up : When seeds undergo development, the plants 'come up', so it is natural to say the seeds 'came up'.

has grown into : Seeds grow into plants, and boys grown into men in the same way as we make woolinto cloth. And, on the other hand, plants grow from seeds in the same way as boots are made from leather. Note the Past Participle 'grown'.

fine == very good. This is the general sense of this word. Its special sense in connection with weather, 'not raining', which we have already had, comes from the fact that for most purposes dry, bright weather is what is desired, and so has come to be looked on as 'very good '.

shed == a small, roughly-made building, sometimes no more than a roof resting on uprights, used for storing things or working in. See picture.

tools : A ' tool ' is an instrument for working with. The word is generally used instead of 'instrument ' in talking of larger and less delicate things, such as a spade or a hammer ; so we talk of gardener's tools, or a joiner's tools, but a doctor's instruments.

fertilizer == substance for making earth fertile, giving it chemicals needed for helping the growth of plants. This is the -er form from the regular verb fertilize == 'make fertile' (in talking of land, this generally == 'give it needed food, chemicals'), of which we see the -ing form fertilizing in the next statement.

I thought == I had the idea. Note the Simple Past of the verb ' think ' which is the same in form as the Past Participle.

feed == give food to. Note the connection and the fact that we can ' feed ' plants as well as animals.

pick == get (flowers, fruit and so on) from the plants, bushes or trees on which they are growing. A regular verb.

prick == make a wound or small hole in something with a sharp point. In the next statement we have the Past participle 'pricked ', which is the same as the Simple Past.

thorns : a ' thorn' is a small hard growth with a sharp point on the stem of a plant. If such a thing touches a person's skin it will certainly 'prick' and hurt them.

bleed == send out blood, undergo loss of blood. We may say ether that a wound ' bleeds' or that the wounded part ' bleeds' (as here, it is Janet's finger which is 'starting to bleed') Note the 'ing' noun ' bleeding' ==the process of sending out blood.

neighbour : A person's 'neighbour' is anyone living near him. The people in the houses all round the English's' house are their neighbors.

speak == say something, talk.

grows potatoes : We have had the verb 'grow ' in the sense of 'undergo growth, become bigger by growth', we have it here in the different sense of 'make grow, get produced form the earth' (by sowing seed, caring for the plants).

unless we have == if we do not have. ' Unless' is always used in statements of this structure to give the sense 'if . . . not '.

produce == get produced. The -ing and -ed forms made from the noun 'produce' are the key to the sense of the regular verb 'produce'. But note that the two words, though they have the same form, have not the same sound. In the noun 'produce' the weight is put on the first half of the word , in the verb 'produce' it is put on the second.

drying up : You know the form 'drying' as the -ing form from the adjective 'dry' but it is to be noted that there is also a verb 'dry', having the sense of either ' become dry' or 'make dry', of which 'drying' is a part. When the sense is ' become completely dry by undergoing the loss of liquid which is naturally part of it ' and 'up' is generally added. The verb 'dry' is regular, only changing the 'y' to 'i' before 's' and 'ed' : "The plants are dried up."

rain : This is here used as a verb : 'it might rain == 'rain might come.' This is in agreement with the use of 'it is raining' which you already know. This verb must always be used with 'it ', but in other ways it is quite regular.

above == over, higher than.

harm == damage

sprayed : Simple Past of the regular verb 'spray'. which == 'send (a liquid) over something in small drops'. Gardeners and farmers 'spray' plants and trees with different chemical substances at certain stages of their growth to stop the development of insects or disease.

killed : simple Past of the regular verb ' kill ' == 'put to death, be the cause of the death of '.

harmful == damaging, causing harm. Note this addition ' ful ' which is put onto a number of words to give the sense of ' full of, having, or causing'. Do not try to make new words with it yourselves, because there are some onto which it cannot be put, but be ready to see the sense of words with this ending when you meet them.

understand == have a clear knowledge of, be clear about. To 'understand ' words is to know the sense of them ; to 'understand ' such things as plants or animals is to know enough about them to be able to look after them properly.

as she was : Here 'as' has the new sense of ' because'.

brought up : the sense of ' bring up' when it is used of people, or sometimes animals, is ' take care of (a young person and so on) while he is growing up and give him his training for living.' Note the Past Participle brought and the fact that it is the same as the Simple Past.

supper : When 'dinner', the chief meal, is taken in the middle of the day, the evening meal, frequently a cold meal, is named 'supper'.

Exercises

1 . Look well at the picture and answer these questions :

2 . Name five verbs used for the first time in this Letter which are the same in form as Basic words, and two, which, though not quite the same as Basic words, have a clear connection with them, Give the sense of all these verbs.

3 . Make these statements complete :

4 . In these statements, put the parts in sloping print in another way:

Blood is coming from

if you do not

other things

got up from their seats

put

in the earth

says anything.

get the sense of

5 . Give one other word for each of these words or word-groups :

6 . Make use of each of these word in a separate statements :

(a) proud ; (b) harm ; (c) neighbour ; (d) thorn ; (e) supper ; (f) ground ;((g) spray ; (h) pick.
< Letter 4 contents Letter 7 >

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From Basic to Wider EnglishBook 2 : The English Family at Home. by Dr. William Bryant. Mumford From the Letters by Mrs. Catherine M. Nesbitt

Letter 5 . A VISIT FROM THE MINISTER

Notes

Exercises

Letter 6 . GARDENING

Notes

Exercises

From Basic to Wider English
Book 2 : The English Family at Home.
by
Dr. William Bryant. Mumford
From the Letters by Mrs. Catherine M. Nesbitt