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diff --git a/old/14006.txt b/old/14006.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6956272 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/14006.txt @@ -0,0 +1,17153 @@ +Project Gutenberg's An English Grammar, by W. M. Baskervill and J. W. Sewell + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: An English Grammar + +Author: W. M. Baskervill and J. W. Sewell + +Release Date: November 10, 2004 [EBook #14006] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AN ENGLISH GRAMMAR *** + + + + +Produced by Stephen Schulze and the Distributed Proofreaders Team + + + + + +AN ENGLISH GRAMMAR + +FOR THE USE OF + +HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMY, AND COLLEGE CLASSES + +BY + +W.M. BASKERVILL + +PROFESSOR OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE IN VANDERBILT +UNIVERSITY NASHVILLE, TENN. + +AND + +J.W. SEWELL + +OF THE FOGG HIGH SCHOOL, NASHVILLE, TENN. + + +1895 + + + + +PREFACE. + +Of making many English grammars there is no end; nor should there be +till theoretical scholarship and actual practice are more happily +wedded. In this field much valuable work has already been +accomplished; but it has been done largely by workers accustomed to +take the scholar's point of view, and their writings are addressed +rather to trained minds than to immature learners. To find an advanced +grammar unencumbered with hard words, abstruse thoughts, and difficult +principles, is not altogether an easy matter. These things enhance the +difficulty which an ordinary youth experiences in grasping and +assimilating the facts of grammar, and create a distaste for the +study. It is therefore the leading object of this book to be both as +scholarly and as practical as possible. In it there is an attempt to +present grammatical facts as simply, and to lead the student to +assimilate them as thoroughly, as possible, and at the same time to do +away with confusing difficulties as far as may be. + +To attain these ends it is necessary to keep ever in the foreground +the _real basis of grammar_; that is, good literature. Abundant +quotations from standard authors have been given to show the student +that he is dealing with the facts of the language, and not with the +theories of grammarians. It is also suggested that in preparing +written exercises the student use English classics instead of "making +up" sentences. But it is not intended that the use of literary +masterpieces for grammatical purposes should supplant or even +interfere with their proper use and real value as works of art. It +will, however, doubtless be found helpful to alternate the regular +reading and aesthetic study of literature with a grammatical study, so +that, while the mind is being enriched and the artistic sense +quickened, there may also be the useful acquisition of arousing a keen +observation of all grammatical forms and usages. Now and then it has +been deemed best to omit explanations, and to withhold personal +preferences, in order that the student may, by actual contact with the +sources of grammatical laws, discover for himself the better way in +regarding given data. It is not the grammarian's business to +"correct:" it is simply to record and to arrange the usages of +language, and to point the way to the arbiters of usage in all +disputed cases. Free expression within the lines of good usage should +have widest range. + +It has been our aim to make a grammar of as wide a scope as is +consistent with the proper definition of the word. Therefore, in +addition to recording and classifying the facts of language, we have +endeavored to attain two other objects,--to cultivate mental skill and +power, and to induce the student to prosecute further studies in this +field. It is not supposable that in so delicate and difficult an +undertaking there should be an entire freedom from errors and +oversights. We shall gratefully accept any assistance in helping to +correct mistakes. + +Though endeavoring to get our material as much as possible at first +hand, and to make an independent use of it, we desire to express our +obligation to the following books and articles:-- + +Meiklejohn's "English Language," Longmans' "School Grammar," West's +"English Grammar," Bain's "Higher English Grammar" and "Composition +Grammar," Sweet's "Primer of Spoken English" and "New English +Grammar," etc., Hodgson's "Errors in the Use of English," Morris's +"Elementary Lessons in Historical English Grammar," Lounsbury's +"English Language," Champney's "History of English," Emerson's +"History of the English Language," Kellner's "Historical Outlines of +English Syntax," Earle's "English Prose," and Matzner's "Englische +Grammatik." Allen's "Subjunctive Mood in English," Battler's articles +on "Prepositions" in the "Anglia," and many other valuable papers, +have also been helpful and suggestive. + +We desire to express special thanks to Professor W.D. Mooney of Wall & +Mooney's Battle-Ground Academy, Franklin, Tenn., for a critical +examination of the first draft of the manuscript, and to Professor +Jno. M. Webb of Webb Bros. School, Bell Buckle, Tenn., and Professor +W.R. Garrett of the University of Nashville, for many valuable +suggestions and helpful criticism. + +W.M. BASKERVILL. + +J.W. SEWELL. + +NASHVILLE, TENN., January, 1896. + + + + +CONTENTS. + + INTRODUCTION + + PART I. + + _THE PARTS OF SPEECH_. + + NOUNS + PRONOUNS + ADJECTIVES + ARTICLES + VERBS AND VERBALS + Verbs + Verbals + How to Parse Verbs and Verbals + ADVERBS + CONJUNCTIONS + PREPOSITIONS + WORDS THAT NEED WATCHING + INTERJECTIONS + + PART II. + + _ANALYSIS OF SENTENCES_. + + CLASSIFICATION ACCORDING TO FORM + CLASSIFICATION ACCORDING TO NUMBER OF STATEMENTS + Simple Sentences + Contracted Sentences + Complex Sentences + Compound Sentences + + + PART III. + + _SYNTAX_. + + INTRODUCTORY + NOUNS + PRONOUNS + ADJECTIVES + ARTICLES + VERBS + INDIRECT DISCOURSE + VERBALS + ADVERBS + CONJUNCTIONS + PREPOSITIONS + + INDEX + + + + +INTRODUCTION. + +So many slighting remarks have been made of late on the use of +teaching grammar as compared with teaching science, that it is plain +the fact has been lost sight of that grammar is itself a science. The +object we have, or should have, in teaching science, is not to fill a +child's mind with a vast number of facts that may or may not prove +useful to him hereafter, but to draw out and exercise his powers of +observation, and to show him how to make use of what he observes.... +And here the teacher of grammar has a great advantage over the teacher +of other sciences, in that the facts he has to call attention to lie +ready at hand for every pupil to observe without the use of apparatus +of any kind while the use of them also lies within the personal +experience of every one.--DR RICHARD MORRIS. + +The proper study of a language is an intellectual discipline of the +highest order. If I except discussions on the comparative merits of +Popery and Protestantism, English grammar was the most important +discipline of my boyhood.--JOHN TYNDALL. + + +INTRODUCTION. + + +What various opinions writers on English grammar have given in answer +to the question, _What is grammar?_ may be shown by the following-- + +[Sidenote: _Definitions of grammar._] + + English grammar is a description of the usages of the English + language by good speakers and writers of the present + day.--WHITNEY + + A description of account of the nature, build, constitution, or + make of a language is called its grammar--MEIKLEJOHN + + Grammar teaches the laws of language, and the right method of + using it in speaking and writing.--PATTERSON + + Grammar is the science of _letter_; hence the science of using + words correctly.--ABBOTT + + The English word _grammar_ relates only to the laws which govern + the significant forms of words, and the construction of the + sentence.--RICHARD GRANT WHITE + +These are sufficient to suggest several distinct notions about English +grammar-- + +[Sidenote: _Synopsis of the above._] + +(1) It makes rules to tell us how to use words. + +(2) It is a record of usage which we ought to follow. + +(3) It is concerned with the _forms_ of the language. + +(4) English _has_ no grammar in the sense of forms, or inflections, +but takes account merely of the nature and the uses of words in +sentences. + +[Sidenote: _The older idea and its origin._] + +Fierce discussions have raged over these opinions, and numerous works +have been written to uphold the theories. The first of them remained +popular for a very long time. It originated from the etymology of the +word _grammar_ (Greek _gramma_, writing, a letter), and from an effort +to build up a treatise on English grammar by using classical grammar +as a model. + +Perhaps a combination of (1) and (3) has been still more popular, +though there has been vastly more classification than there are forms. + +[Sidenote: _The opposite view_.] + +During recent years, (2) and (4) have been gaining ground, but they +have had hard work to displace the older and more popular theories. It +is insisted by many that the student's time should be used in studying +general literature, and thus learning the fluent and correct use of +his mother tongue. It is also insisted that the study and discussion +of forms and inflections is an inexcusable imitation of classical +treatises. + +[Sidenote: _The difficulty_.] + +Which view shall the student of English accept? Before this is +answered, we should decide whether some one of the above theories must +be taken as the right one, and the rest disregarded. + +The real reason for the diversity of views is a confusion of two +distinct things,--what the _definition_ of grammar should be, and what +the _purpose_ of grammar should be. + +[Sidenote: _The material of grammar_.] + +The province of English grammar is, rightly considered, wider than is +indicated by any one of the above definitions; and the student ought +to have a clear idea of the ground to be covered. + +[Sidenote: _Few inflections_.] + +It must be admitted that the language has very few inflections at +present, as compared with Latin or Greek; so that a small grammar will +hold them all. + +[Sidenote: _Making rules is risky_.] + +It is also evident, to those who have studied the language +historically, that it is very hazardous to make rules in grammar: what +is at present regarded as correct may not be so twenty years from now, +even if our rules are founded on the keenest scrutiny of the +"standard" writers of our time. Usage is varied as our way of thinking +changes. In Chaucer's time two or three negatives were used to +strengthen a negation; as, "Ther _nas no_ man _nowher_ so vertuous" +(There never was no man nowhere so virtuous). And Shakespeare used +good English when he said _more elder_ ("Merchant of Venice") and +_most unkindest_ ("Julius Caesar"); but this is bad English now. + +If, however, we have tabulated the inflections of the language, and +stated what syntax is the most used in certain troublesome places, +there is still much for the grammarian to do. + +[Sidenote: _A broader view_.] + +Surely our noble language, with its enormous vocabulary, its peculiar +and abundant idioms, its numerous periphrastic forms to express every +possible shade of meaning, is worthy of serious study, apart from the +mere memorizing of inflections and formulation of rules. + +[Sidenote: _Mental training. An aesthetic benefit._] + +Grammar is eminently a means of mental training; and while it will +train the student in subtle and acute reasoning, it will at the same +time, if rightly presented, lay the foundation of a keen observation +and a correct literary taste. The continued contact with the highest +thoughts of the best minds will create a thirst for the "well of +English undefiled." + +[Sidenote: _What grammar is_.] + +Coming back, then, from the question, _What ground should grammar +cover?_ we come to answer the question, _What should grammar teach?_ +and we give as an answer the definition,-- + +_English grammar is the science which treats of the nature of words, +their forms, and their uses and relations in the sentence_. + +[Sidenote: _The work it will cover._] + +This will take in the usual divisions, "The Parts of Speech" (with +their inflections), "Analysis," and "Syntax." It will also require a +discussion of any points that will clear up difficulties, assist the +classification of kindred expressions, or draw the attention of the +student to everyday idioms and phrases, and thus incite his +observation. + +[Sidenote: _Authority as a basis_.] + +A few words here as to the _authority_ upon which grammar rests. + +[Sidenote: _Literary English_.] + +The statements given will be substantiated by quotations from the +leading or "standard" literature of modern times; that is, from the +eighteenth century on. This _literary English_ is considered the +foundation on which grammar must rest. + +[Sidenote: _Spoken English_.] + +Here and there also will be quoted words and phrases from _spoken_ or +_colloquial English_, by which is meant the free, unstudied +expressions of ordinary conversation and communication among +intelligent people. + +These quotations will often throw light on obscure constructions, +since they preserve turns of expressions that have long since perished +from the literary or standard English. + +[Sidenote: _Vulgar English_.] + +Occasionally, too, reference will be made to _vulgar English,_--the +speech of the uneducated and ignorant,--which will serve to illustrate +points of syntax once correct, or standard, but now undoubtedly bad +grammar. + +The following pages will cover, then, three divisions:-- + +Part I. The Parts of Speech, and Inflections. + +Part II. Analysis of Sentences. + +Part III. The Uses of Words, or Syntax. + + + + + +PART I. + +_THE PARTS OF SPEECH_. + + + + +NOUNS. + + +1. In the more simple _state_ of the _Arabs_, the _nation_ is free, +because each of her _sons_ disdains a base _submission_ to the _will_ +of a _master_.--GIBBON. + +[Sidenote: _Name words_] + +By examining this sentence we notice several words used as names. The +plainest name is _Arabs_, which belongs to a people; but, besides this +one, the words _sons_ and _master_ name objects, and may belong to any +of those objects. The words _state, submission,_ and _will_ are +evidently names of a different kind, as they stand for ideas, not +objects; and the word _nation_ stands for a whole group. + +When the meaning of each of these words has once been understood, the +word naming it will always call up the thing or idea itself. Such +words are called nouns. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition_.] + +2. A noun is a name word, representing directly to the mind an +object, substance, or idea. + + +[Sidenote: _Classes of nouns_.] + +3. Nouns are classified as follows:-- + +(1) Proper. + +(2) Common. (a) CLASS NAMES: i. Individual. + ii. Collective. + (b) MATERIAL. + +(3) Abstract. (a) ATTRIBUTE. + (b) VERBAL + + +[Sidenote: _Names for special objects._] + +4. A proper noun is a name applied to a particular object, whether +person, place, or thing. + +It specializes or limits the thing to which it is applied, reducing it +to a narrow application. Thus, _city_ is a word applied to any one of +its kind; but _Chicago_ names one city, and fixes the attention upon +that particular city. _King_ may be applied to any ruler of a kingdom, +but _Alfred the Great_ is the name of one king only. + +The word _proper_ is from a Latin word meaning _limited, belonging to +one_. This does not imply, however, that a proper name can be applied +to only one object, but that each time such a name is applied it is +fixed or proper to that object. Even if there are several Bostons or +Manchesters, the name of each is an individual or proper name. + + +[Sidenote: _Name for any individual of a class._] + +5. A common noun is a name possessed by _any_ one of a class of +persons, animals, or things. + +_Common_, as here used, is from a Latin word which means _general, +possessed by all_. + +For instance, _road_ is a word that names _any_ highway outside of +cities; _wagon_ is a term that names _any_ vehicle of a certain kind +used for hauling: the words are of the widest application. We may say, +_the man here_, or _the man in front of you_, but the word _man_ is +here hedged in by other words or word groups: the name itself is of +general application. + +[Sidenote: _Name for a group or collection of objects._] + +Besides considering persons, animals, and things separately, we may +think of them in groups, and appropriate names to the groups. + +Thus, men in groups may be called a _crowd_, or a _mob_, a +_committee_, or a _council_, or a _congress_, etc. + +These are called COLLECTIVE NOUNS. They properly belong under common +nouns, because each group is considered as a unit, and the name +applied to it belongs to any group of its class. + + +[Sidenote: _Names for things thought of in mass._] + +6. The definition given for common nouns applies more strictly to +class nouns. It may, however, be correctly used for another group of +nouns detailed below; for they are common nouns in the sense that the +names apply to _every particle of similar substance_, instead of to +each individual or separate object. + +They are called MATERIAL NOUNS. Such are _glass_, _iron_, _clay_, +_frost_, _rain_, _snow_, _wheat_, _wine_, _tea_, _sugar_, etc. + +They may be placed in groups as follows:-- + +(1) The metals: _iron_, _gold_, _platinum_, etc. + +(2) Products spoken of in bulk: _tea_, _sugar_, _rice_, _wheat_, etc. + +(3) Geological bodies: _mud_, _sand_, _granite_, _rock_, _stone_, etc. + +(4) Natural phenomena: _rain_, _dew_, _cloud_, _frost_, _mist_, etc. + +(5) Various manufactures: _cloth_ (and the different kinds of cloth), +_potash_, _soap_, _rubber_, _paint_, _celluloid_, etc. + +7. NOTE.--There are some nouns, such as _sun_, _moon_, _earth_, +which seem to be the names of particular individual objects, but which +are not called proper names. + +[Sidenote: _Words naturally of limited application not proper._] + +The reason is, that in proper names the intention is _to exclude_ all +other individuals of the same class, and fasten a special name to the +object considered, as in calling a city _Cincinnati_; but in the words +_sun_, _earth_, etc., there is no such intention. If several bodies +like the center of our solar system are known, they also are called +_suns_ by a natural extension of the term: so with the words _earth_, +_world_, etc. They remain common class names. + + +[Sidenote: _Names of ideas, not things._] + +8. Abstract nouns are names of qualities, conditions, or actions, +considered abstractly, or apart from their natural connection. + +When we speak of a _wise man_, we recognize in him an attribute or +quality. If we wish to think simply of that quality without describing +the person, we speak of the _wisdom_ of the man. The quality is still +there as much as before, but it is taken merely as a name. So +_poverty_ would express the condition of a poor person; _proof_ means +the act of proving, or that which shows a thing has been proved; and +so on. + +Again, we may say, "_Painting_ is a fine art," "_Learning_ is hard to +acquire," "a man of _understanding_." + + +9. There are two chief divisions of abstract nouns:-- + +(1) ATTRIBUTE NOUNS, expressing attributes or qualities. + +(2) VERBAL NOUNS, expressing state, condition, or action. + + +[Sidenote: _Attribute abstract nouns._] + +10. The ATTRIBUTE ABSTRACT NOUNS are derived from adjectives and +from common nouns. Thus, (1) _prudence_ from _prudent_, _height_ from +_high_, _redness_ from _red_, _stupidity_ from _stupid_, etc.; (2) +_peerage_ from _peer_, _childhood_ from _child_, _mastery_ from +_master_, _kingship_ from _king_, etc. + + + +[Sidenote: _Verbal abstract nouns._] + +II. The VERBAL ABSTRACT NOUNS Originate in verbs, as their name +implies. They may be-- + +(1) Of the same form as the simple verb. The verb, by altering its +function, is used as a noun; as in the expressions, "a long _run_" "a +bold _move_," "a brisk _walk_." + +(2) Derived from verbs by changing the ending or adding a suffix: +_motion_ from _move_, _speech_ from _speak_, _theft_ from _thieve_, +_action_ from _act_, _service_ from _serve_. + +[Sidenote: _Caution._] + +(3) Derived from verbs by adding _-ing_ to the simple verb. It must be +remembered that these words are _free from any verbal function_. They +cannot govern a word, and they cannot _express_ action, but are merely +_names_ of actions. They are only the husks of verbs, and are to be +rigidly distinguished from _gerunds_ (Secs. 272, 273). + +To avoid difficulty, study carefully these examples: + +The best thoughts and _sayings_ of the Greeks; the moon caused fearful +_forebodings_; in the _beginning_ of his life; he spread his +_blessings_ over the land; the great Puritan _awakening_; our birth is +but a sleep and a _forgetting_; a _wedding_ or a festival; the rude +_drawings_ of the book; masterpieces of the Socratic _reasoning_; the +_teachings_ of the High Spirit; those opinions and _feelings_; there +is time for such _reasonings_; the _well-being_ of her subjects; her +_longing_ for their favor; _feelings_ which their original _meaning_ +will by no means justify; the main _bearings_ of this matter. + + +[Sidenote: _Underived abstract nouns._] + +12. Some abstract nouns were not derived from any other part of +speech, but were framed directly for the expression of certain ideas +or phenomena. Such are _beauty_, _joy_, _hope_, _ease_, _energy_; +_day_, _night_, _summer_, _winter_; _shadow_, _lightning_, _thunder_, +etc. + +The adjectives or verbs corresponding to these are either themselves +derived from the nouns or are totally different words; as +_glad_--_joy_, _hopeful_--_hope_, etc. + + + +Exercises. + +1. From your reading bring up sentences containing ten common nouns, +five proper, five abstract. + +--NOTE.--Remember that all sentences are to be _selected_ from +standard literature. + +2. Under what class of nouns would you place (_a_) the names of +diseases, as _pneumonia_, _pleurisy_, _catarrh_, _typhus_, +_diphtheria_; (_b_) branches of knowledge, as _physics_, _algebra_, +_geology_, _mathematics_? + +3. Mention collective nouns that will embrace groups of each of the +following individual nouns:-- + + man + horse + bird + fish + partridge + pupil + bee + soldier + book + sailor + child + sheep + ship + ruffian + +4. Using a dictionary, tell from what word each of these abstract +nouns is derived:-- + + sight + speech + motion + pleasure + patience + friendship + deceit + bravery + height + width + wisdom + regularity + advice + seizure + nobility + relief + death + raid + honesty + judgment + belief + occupation + justice + service + trail + feeling + choice + simplicity + + +SPECIAL USES OF NOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _Nouns change by use._] + +13. By being used so as to vary their usual meaning, nouns of one +class may be made to approach another class, or to go over to it +entirely. Since words alter their meaning so rapidly by a widening or +narrowing of their application, we shall find numerous examples of +this shifting from class to class; but most of them are in the +following groups. For further discussion see the remarks on articles +(p. 119). + + +[Sidenote: _Proper names transferred to common use._] + +14. Proper nouns are used as common in either of two ways:-- + +(1) _The origin of a thing is used for the thing itself_: that is, the +name of the inventor may be applied to the thing invented, as a +_davy_, meaning the miner's lamp invented by Sir Humphry Davy; the +_guillotine_, from the name of Dr. Guillotin, who was its inventor. Or +the name of the country or city from which an article is derived is +used for the article: as _china_, from China; _arras_, from a town in +France; _port_ (wine), from Oporto, in Portugal; _levant_ and +_morocco_ (leather). + +Some of this class have become worn by use so that at present we can +scarcely discover the derivation from the form of the word; for +example, the word _port_, above. Others of similar character are +_calico_, from Calicut; _damask_, from Damascus; _currants_, from +Corinth; etc. + +(2) _The name of a person or place noted for certain qualities is +transferred to any person or place possessing those qualities_; +thus,-- + + Hercules and Samson were noted for their strength, and we call a + very strong man _a Hercules_ or _a Samson_. Sodom was famous for + wickedness, and a similar place is called _a Sodom_ of sin. + + _A Daniel_ come to judgment!--SHAKESPEARE. + + If it prove a mind of uncommon activity and power, _a Locke_, _a + Lavoisier_, _a Hutton_, _a Bentham_, _a Fourier_, it imposes its + classification on other men, and lo! a new system.--EMERSON. + + +[Sidenote: _Names for things in bulk altered for separate portions._] + +15. Material nouns may be used as class names. Instead of +considering the whole body of material of which certain uses are made, +one can speak of particular uses or phases of the substance; as-- + +(1) _Of individual objects_ made from metals or other substances +capable of being wrought into various shapes. We know a number of +objects made of iron. The material _iron_ embraces the metal contained +in them all; but we may say, "The cook made the _irons_ hot," +referring to flat-irons; or, "The sailor was put in _irons_" meaning +chains of iron. So also we may speak of _a glass_ to drink from or to +look into; _a steel_ to whet a knife on; _a rubber_ for erasing marks; +and so on. + +(2) _Of classes_ or _kinds_ of the same substance. These are the same +in material, but differ in strength, purity, etc. Hence it shortens +speech to make the nouns plural, and say _teas_, _tobaccos_, _paints_, +_oils_, _candies_, _clays_, _coals_. + +(3) _By poetical use_, of certain words necessarily singular in idea, +which are made plural, or used as class nouns, as in the following:-- + + The lone and level _sands_ stretch far away.--SHELLEY. + + From all around-- + Earth and her _waters_, and the depths of air-- + Comes a still voice.--BRYANT. + + Their airy ears + _The winds_ have stationed on the mountain peaks. + --PERCIVAL. + +(4) _Of detached portions_ of matter used as class names; as _stones_, +_slates_, _papers_, _tins_, _clouds_, _mists_, etc. + + +[Sidenote: _Personification of abstract ideas._] + +16. Abstract nouns are frequently used as proper names by being +personified; that is, the ideas are spoken of as residing in living +beings. This is a poetic usage, though not confined to verse. + + Next _Anger_ rushed; his eyes, on fire, + In lightnings owned his secret stings.--COLLINS. + + _Freedom's_ fame finds wings on every wind.--BYRON. + + _Death_, his mask melting like a nightmare dream, smiled.--HAYNE. + + _Traffic_ has lain down to rest; and only _Vice_ and _Misery_, to + prowl or to moan like night birds, are abroad.--CARLYLE. + + +[Sidenote: _A halfway class of words. Class nouns in use, abstract in +meaning._] + +17. Abstract nouns are made half abstract by being spoken of in +the plural. + +They are not then pure abstract nouns, nor are they common class +nouns. For example, examine this:-- + + The _arts_ differ from the _sciences_ in this, that their power + is founded not merely on _facts_ which can be communicated, but + on _dispositions_ which require to be created.--RUSKIN. + +When it is said that _art_ differs from _science_, that the power of +art is founded on _fact_, that _disposition_ is the thing to be +created, the words italicized are pure abstract nouns; but in case _an +art_ or _a science_, or _the arts_ and _sciences_, be spoken of, the +abstract idea is partly lost. The words preceded by the article _a_, +or made plural, are still names of abstract ideas, not material +things; but they widen the application to separate kinds of _art_ or +different branches of _science_. They are neither class nouns nor pure +abstract nouns: they are more properly called _half abstract_. + +Test this in the following sentences:-- + + Let us, if we must have great _actions_, make our own + so.--EMERSON. + + And still, as each repeated _pleasure_ tired, Succeeding _sports_ + the mirthful band inspired.--GOLDSMITH. + + But ah! those _pleasures_, _loves_, and _joys_ + Which I too keenly taste, + The Solitary can despise.--BURNS. + + All these, however, were mere _terrors_ of the night.--IRVING. + + +[Sidenote: _By ellipses, nouns used to modify._] + +18. Nouns used as descriptive terms. Sometimes a noun is attached +to another noun to add to its meaning, or describe it; for example, "a +_family_ quarrel," "a _New York_ bank," "the _State Bank Tax_ bill," +"a _morning_ walk." + +It is evident that these approach very near to the function of +adjectives. But it is better to consider them as nouns, for these +reasons: they do not give up their identity as nouns; they do not +express quality; they cannot be compared, as descriptive adjectives +are. + +They are more like the possessive noun, which belongs to another word, +but is still a noun. They may be regarded as elliptical expressions, +meaning a walk _in the morning_, a bank _in New York_, a bill _as to +tax on the banks_, etc. + +NOTE.--If the descriptive word be a _material_ noun, it may be +regarded as changed to an adjective. The term "_gold_ pen" conveys the +same idea as "_golden_ pen," which contains a pure adjective. + + +WORDS AND WORD GROUPS USED AS NOUNS. + +[Sidenote: _The noun may borrow from any part of speech, or from any +expression._] + +19. Owing to the scarcity of distinctive forms, and to the +consequent flexibility of English speech, words which are usually +other parts of speech are often used as nouns; and various word groups +may take the place of nouns by being used as nouns. + +[Sidenote: _Adjectives, Conjunctions, Adverbs._] + +(1) _Other parts of speech_ used as nouns:-- + + _The great_, _the wealthy_, fear thy blow.--BURNS. + + Every _why_ hath a _wherefore_.--SHAKESPEARE. + + When I was young? Ah, woeful _When_! + Ah! for the change 'twixt _Now_ and _Then_! + --COLERIDGE. + +(2) _Certain word groups_ used like single nouns:-- + + _Too swift_ arrives as tardy as _too slow_.--SHAKESPEARE. + + Then comes the "_Why, sir_!" and the "_What then, sir_?" and the + "_No, sir_!" and the "_You don't see your way through the + question, sir_!"--MACAULAY + +(3) Any part of speech may be considered merely as a word, without +reference to its function in the sentence; also titles of books are +treated as simple nouns. + + The _it_, at the beginning, is ambiguous, whether it mean the sun + or the cold.--Dr BLAIR + + In this definition, is the word "_just_," or "_legal_," finally + to stand?--RUSKIN. + + There was also a book of Defoe's called an "_Essay on Projects_," + and another of Dr. Mather's called "_Essays to do Good_."--B. + FRANKLIN. + + +[Sidenote: _Caution._] + +20. It is to be remembered, however, that the above cases are +shiftings of the _use_, of words rather than of their _meaning_. We +seldom find instances of complete conversion of one part of speech +into another. + +When, in a sentence above, the terms _the great_, _the wealthy_, are +used, they are not names only: we have in mind the idea of persons and +the quality of being _great_ or _wealthy_. The words are used in the +sentence where nouns are used, but have an adjectival meaning. + +In the other sentences, _why_ and _wherefore_, _When_, _Now_, and +_Then_, are spoken of as if pure nouns; but still the reader considers +this not a natural application of them as name words, but as a figure +of speech. + +NOTE.--These remarks do not apply, of course, to such words as become +pure nouns by use. There are many of these. The adjective _good_ has +no claim on the noun _goods_; so, too, in speaking of the _principal_ +of a school, or a state _secret_, or a faithful _domestic_, or a +_criminal_, etc., the words are entirely independent of any adjective +force. + + +Exercise. + +Pick out the nouns in the following sentences, and tell to which class +each belongs. Notice if any have shifted from one class to another. + + +1. Hope springs eternal in the human breast. + +2. Heaven from all creatures hides the book of Fate. + +3. Stone walls do not a prison make. + Nor iron bars a cage. + +4. Truth-teller was our England's Alfred named. + +5. A great deal of talent is lost to the world for want of a little +courage. + +6. Power laid his rod aside, + And Ceremony doff'd her pride. + +7. She sweeps it through the court with troops of ladies. + +8. Learning, that cobweb of the brain. + +9. A little weeping would ease my heart; + But in their briny bed + My tears must stop, for every drop + Hinders needle and thread. + +10. A fool speaks all his mind, but a wise man reserves something for +hereafter. + +11. Knowledge is proud that he has learned so much; Wisdom is humble +that he knows no more. + +12. Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast. + +13. And see, he cried, the welcome, + Fair guests, that waits you here. + +14. The fleet, shattered and disabled, returned to Spain. + +15. One To-day is worth two To-morrows. + +16. Vessels carrying coal are constantly moving. + +17. Some mute inglorious Milton here may rest, + Some Cromwell guiltless of his country's blood. + +18. And oft we trod a waste of pearly sands. + +19. A man he seems of cheerful yesterdays + And confident to-morrows. + +20. The hours glide by; the silver moon is gone. + +21. Her robes of silk and velvet came from over the sea. + +22. My soldier cousin was once only a drummer boy. + +23. But pleasures are like poppies spread, + You seize the flower, its bloom is shed. + +24. All that thou canst call thine own Lies in thy To-day. + + +INFLECTIONS OF NOUNS. + + +GENDER. + + +[Sidenote: _What gender means in English. It is founded on sex._] + +21. In Latin, Greek, German, and many other languages, some general +rules are given that names of male beings are usually masculine, and +names of females are usually feminine. There are exceptions even to +this general statement, but not so in English. Male beings are, in +English grammar, always masculine; female, always feminine. + +When, however, _inanimate_ things are spoken of, these languages are +totally unlike our own in determining the gender of words. For +instance: in Latin, _hortus_ (garden) is masculine, _mensa_ (table) is +feminine, _corpus_ (body) is neuter; in German, _das Messer_ (knife) +is neuter, _der Tisch_ (table) is masculine, _die Gabel_ (fork) is +feminine. + +The great difference is, that in English the gender follows the +_meaning_ of the word, in other languages gender follows the _form_; +that is, in English, gender depends on _sex_: if a thing spoken of is +of the male sex, the _name_ of it is masculine; if of the female sex, +the _name_ of it is feminine. Hence: + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +22. Gender is the mode of distinguishing sex by words, or +additions to words. + + +23. It is evident from this that English can have but two +genders,--masculine and feminine. + +[Sidenote: _Gender nouns. Neuter nouns._] + +All nouns, then, must be divided into two principal classes,--gender +nouns, those distinguishing the sex of the object; and neuter +nouns, those which do not distinguish sex, or names of things without +life, and consequently without sex. + +Gender nouns include names of persons and some names of animals; +neuter nouns include some animals and all inanimate objects. + + +[Sidenote: _Some words either gender or neuter nouns, according to +use._] + +24. Some words may be either gender nouns or neuter nouns, according +to their use. Thus, the word _child_ is neuter in the sentence, "A +little _child_ shall lead them," but is masculine in the sentence +from Wordsworth,-- + + I have seen + A curious _child_ ... applying to _his_ ear + The convolutions of a smooth-lipped shell. + +Of animals, those with which man comes in contact often, or which +arouse his interest most, are named by gender nouns, as in these +sentences:-- + + Before the barn door strutted the gallant _cock_, that pattern of + a husband, ... clapping _his_ burnished wings.--IRVING. + + _Gunpowder_ ... came to a stand just by the bridge, with a + suddenness that had nearly sent _his_ rider sprawling over _his_ + head--_id._ + +Other animals are not distinguished as to sex, but are spoken of as +neuter, the sex being of no consequence. + + Not a _turkey_ but he [Ichabod] beheld daintily trussed up, with + _its_ gizzard under _its_ wing.--IRVING. + + He next stooped down to feel the _pig_, if there were any signs + of life in _it_.--LAMB. + + +[Sidenote: _No "common gender._"] + +25. According to the definition, there can be no such thing as +"common gender:" words either distinguish sex (or the sex is +distinguished by the context) or else they do not distinguish sex. + +If such words as _parent_, _servant_, _teacher_, _ruler_, _relative_, +_cousin_, _domestic_, etc., do not show the sex to which the persons +belong, they are neuter words. + + +26. Put in convenient form, the division of words according to sex, +or the lack of it, is,-- + + (MASCULINE: Male beings. +Gender nouns { + (FEMININE: Female beings. + +Neuter nouns: Names of inanimate things, or of living beings whose +sex cannot be determined. + + +27. The inflections for gender belong, of course, only to masculine +and feminine nouns. _Forms_ would be a more accurate word than +_inflections_, since inflection applies only to the _case_ of nouns. + +There are three ways to distinguish the genders:-- + +(1) By prefixing a gender word to another word. + +(2) By adding a suffix, generally to a masculine word. + +(3) By using a different word for each gender. + + +I. Gender shown by Prefixes. + + +[Sidenote: _Very few of class I._] + +28. Usually the gender words _he_ and _she_ are prefixed to neuter +words; as _he-goat_--_she-goat_, _cock sparrow_--_hen sparrow_, +_he-bear_--_she-bear_. + +One feminine, _woman_, puts a prefix before the masculine _man_. +_Woman_ is a short way of writing _wifeman_. + + +II. Gender shown by Suffixes. + + +29. By far the largest number of gender words are those marked by +suffixes. In this particular the native endings have been largely +supplanted by foreign suffixes. + +[Sidenote: _Native suffixes._] + +The native suffixes to indicate the feminine were _-en_ and _-ster_. +These remain in _vixen_ and _spinster_, though both words have lost +their original meanings. + +The word _vixen_ was once used as the feminine of _fox_ by the +Southern-English. For _fox_ they said _vox_; for _from_ they said +_vram_; and for the older word _fat_ they said _vat_, as in _wine +vat_. Hence _vixen_ is for _fyxen_, from the masculine _fox_. + +_Spinster_ is a relic of a large class of words that existed in Old +and Middle English,[1] but have now lost their original force as +feminines. The old masculine answering to _spinster_ was _spinner_; +but _spinster_ has now no connection with it. + +The foreign suffixes are of two kinds:-- + +[Sidenote: _Foreign suffixes. Unaltered and little used._] + +(1) Those belonging to borrowed words, as _czarina_, _senorita_, +_executrix_, _donna_. These are attached to foreign words, and are +never used for words recognized as English. + +[Sidenote: _Slightly changed and widely used._] + +(2) That regarded as the standard or regular termination of the +feminine, _-ess_ (French _esse_, Low Latin _issa_), the one most used. +The corresponding masculine may have the ending _-er_ (_-or_), but in +most cases it has not. Whenever we adopt a new masculine word, the +feminine is formed by adding this termination _-ess_. + +Sometimes the _-ess_ has been added to a word already feminine by the +ending _-ster_; as _seam-str-ess_, _song-str-ess_. The ending _-ster_ +had then lost its force as a feminine suffix; it has none now in the +words _huckster_, _gamester_, _trickster_, _punster_. + + +[Sidenote: _Ending of masculine not changed._] + +30. The ending _-ess_ is added to many words without changing the +ending of the masculine; as,-- + + baron--baroness + count--countess + lion--lioness + Jew--Jewess + heir--heiress + host--hostess + priest--priestess + giant--giantess + +[Sidenote: _Masculine ending dropped._] + +The masculine ending may be dropped before the feminine _-ess_ is +added; as,-- + + abbot--abbess + negro--negress + murderer--murderess + sorcerer--sorceress + +[Sidenote: _Vowel dropped before adding_ -ess.] + +The feminine may discard a vowel which appears in the masculine; as +in-- + + actor--actress + master--mistress + benefactor--benefactress + emperor--empress + tiger--tigress + enchanter--enchantress + +_Empress_ has been cut down from _emperice_ (twelfth century) and +_emperesse_ (thirteenth century), from Latin _imperatricem_. + +_Master_ and _mistress_ were in Middle English +_maister_--_maistresse_, from the Old French _maistre_--_maistresse_. + + +31. When the older _-en_ and _-ster_ went out of use as the +distinctive mark of the feminine, the ending _-ess_, from the French +_-esse_, sprang into a popularity much greater than at present. + +[Sidenote: _Ending_ -ess _less used now than formerly._] + +Instead of saying _doctress_, _fosteress_, _wagoness_, as was said in +the sixteenth century, or _servauntesse_, _teacheresse_, +_neighboresse_, _frendesse_, as in the fourteenth century, we have +dispensed with the ending in many cases, and either use a prefix word +or leave the masculine to do work for the feminine also. + +Thus, we say _doctor_ (masculine and feminine) or _woman doctor_, +_teacher_ or _lady teacher_, _neighbor_ (masculine and feminine), etc. +We frequently use such words as _author_, _editor_, _chairman_, to +represent persons of either sex. + +NOTE.--There is perhaps this distinction observed: when we speak of a +female _as an active agent_ merely, we use the masculine termination, +as, "George Eliot is the _author_ of 'Adam Bede;'" but when we speak +purposely _to denote a distinction from a male_, we use the feminine, +as, "George Eliot is an eminent _authoress_." + + + +III. Gender shown by Different Words. + + +32. In some of these pairs, the feminine and the masculine are +entirely different words; others have in their origin the same root. +Some of them have an interesting history, and will be noted below:-- + + bachelor--maid + boy--girl + brother--sister + drake--duck + earl--countess + father--mother + gander--goose + hart--roe + horse--mare + husband--wife + king--queen + lord--lady + wizard--witch + nephew--niece + ram--ewe + sir--madam + son--daughter + uncle--aunt + bull--cow + boar--sow + +Girl originally meant a child of either sex, and was used for male +or female until about the fifteenth century. + +Drake is peculiar in that it is formed from a corresponding feminine +which is no longer used. It is not connected historically with our +word _duck_, but is derived from _ened_ (duck) and an obsolete suffix +_rake_ (king). Three letters of _ened_ have fallen away, leaving our +word _drake_. + +Gander and goose were originally from the same root word. _Goose_ +has various cognate forms in the languages akin to English (German +_Gans_, Icelandic _gas_, Danish _gaas_, etc.). The masculine was +formed by adding _-a_, the old sign of the masculine. This _gansa_ was +modified into _gan-ra_, _gand-ra_, finally _gander_; the _d_ being +inserted to make pronunciation easy, as in many other words. + +Mare, in Old English _mere_, had the masculine _mearh_ (horse), but +this has long been obsolete. + +Husband and wife are not connected in origin. _Husband_ is a +Scandinavian word (Anglo-Saxon _husbonda_ from Icelandic _hus-bondi_, +probably meaning house dweller); _wife_ was used in Old and Middle +English to mean woman in general. + +King and queen are said by some (Skeat, among others) to be from +the same root word, but the German etymologist Kluge says they are +not. + +Lord is said to be a worn-down form of the Old English _hlaf-weard_ +(loaf keeper), written _loverd_, _lhauerd_, or _lauerd_ in Middle +English. Lady is from _hloefdige_ (_hloef_ meaning loaf, and +_dige_ being of uncertain origin and meaning). + +Witch is the Old English _wicce_, but wizard is from the Old +French _guiscart_ (prudent), not immediately connected with _witch_, +though both are ultimately from the same root. + +Sir is worn down from the Old French _sire_ (Latin _senior_). +Madam is the French _ma dame_, from Latin _mea domina_. + + +[Sidenote: _Two masculines from feminines._] + +33. Besides _gander_ and _drake_, there are two other masculine +words that were formed from the feminine:-- + +Bridegroom, from Old English _bryd-guma_ (bride's man). The _r_ in +_groom_ has crept in from confusion with the word _groom_. + +Widower, from the weakening of the ending _-a_ in Old English to +_-e_ in Middle English. The older forms, _widuwa_--_widuwe_, became +identical, and a new masculine ending was therefore added to +distinguish the masculine from the feminine (compare Middle English +_widuer_--_widewe_). + + +Personification. + + +34. Just as abstract ideas are personified (Sec. 16), material +objects may be spoken of like gender nouns; for example,-- + + "Now, where the swift _Rhone_ cleaves _his_ way."--BYRON. + + The _Sun_ now rose upon the right: + Out of the sea came _he_. + --COLERIDGE. + + And haply the _Queen Moon_ is on _her_ throne, + Clustered around by all her starry Fays. + --KEATS, + + _Britannia_ needs no bulwarks, + No towers along the steep; + _Her_ march is o'er the mountain waves, + _Her_ home is on the deep. + --CAMPBELL + +This is not exclusively a poetic use. In ordinary speech +personification is very frequent: the pilot speaks of his boat as +feminine; the engineer speaks so of his engine; etc. + +[Sidenote: _Effect of personification._] + +In such cases the gender is marked by the pronoun, and not by the form +of the noun. But the fact that in English the distinction of gender is +confined to difference of sex makes these departures more effective. + + + +NUMBER. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +35. In nouns, number means the mode of indicating whether we are +speaking of one thing or of more than one. + + +36. Our language has two numbers,--_singular_ and _plural_. The +singular number denotes that one thing is spoken of; the plural, more +than one. + + +37. There are three ways of changing the singular form to the +plural:-- + +(1) By adding _-en_. + +(2) By changing the root vowel. + +(3) By adding _-s_ (or _-es_). + +The first two methods prevailed, together with the third, in Old +English, but in modern English _-s_ or _-es_ has come to be the +"standard" ending; that is, whenever we adopt a new word, we make its +plural by adding _-s_ or _-es._ + + +I. Plurals formed by the Suffix _-en_. + + +[Sidenote: _The_ -en _inflection._] + +38. This inflection remains only in the word oxen, though it was +quite common in Old and Middle English; for instance, _eyen_ (eyes), +_treen_ (trees), _shoon_ (shoes), which last is still used in Lowland +Scotch. _Hosen_ is found in the King James version of the Bible, and +_housen_ is still common in the provincial speech in England. + + +39. But other words were inflected afterwards, in imitation of the +old words in _-en_ by making a double plural. + +[Sidenote: -En _inflection imitated by other words._] + +Brethren has passed through three stages. The old plural was +_brothru_, then _brothre_ or _brethre_, finally _brethren_. The +weakening of inflections led to this addition. + +Children has passed through the same history, though the +intermediate form _childer_ lasted till the seventeenth century in +literary English, and is still found in dialects; as,-- + + "God bless me! so then, after all, you'll have a chance to see + your _childer_ get up like, and get settled."--QUOTED BY DE + QUINCEY. + +Kine is another double plural, but has now no singular. + + In spite of wandering _kine_ and other adverse + circumstance.--THOREAU. + + +II. Plurals formed by Vowel Change. + + +40. Examples of this inflection are,-- + + man--men + foot--feet + goose--geese + louse--lice + mouse--mice + tooth--teeth + +Some other words--as _book_, _turf_, _wight_, _borough_--formerly had +the same inflection, but they now add the ending _-s_. + + +41. Akin to this class are some words, originally neuter, that have +the singular and plural alike; such as _deer_, _sheep_, _swine_, etc. + +Other words following the same usage are, _pair_, _brace_, _dozen_, +after numerals (if not after numerals, or if preceded by the +prepositions _in_, _by_, etc, they add _-s_): also _trout_, _salmon_; +_head_, _sail_; _cannon_; _heathen_, _folk_, _people_. + +The words _horse_ and _foot_, when they mean soldiery, retain the +same form for plural meaning; as,-- + + The _foot_ are fourscore thousand, + The _horse_ are thousands ten. + --MACAULAY. + + Lee marched over the mountain wall,-- + Over the mountains winding down, + _Horse_ and _foot_, into Frederick town. + --WHITTIER. + + + +III. Plurals formed by Adding -s or -es. + + +42. Instead of _-s,_ the ending _-es_ is added-- + +(1) If a word ends in a letter which cannot add _-s_ and be +pronounced. Such are _box, cross, ditch, glass, lens, quartz_, etc. + +[Sidenote: _-Es added in certain cases_.] + +If the word ends in a _sound_ which cannot add _-s_, a new syllable is +made; as, _niche--niches, race--races, house--houses, prize--prizes, +chaise--chaises_, etc. + +_-Es_ is also added to a few words ending in -o, though this sound +combines readily with _-s_, and does not make an extra syllable: +_cargo--cargoes, negro--negroes, hero--heroes, volcano--volcanoes_, +etc. + +Usage differs somewhat in other words of this class, some adding _-s_, +and some _-es_. + +(2) If a word ends in _-y_ preceded by a consonant (the _y_ being then +changed to _i_); e.g., _fancies, allies, daisies, fairies_. + +[Sidenote: _Words in -ies._] + +Formerly, however, these words ended in _-ie_, and the real ending is +therefore _-s_. Notice these from Chaucer (fourteenth century):-- + +[Sidenote: _Their old form._] + + The _lilie_ on hir stalke grene. + Of _maladie_ the which he hadde endured. + +And these from Spenser (sixteenth century):-- + + Be well aware, quoth then that _ladie_ milde. + At last fair Hesperus in highest _skie_ + Had spent his lampe. + +(3) In the case of some words ending in -_f_ or -_fe_, which have +the plural in _-ves_: _calf_--_calves_, _half_--_halves_, +_knife_--_knives_, _shelf_--_shelves_, etc. + + +Special Lists. + + +43. Material nouns and abstract nouns are always singular. When +such words take a plural ending, they lose their identity, and go over +to other classes (Secs. 15 and 17). + + +44. Proper nouns are regularly singular, but may be made plural +when we wish to speak of several persons or things bearing the same +name; e.g., _the Washingtons_, _the Americas_. + + +45. Some words are usually singular, though they are plural in +form. Examples of these are, _optics_, _economics_, _physics_, +_mathematics_, _politics_, and many branches of learning; also _news_, +_pains_ (care), _molasses_, _summons_, _means_: as,-- + + _Politics_, in its widest extent, is both the science and the art + of government.--_Century Dictionary_. + + So live, that when thy _summons comes_, etc.--BRYANT. + + It served simply as _a means_ of sight.--PROF. DANA. + +[Sidenote: Means _plural_.] + +Two words, means and politics, _may be plural_ in their +construction with verbs and adjectives:-- + + Words, by strongly conveying the passions, by _those means_ which + we have already mentioned, fully compensate for their weakness in + other respects.--BURKE. + + With great dexterity _these means_ were now applied.--MOTLEY. + + By _these means_, I say, riches will accumulate.--GOLDSMITH. + +[Sidenote: Politics _plural_.] + + Cultivating a feeling that _politics_ are tiresome.--G.W. CURTIS. + + The _politics_ in which he took the keenest interest _were + politics_ scarcely deserving of the name.--MACAULAY. + + Now I read all the _politics_ that _come_ out.--GOLDSMITH. + + +46. Some words have no corresponding singular. + + aborigines + amends + annals + assets + antipodes + scissors + thanks + spectacles + vespers + victuals + matins + nuptials + oats + obsequies + premises + bellows + billiards + dregs + gallows + tongs + +[Sidenote: _Occasionally singular words_.] + +Sometimes, however, a few of these words have the construction of +singular nouns. Notice the following:-- + + They cannot get on without each other any more than one blade of + _a scissors_ can cut without the other.--J.L. LAUGHLIN. + + A relic which, if I recollect right, he pronounced to have been + _a tongs_.--IRVING. + + Besides this, it is furnished with _a forceps_.--GOLDSMITH. + + The air,--was it subdued when...the wind was trained only to turn + a windmill, carry off chaff, or work in _a bellows_?--PROF. DANA. + +In Early Modern English _thank_ is found. + + What _thank_ have ye?--_Bible_ + + +47. Three words were _originally singular_, the present ending _-s_ +not being really a plural inflection, but they are regularly construed +as plural: _alms, eaves, riches_. + + +[Sidenote: _two plurals_.] + +48. A few nouns have two plurals differing in meaning. + + brother--brothers (by blood), brethren (of a society or church). + + cloth--cloths (kinds of cloth), clothes (garments). + + die--dies (stamps for coins, etc.), dice (for gaming). + + fish--fish (collectively), fishes (individuals or kinds). + + genius--geniuses (men of genius), genii (spirits). + + index--indexes (to books), indices (signs in algebra). + + pea--peas (separately), pease (collectively). + + penny--pennies (separately), pence (collectively). + + shot--shot (collective balls), shots (number of times fired). + +In speaking of coins, _twopence_, _sixpence_, etc., may add _-s_, +making a double plural, as two _sixpences_. + + +[Sidenote: _One plural, two meanings._] + +49. Other words have one plural form with two meanings,--one +corresponding to the singular, the other unlike it. + + custom--customs: (1) habits, ways; (2) revenue duties. + + letter--letters: (1) the alphabet, or epistles; (2) literature. + + number--numbers: (1) figures; (2) poetry, as in the lines,-- + + I lisped in _numbers_, for the numbers came.--POPE. + + Tell me not, in mournful _numbers_.--LONGFELLOW. + +_Numbers_ also means issues, or copies, of a periodical. + + pain--pains: (1) suffering; (2) care, trouble, + + part--parts: (1) divisions; (2) abilities, faculties. + + +[Sidenote: _Two classes of compound words._] + +50. Compound words may be divided into two classes:-- + +(1) _Those whose parts are so closely joined as to constitute one +word._ These make the last part plural. + + courtyard + dormouse + Englishman + fellow-servant + fisherman + Frenchman + forget-me-not + goosequill + handful + mouthful + cupful + maidservant + pianoforte + stepson + spoonful + titmouse + +(2) _Those groups in which the first part is the principal one, +followed by a word or phrase making a modifier._ The chief member adds +_-s_ in the plural. + + aid-de-camp + attorney at law + billet-doux + commander in chief + court-martial + cousin-german + father-in-law + knight-errant + hanger-on + +NOTE.--Some words ending in _-man_ are not compounds of the English +word _man_, but add _-s_; such as _talisman_, _firman_, _Brahman_, +_German_, _Norman_, _Mussulman_, _Ottoman_. + + +51. Some groups pluralize both parts of the group; as _man singer_, +_manservant_, _woman servant_, _woman singer_. + + +[Sidenote: _Two methods in use for names with titles._] + +52. As to plurals of names with titles, there is some disagreement +among English writers. The title may be plural, as _the Messrs. +Allen_, _the Drs. Brown_, _the Misses Rich_; or the name may be +pluralized. + +The former is perhaps more common in present-day use, though the +latter is often found; for example,-- + + Then came Mr. and Mrs. Briggs, and then _the three Miss + Spinneys_, then Silas Peckham.--DR. HOLMES. + + Our immortal Fielding was of the younger branch of the _Earls of + Denbigh_, who drew their origin from the _Counts of + Hapsburgh_.--GIBBON. + + The _Miss Flamboroughs_ were reckoned the best dancers in the + parish.--GOLDSMITH. + + The _Misses Nettengall's_ young ladies come to the Cathedral + too.--DICKENS. + + The _Messrs. Harper_ have done the more than generous thing by + Mr. Du Maurier.--_The Critic_. + + +53. A number of foreign words have been adopted into English +without change of form. These are said to be _domesticated_, and +retain their foreign plurals. + +Others have been adopted, and by long use have altered their power so +as to conform to English words. They are then said to be +_naturalized_, or _Anglicized_, or _Englished_. + +[Sidenote: _Domesticated words._] + +The domesticated words may retain the original plural. Some of them +have a secondary English plural in _-s_ or _-es_. + + +Exercise. + +Find in the dictionary the plurals of these words:-- + +I. FROM THE LATIN. + + apparatus + appendix + axis + datum + erratum + focus + formula + genus + larva + medium + memorandum + nebula + radius + series + species + stratum + terminus + vertex + +II. FROM THE GREEK. + + analysis + antithesis + automaton + basis + crisis + ellipsis + hypothesis + parenthesis + phenomenon + thesis + +[Sidenote: _Anglicized words._] + +When the foreign words are fully naturalized, they form their plurals +in the regular way; as,-- + + bandits + cherubs + dogmas + encomiums + enigmas + focuses + formulas + geniuses + herbariums + indexes + seraphs + apexes + + +[Sidenote: _Usage varies in plurals of letters, figures, etc._] + +54. Letters, figures, etc., form their plurals by adding _-s_ or +_'s_. Words quoted merely as words, without reference to their +meaning, also add _-s_ or _'s_; as, "His _9's_ (or _9s_) look like +_7's_ (or _7s_)," "Avoid using too many _and's_ (or _ands_)," "Change +the _+'s_ (or _+s_) to _-'s_ (or _-s_)." + + +CASE. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +55. Case is an inflection or use of a noun (or pronoun) to show its +relation to other words in the sentence. + +In the sentence, "He sleeps in a felon's cell," the word _felon's_ +modifies _cell_, and expresses a relation akin to possession; _cell_ +has another relation, helping to express the idea of place with the +word _in_. + + +56. In the general wearing-away of inflections, the number of case +forms has been greatly reduced. + +[Sidenote: _Only two_ case forms.] + +There are now only two case forms of English nouns,--one for the +_nominative_ and _objective_, one for the _possessive_: consequently +the matter of inflection is a very easy thing to handle in learning +about cases. + +[Sidenote: _Reasons for speaking of_ three cases _of nouns_.] + +But there are reasons why grammars treat of _three_ cases of nouns +when there are only two forms:-- + +(1) Because the relations of all words, whether inflected or not, must +be understood for purposes of analysis. + +(2) Because pronouns still have three case forms as well as three case +relations. + + +57. Nouns, then, may be said to have three cases,--the +nominative, the objective, and the possessive. + + +I. Uses of the Nominative. + +58. The nominative case is used as follows:-- + +(1) _As the subject of a verb_: "_Water_ seeks its level." + +(2) _As a predicate noun_, completing a verb, and referring to or +explaining the subject: "A bent twig makes a crooked _tree_." + +(3) _In apposition_ with some other nominative word, adding to the +meaning of that word: "The reaper _Death_ with his sickle keen." + +(4) _In direct address_: "_Lord Angus_, thou hast lied!" + +(5) _With a participle in an absolute or independent phrase_ (there is +some discussion whether this is a true nominative): "The _work_ done, +they returned to their homes." + +(6) _With an infinitive in exclamations_: "_David_ to die!" + + +Exercise. + +Pick out the nouns in the nominative case, and tell which use of the +nominative each one has. + +1. Moderate lamentation is the right of the dead; excessive grief, the +enemy of the living. + +2. Excuses are clothes which, when asked unawares, + Good Breeding to naked Necessity spares. + +3. Human experience is the great test of truth. + +4. Cheerfulness and content are great beautifiers. + +5. Three properties belong to wisdom,--nature, learning, and +experience; three things characterize man,--person, fate, and merit. + +6. But of all plagues, good Heaven, thy wrath can send, + Save, save, oh save me from the candid friend! + +7. Conscience, her first law broken, wounded lies. + +8. They charged, sword in hand and visor down. + +9. O sleep! O gentle sleep! + Nature's soft nurse, how have I frighted thee? + + +II. Uses of the Objective. + +59. The objective case is used as follows:-- + +(1) _As the direct object of a verb_, naming the person or thing +directly receiving the action of the verb: "Woodman, spare that +_tree_!" + +(2) _As the indirect object of a verb_, naming the person or thing +indirectly affected by the action of the verb: "Give the _devil_ his +due." + +(3) _Adverbially_, defining the action of a verb by denoting _time_, +_measure_, _distance_, etc. (in the older stages of the language, this +took the regular accusative inflection): "Full _fathom_ five thy +father lies;" "Cowards die many _times_ before their deaths." + +(4) _As the second object_, completing the verb, and thus becoming +part of the predicate in acting upon an object: "Time makes the worst +enemies _friends_;" "Thou makest the storm a _calm_." In these +sentences the real predicates are _makes friends_, taking the object +_enemies_, and being equivalent to one verb, _reconciles_; and _makest +a calm_, taking the object _storm_, and meaning calmest. This is also +called the _predicate objective_ or the _factitive object_. + +(5) _As the object of a preposition_, the word toward which the +preposition points, and which it joins to another word: "He must have +a long spoon that would eat with the _devil_." + +The preposition sometimes takes the _possessive_ case of a noun, as +will be seen in Sec. 68. + +(6) _In apposition with another objective_: "The opinions of this +junto were completely controlled by Nicholas Vedder, a _patriarch_ of +the village, and _landlord_ of the inn." + + +Exercise. + +Point out the nouns in the objective case in these sentences, and tell +which use each has:-- + +1. Tender men sometimes have strong wills. + +2. Necessity is the certain connection between cause and effect. + +3. Set a high price on your leisure moments; they are sands of +precious gold. + +4. But the flood came howling one day. + +5. I found the urchin Cupid sleeping. + +6. Five times every year he was to be exposed in the pillory. + +7. The noblest mind the best contentment has. + +8. Multitudes came every summer to visit that famous natural +curiosity, the Great Stone Face. + +9. And whirling plate, and forfeits paid, + His winter task a pastime made. + +10. He broke the ice on the streamlet's brink, + And gave the leper to eat and drink. + + +III. Uses of the Possessive. + + +60. The possessive case always modifies another word, expressed or +understood. There are three forms of possessive showing how a word is +related in sense to the modified word:-- + +(1) _Appositional possessive_, as in these expressions,-- + + The blind old man of _Scio's_ rocky isle.--BYRON. + + Beside a pumice isle in _Baiae's_ bay.--SHELLEY. + +In these sentences the phrases are equivalent to _of the rocky isle +[of] Scio_, and _in the bay [of] Baiae_, the possessive being really +equivalent here to an appositional objective. It is a poetic +expression, the equivalent phrase being used in prose. + +(2) _Objective possessive_, as shown in the sentences,-- + + Ann Turner had taught her the secret before this last good lady + had been hanged for _Sir Thomas Overbury's_ murder.--HAWTHORNE. + + He passes to-day in building an air castle for to-morrow, or in + writing _yesterday's_ elegy.--THACKERAY + +In these the possessives are equivalent to an objective after a verbal +expression: as, _for murdering Sir Thomas Overbury_; _an elegy to +commemorate yesterday_. For this reason the use of the possessive here +is called objective. + +(3) _Subjective possessive_, the most common of all; as,-- + + The unwearied sun, from day to day, + Does his Creator's power display. + --ADDISON. + +If this were expanded into _the power which his Creator possesses_, +the word _Creator_ would be the subject of the verb: hence it is +called a subjective possessive. + + +61. This last-named possessive expresses a variety of relations. +_Possession_ in some sense is the most common. The kind of relation +may usually be found by expanding the possessive into an equivalent +phrase: for example, "_Winter's_ rude tempests are gathering now" +(i.e., tempests that winter is likely to have); "His beard was of +_several days'_ growth" (i.e., growth which several days had +developed); "The _forest's_ leaping panther shall yield his spotted +hide" (i.e., the panther which the forest hides); "Whoso sheddeth +_man's_ blood" (blood that man possesses). + + +[Sidenote: _How the possessive is formed._] + +62. As said before (Sec. 56), there are only two case forms. One is +the simple form of a word, expressing the relations of nominative and +objective; the other is formed by adding _'s_ to the simple form, +making the possessive singular. To form the possessive plural, only +the apostrophe is added if the plural nominative ends in _-s_; the +_'s_ is added if the plural nominative does not end in _-s_. + + +Case Inflection. + + +[Sidenote: _Declension or inflection of nouns._] + +63. The full declension of nouns is as follows:-- + + SINGULAR. PLURAL. + +1. _Nom. and Obj._ lady ladies + _Poss._ lady's ladies' + +2. _Nom. and Obj._ child children + _Poss._ child's children's + +[Sidenote: _A suggestion._] + +NOTE.--The difficulty that some students have in writing the +possessive plural would be lessened if they would remember there are +two steps to be taken:-- + +(1) Form the nominative plural according to Secs 39-53 + +(2) Follow the rule given in Sec. 62. + + +Special Remarks on the Possessive Case. + + +[Sidenote: _Origin of the possessive with its apostrophe._] + +64. In Old English a large number of words had in the genitive case +singular the ending _-es_; in Middle English still more words took +this ending: for example, in Chaucer, "From every _schires_ ende," +"Full worthi was he in his _lordes_ werre [war]," "at his _beddes_ +syde," "_mannes_ herte [heart]," etc. + +[Sidenote: _A false theory._] + +By the end of the seventeenth century the present way of indicating +the possessive had become general. The use of the apostrophe, however, +was not then regarded as standing for the omitted vowel of the +genitive (as _lord's_ for _lordes_): by a false theory the ending was +thought to be a contraction of _his_, as schoolboys sometimes write, +"George Jones _his_ book." + +[Sidenote: _Use of the apostrophe._] + +Though this opinion was untrue, the apostrophe has proved a great +convenience, since otherwise words with a plural in _-s_ would have +three forms alike. To the eye all the forms are now distinct, but to +the ear all may be alike, and the connection must tell us what form is +intended. + +The use of the apostrophe in the plural also began in the seventeenth +century, from thinking that _s_ was not a possessive sign, and from a +desire to have distinct forms. + + +[Sidenote: _Sometimes_ s _is left out in the possessive singular._] + +65. Occasionally the _s_ is dropped in the possessive singular if +the word ends in a hissing sound and another hissing sound follows, +but the apostrophe remains to mark the possessive; as, _for goodness' +sake, Cervantes' satirical work_. + +In other cases the _s_ is seldom omitted. Notice these three examples +from Thackeray's writings: "Harry ran upstairs to his _mistress's_ +apartment;" "A postscript is added, as by the _countess's_ command;" +"I saw what the _governess's_ views were of the matter." + + +[Sidenote: _Possessive with compound expressions._] + +66. In compound expressions, containing words in apposition, a word +with a phrase, etc., the possessive sign is usually last, though +instances are found with both appositional words marked. + +Compare the following examples of literary usage:-- + + Do not the Miss Prys, my neighbors, know the amount of my income, + the items of my _son's_, _Captain Scrapegrace's_, tailor's + bill--THACKERAY. + + The world's pomp and power sits there on this hand: on that, + stands up for God's truth one man, the _poor miner Hans Luther's_ + son.--CARLYLE. + + They invited me in the _emperor their master's_ name.--SWIFT. + + I had naturally possessed myself of _Richardson the painter's_ + thick octavo volumes of notes on the "Paradise Lost."--DE + QUINCEY. + + They will go to Sunday schools to teach classes of little + children the age of Methuselah or the dimensions of _Og the king + of Bashan's_ bedstead.--HOLMES. + +More common still is the practice of turning the possessive into an +equivalent phrase; as, _in the name of the emperor their master_, +instead of _the emperor their master's name_. + + +[Sidenote: _Possessive and no noun limited._] + +67. The possessive is sometimes used without belonging to any noun +in the sentence; some such word as _house_, _store_, _church_, +_dwelling_, etc., being understood with it: for example,-- + + Here at the _fruiterer's_ the Madonna has a tabernacle of fresh + laurel leaves.--RUSKIN. + + It is very common for people to say that they are disappointed in + the first sight of _St. Peter's_.--LOWELL. + + I remember him in his cradle at _St. James's_.--THACKERAY. + + Kate saw that; and she walked off from the _don's_.--DE QUINCEY. + + +[Sidenote: _The double possessive._] + +68. A peculiar form, a double possessive, has grown up and become a +fixed idiom in modern English. + +In most cases, a possessive relation was expressed in Old English by +the inflection _-es_, corresponding to _'s_. The same relation was +expressed in French by a phrase corresponding to _of_ and its object. +Both of these are now used side by side; sometimes they are used +together, as one modifier, making a double possessive. For this there +are several reasons:-- + +[Sidenote: _Its advantages: Euphony_.] + +(1) When a word is modified by _a_, _the_, _this_, _that_, _every_, +_no_, _any_, _each_, etc., and at the same time by a possessive noun, +it is distasteful to place the possessive before the modified noun, +and it would also alter the meaning: we place it after the modified +noun with _of_. + +[Sidenote: _Emphasis._] + +(2) It is more emphatic than the simple possessive, especially when +used with _this_ or _that_, for it brings out the modified word in +strong relief. + +[Sidenote: _Clearness._] + +(3) It prevents ambiguity. For example, in such a sentence as, "This +introduction _of Atterbury's_ has all these advantages" (Dr. Blair), +the statement clearly means only one thing,--the introduction which +Atterbury made. If, however, we use the phrase _of Atterbury_, the +sentence _might_ be understood as just explained, or it might mean +this act of introducing Atterbury. (See also Sec. 87.) + +The following are some instances of double possessives:-- + + This Hall _of Tinville's_ is dark, ill-lighted except where she + stands.--CARLYLE. + + Those lectures _of Lowell's_ had a great influence with me, and + I used to like whatever they bade me like.--HOWELLS + + Niebuhr remarks that no pointed sentences _of Caesar's_ can have + come down to us.--FROUDE. + + Besides these famous books _of Scott's and Johnson's_, there is a + copious "Life" by Thomas Sheridan.--THACKERAY + + Always afterwards on occasions of ceremony, he wore that quaint + old French sword _of the Commodore's_.--E.E. HALE. + + +Exercises. + +(_a_) Pick out the possessive nouns, and tell whether each is +appositional, objective, or subjective. + +(_b_) Rewrite the sentence, turning the possessives into equivalent +phrases. + +1. I don't choose a hornet's nest about my ears. + +2. Shall Rome stand under one man's awe? + +3. I must not see thee Osman's bride. + +4. At lovers' perjuries, + They say, Jove laughs. + +5. The world has all its eyes on Cato's son. + +6. My quarrel and the English queen's are one. + +7. Now the bright morning star, day's harbinger, + Comes dancing from the East. + +8. A man's nature runs either to herbs or weeds; therefore, let him +seasonably water the one, and destroy the other. + +9. 'Tis all men's office to speak patience + To those that wring under the load of sorrow. + +10. A jest's prosperity lies in the ear + Of him that hears it, never in the tongue + Of him that makes it. + +11. No more the juice of Egypt's grape shall moist his lip. + +12. There Shakespeare's self, with every garland crowned, + Flew to those fairy climes his fancy sheen. + +13. What supports me? dost thou ask? + The conscience, Friend, to have lost them [his eyes] overplied + In liberty's defence. + +14. Or where Campania's plain forsaken lies, + A weary waste expanding to the skies. + +15. Nature herself, it seemed, would raise + A minster to her Maker's praise! + + +HOW TO PARSE NOUNS. + + +69. Parsing a word is putting together all the facts about its +form and its relations to other words in the sentence. + +In parsing, some idioms--the double possessive, for example--do not +come under regular grammatical rules, and are to be spoken of merely +as idioms. + +70. Hence, in parsing a noun, we state,-- + +(1) The class to which it belongs,--common, proper, etc. + +(2) Whether a neuter or a gender noun; if the latter, which gender. + +(3) Whether singular or plural number. + +(4) Its office in the sentence, determining its case. + +[Sidenote: _The correct method._] + +71. In parsing any word, the following method should always be +followed: tell the facts about what the word _does_, then make the +grammatical statements as to its class, inflections, and relations. + + +MODEL FOR PARSING. + +"What is bolder than a miller's neckcloth, which takes a thief by the +throat every morning?" + +_Miller's_ is a name applied to every individual of its class, hence +it is a common noun; it is the name of a male being, hence it is a +gender noun, masculine; it denotes only one person, therefore +singular number; it expresses possession or ownership, and limits +_neckcloth_, therefore possessive case. + +_Neckcloth_, like _miller's_, is a common class noun; it has no sex, +therefore neuter; names one thing, therefore singular number; subject +of the verb _is_ understood, and therefore nominative case. + +_Thief_ is a common class noun; the connection shows a male is meant, +therefore masculine gender; singular number; object of the verb +_takes_, hence objective case. + +_Throat_ is neuter, of the same class and number as the word +_neckcloth_; it is the object of the preposition _by_, hence it is +objective case. + +NOTE.--The preposition sometimes takes the possessive case (see Sec. +68). + +_Morning_ is like _throat_ and _neckcloth_ as to class, gender, and +number; as to case, it expresses time, has no governing word, but is +the adverbial objective. + + +Exercise. + + +Follow the model above in parsing all the nouns in the following +sentences:-- + + +1. To raise a monument to departed worth is to perpetuate virtue. + +2. The greatest pleasure I know is to do a good action by stealth, and +to have it found out by accident. + +3. An old cloak makes a new jerkin; a withered serving man, a fresh +tapster. + +4. That in the captain's but a choleric word, + Which in the soldier is flat blasphemy. + +5. Now, blessings light on him that first invented ... sleep! + +6. Necker, financial minister to Louis XVI., and his daughter, Madame +de Stael, were natives of Geneva. + +7. He giveth his beloved sleep. + +8. Time makes the worst enemies friends. + +9. A few miles from this point, where the Rhone enters the lake, +stands the famous Castle of Chillon, connected with the shore by a +drawbridge,--palace, castle, and prison, all in one. + +10. Wretches! ye loved her for her wealth, + And hated her for her pride. + +11. Mrs. Jarley's back being towards him, the military gentleman shook +his forefinger. + + + + +PRONOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _The need of pronouns._] + +72. When we wish to speak of a name several times in succession, it +is clumsy and tiresome to repeat the noun. For instance, instead of +saying, "_The pupil_ will succeed in _the pupil's_ efforts if _the +pupil_ is ambitious," we improve the sentence by shortening it thus, +"The pupil will succeed in _his_ efforts if _he_ is ambitious." + +Again, if we wish to know about the ownership of a house, we evidently +cannot state the owner's name, but by a question we say, "_Whose_ +house is that?" thus placing a word instead of the name till we learn +the name. + +This is not to be understood as implying that pronouns were _invented_ +because nouns were tiresome, since history shows that pronouns are as +old as nouns and verbs. The use of pronouns must have sprung up +naturally, from a necessity for short, definite, and representative +words. + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +A pronoun is a reference word, standing for a name, or for a person +or thing, or for a group of persons or things. + + +[Sidenote: _Classes of pronouns._] + +73. Pronouns may be grouped in five classes:-- + +(1) Personal pronouns, which distinguish person by their form (Sec. +76). + +(2) Interrogative pronouns, which are used to ask questions about +persons or things. + +(3) Relative pronouns, which relate or refer to a noun, pronoun, or +other word or expression, and at the same time connect two statements +They are also called conjunctive. + +(4) Adjective pronouns, words, primarily adjectives, which are +classed as adjectives when they modify nouns, but as pronouns when +they stand for nouns. + +(5) Indefinite pronouns, which cannot be used as adjectives, but +stand for an indefinite number of persons or things. + +Numerous examples of all these will be given under the separate +classes hereafter treated. + + +PERSONAL PRONOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _Person in grammar._] + +74. Since pronouns stand for persons as well as names, they must +represent the person talking, the person or thing spoken to, and the +person or thing talked about. + +This gives rise to a new term, "the distinction of _person_." + +[Sidenote: Person _of nouns_.] + +75. This distinction was not needed in discussing nouns, as nouns +have the _same form_, whether representing persons and things spoken +to or spoken of. It is evident that a noun could not represent the +person speaking, even if it had a special form. + +From analogy to pronouns, which have _forms_ for person, nouns are +sometimes spoken of as first or second person by their _use_; that is, +if they are in apposition with a pronoun of the first or second +person, they are said to have person by agreement. + +But usually nouns represent something spoken of. + + +[Sidenote: _Three persons of pronouns._] + +76. Pronouns naturally are of three persons:-- + +(1) First person, representing the person speaking. + +(2) Second person, representing a person or thing spoken to. + +(3) Third person, standing for a person or thing spoken of. + + + +FORMS OF PERSONAL PRONOUNS. + +77. Personal pronouns are inflected thus:-- + + FIRST PERSON. + _Singular._ +_Nom._ I +_Poss._ mine, my +_Obj._ me + + _Plural._ +_Nom._ we +_Poss._ our, ours +_Obj._ us + + + SECOND PERSON. + _Singular._ + _Old Form_ _Common Form._ +_Nom._ thou you +_Poss._ thine, thy your, yours +_Obj._ thee you + + _Plural._ +_Nom._ ye you +_Poss._ your, yours your, yours +_Obj._ you you + + THIRD PERSON. + _Singular._ + _Masc._ _Fem._ _Neut._. +_Nom._ he she it +_Poss._ his her, hers its +_Obj._ him her it + + _Plur. of all Three_. +_Nom._ they +_Poss._ their, theirs +_Obj._ them + + +Remarks on These Forms. + + +[Sidenote: _First and second persons without gender._] + +78. It will be noticed that the pronouns of the first and second +persons have no forms to distinguish gender. The speaker may be either +male or female, or, by personification, neuter; so also with the +person or thing spoken to. + +[Sidenote: _Third person_ singular _has gender_.] + +But the third person has, in the singular, a separate form for each +gender, and also for the neuter. + +[Sidenote: _Old forms_.] + +In Old English these three were formed from the same root; namely, +masculine _he_, feminine _heo_, neuter _hit_. + +The form _hit_ (for _it_) is still heard in vulgar English, and _hoo_ +(for _heo_) in some dialects of England. + +The plurals were _hi_, _heora_, _heom_, in Old English; the forms +_they_, _their_, _them_, perhaps being from the English demonstrative, +though influenced by the cognate Norse forms. + + +[Sidenote: _Second person always plural in ordinary English._] + +79. _Thou_, _thee_, etc., are old forms which are now out of use in +ordinary speech. The consequence is, that we have no singular pronoun +of the second person in ordinary speech or prose, but make the plural +_you_ do duty for the singular. We use it with a plural verb always, +even when referring to a single object. + +[Sidenote: _Two uses of the old singulars._] + + +80. There are, however, two modern uses of _thou, thy_, etc.:-- + +(1) _In elevated style_, especially in poetry; as,-- + + With _thy_ clear keen joyance + Languor cannot be; + Shadow of annoyance + Never came near _thee_; + _Thou_ lovest; but ne'er knew love's sad satiety.--SHELLEY. + +(2) _In addressing the Deity_, as in prayers, etc.; for example,-- + + Oh, _thou_ Shepherd of Israel, that didst comfort _thy_ people of + old, to _thy_ care we commit the helpless.--BEECHER. + + +[Sidenote: _The form_ its.] + +81. It is worth while to consider the possessive _its_. This is of +comparatively recent growth. The old form was _his_ (from the +nominative _hit_), and this continued in use till the sixteenth +century. The transition from the old _his_ to the modern _its_ is +shown in these sentences:-- + + 1 He anointed the altar and all _his_ vessels.--_Bible_ + +Here _his_ refers to _altar_, which is a neuter noun. The quotation +represents the usage of the early sixteenth century. + + 2 It's had _it_ head bit off by _it_ young--SHAKESPEARE + +Shakespeare uses _his_, _it_, and sometimes _its_, as possessive of +_it_. + +In Milton's poetry (seventeenth century) _its_ occurs only three +times. + + 3 See heaven _its_ sparkling portals wide display--POPE + + +[Sidenote: _A relic of the olden time._] + +82. We have an interesting relic in such sentences as this from +Thackeray: "One of the ways to know '_em_ is to watch the scared looks +of the ogres' wives and children." + +As shown above, the Old English objective was _hem_ (or _heom_), which +was often sounded with the _h_ silent, just as we now say, "I saw +'_im_ yesterday" when the word _him_ is not emphatic. In spoken +English, this form '_em_ has survived side by side with the literary +_them_. + + +[Sidenote: _Use of the pronouns in personification._] + +83. The pronouns _he_ and _she_ are often used in poetry, and +sometimes in ordinary speech, to personify objects (Sec. 34). + + + +CASES OF PERSONAL PRONOUNS. + + +I The Nominative. + + +[Sidenote: _Nominative forms._] + +84. The nominative forms of personal pronouns have the same uses as +the nominative of nouns (see Sec. 58). The case of most of these +pronouns can be determined more easily than the case of nouns, for, +besides a nominative _use_, they have a nominative form. The words +_I_, _thou_, _he_, _she_, _we_, _ye_, _they_, are very rarely anything +but nominative in literary English, though _ye_ is occasionally used +as objective. + + +[Sidenote: _Additional nominatives in spoken English._] + +85. In spoken English, however, there are some others that are added +to the list of nominatives: they are, _me_, _him_, _her_, _us_, +_them_, when they occur in the _predicate position_. That is, in such +a sentence as, "I am sure it was _him_," the literary language would +require _he_ after _was_; but colloquial English regularly uses as +predicate nominatives the forms _me_, _him_, _her_, _us_, _them_, +though those named in Sec. 84 are always subjects. Yet careful +speakers avoid this, and follow the usage of literary English. + + +II. The Possessive. + + +[Sidenote: _Not a separate class._] + +86. The forms _my_, _thy_, _his_, _her_, _its_, _our_, _your_, +_their_, are sometimes grouped separately as POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS, but +it is better to speak of them as the possessive case of personal +pronouns, just as we speak of the possessive case of nouns, and not +make more classes. + +[Sidenote: Absolute _personal pronouns._] + +The forms _mine_, _thine_, _yours_, _hers_, _theirs_, sometimes _his_ +and _its_, have a peculiar use, standing apart from the words they +modify instead of immediately before them. From this use they are +called ABSOLUTE PERSONAL PRONOUNS, or, some say, ABSOLUTE POSSESSIVES. + +As instances of the use of absolute pronouns, note the following:-- + + 'Twas _mine_, 'tis _his_, and has been slave to thousands. + --SHAKESPEARE. + + And since thou own'st that praise, I spare thee _mine_.--COWPER. + + My arm better than _theirs_ can ward it off.--LANDOR. + + _Thine_ are the city and the people of Granada.--BULWER. + +[Sidenote: _Old use of_ mine _and_ thine.] + +Formerly _mine_ and _thine_ stood before their nouns, if the nouns +began with a vowel or _h_ silent; thus,-- + + Shall I not take _mine_ ease in _mine_ inn?--SHAKESPEARE. + + Give every man _thine_ ear, but few thy voice.--_Id._ + + If _thine_ eye offend thee, pluck it out.--_Bible._ + + My greatest apprehension was for _mine_ eyes.--SWIFT. + +This usage is still preserved in poetry. + + +[Sidenote: _Double and triple possessives._] + +87. The forms _hers_, _ours_, _yours_, _theirs_, are really double +possessives, since they add the possessive _s_ to what is already a +regular possessive inflection. + +Besides this, we have, as in nouns, a possessive phrase made up of the +preposition _of_ with these double possessives, _hers_, _ours_, +_yours_, _theirs_, and with _mine_, _thine_, _his_, sometimes _its_. + +[Sidenote: _Their uses._] + +Like the noun possessives, they have several uses:-- + +(1) _To prevent ambiguity_, as in the following:-- + + I have often contrasted the habitual qualities of that gloomy + friend _of theirs_ with the astounding spirits of Thackeray and + Dickens.--J.T. FIELDS. + + No words _of ours_ can describe the fury of the conflict.--J.F. + COOPER. + +(2) _To bring emphasis_, as in these sentences:-- + + This thing _of yours_ that you call a Pardon of Sins, it is a bit + of rag-paper with ink.--CARLYLE. + + This ancient silver bowl _of mine_, it tells of good old times. + --HOLMES. + +(3) _To express contempt, anger, or satire_; for example,-- + + "Do you know the charges that unhappy sister _of mine_ and her + family have put me to already?" says the Master.--THACKERAY. + + He [John Knox] had his pipe of Bordeaux too, we find, in that old + Edinburgh house _of his_.--CARLYLE. + + "Hold thy peace, Long Allen," said Henry Woodstall, "I tell thee + that tongue _of thine_ is not the shortest limb about + _thee_."--SCOTT. + +(4) _To make a noun less limited in application_; thus,-- + + A favorite liar and servant _of mine_ was a man I once had to + drive a brougham.--THACKERAY. + + In New York I read a newspaper criticism one day, commenting upon + a letter _of mine_.--_Id._ + +What would the last two sentences mean if the word _my_ were written +instead of _of mine_, and preceded the nouns? + + +[Sidenote: _About the case of absolute pronouns._] + +88. In their function, or use in a sentence, the absolute possessive +forms of the personal pronouns are very much like adjectives used as +nouns. + +In such sentences as, "_The good_ alone are great," "None but _the +brave_ deserves _the fair_," the words italicized have an adjective +force and also a noun force, as shown in Sec. 20. + +So in the sentences illustrating absolute pronouns in Sec. 86: _mine_ +stands for _my property_, _his_ for _his property_, in the first +sentence; _mine_ stands for _my praise_ in the second. But the first +two have a nominative use, and _mine_ in the second has an objective +use. + +They may be spoken of as possessive in form, but nominative or +objective in use, according as the modified word is in the nominative +or the objective. + + + +III. The Objective. + + +[Sidenote: _The old_ dative _case._] + +89. In Old English there was one case which survives in use, but not +in form. In such a sentence as this one from Thackeray, "Pick _me_ out +a whip-cord thong with some dainty knots in it," the word _me_ is +evidently not the direct object of the verb, but expresses _for whom_, +_for whose benefit_, the thing is done. In pronouns, this dative +use, as it is called, was marked by a separate case. + +[Sidenote: _Now the objective._] + +In Modern English the same _use_ is frequently seen, but the _form_ is +the same as the objective. For this reason a word thus used is called +a dative-objective. + +The following are examples of the dative-objective:-- + + Give _me_ neither poverty nor riches.--_Bible._ + + Curse _me_ this people.--_Id._ + + Both joined in making _him_ a present.--MACAULAY + + Is it not enough that you have _burnt me_ down three houses with + your dog's tricks, and be hanged to you!--LAMB + + I give _thee_ this to wear at the collar.--SCOTT + + +[Sidenote: _Other uses of the objective._] + +90. Besides this use of the objective, there are others:-- + +(1) _As the direct object of a verb._ + + They all handled _it_.--LAMB + +(2) _As the object of a preposition._ + + Time is behind _them_ and before _them_.--CARLYLE. + +(3) _In apposition._ + + She sate all last summer by the bedside of the blind beggar, + _him_ that so often and so gladly I talked with.--DE QUINCEY. + + + +SPECIAL USES OF PERSONAL PRONOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _Indefinite use of_ you _and_ your.] + +91. The word _you_, and its possessive case _yours_ are sometimes +used without reference to a particular person spoken to. They approach +the indefinite pronoun in use. + + _Your_ mere puny stripling, that winced at the least flourish of + the rod, was passed by with indulgence.--IRVING + + To empty here, _you_ must condense there.--EMERSON. + + The peasants take off their hats as _you_ pass; _you_ sneeze, and + they cry, "God bless you!" The thrifty housewife shows _you_ into + her best chamber. _You_ have oaten cakes baked some months + before.--LONGFELLOW + + +[Sidenote: _Uses of_ it.] + +92. The pronoun _it_ has a number of uses:-- + +(1) _To refer to some single word preceding_; as,-- + + Ferdinand ordered the _army_ to recommence _its_ march.--BULWER. + + _Society_, in this century, has not made _its_ progress, like + Chinese skill, by a greater acuteness of ingenuity in + trifles.--D. WEBSTER. + +(2) _To refer to a preceding word group_; thus,-- + + If any man should do wrong merely out of ill nature, why, yet + _it_ is but like the thorn or brier, which prick and scratch + because they can do no other.--BACON. + +Here _it_ refers back to the whole sentence before it, or to the idea, +"any man's doing wrong merely out of ill nature." + +(3) _As a grammatical subject, to stand for the real, logical +subject, which follows the verb_; as in the sentences,-- + + _It_ is easy in the world _to live after the world's opinion_. + --EMERSON. + + _It_ is this _haziness_ of intellectual vision which is the + malady of all classes of men by nature.--NEWMAN. + + _It_ is a pity _that he has so much learning, or that he has not + a great deal more_.--ADDISON. + +(4) _As an impersonal subject in certain expressions which need no +other subject_; as,-- + + _It_ is finger-cold, and prudent farmers get in their barreled + apples.--THOREAU. + + And when I awoke, _it_ rained.--COLERIDGE. + + For when _it_ dawned, they dropped their arms.--_Id._ + + _It_ was late and after midnight.--DE QUINCEY. + +(5) _As an impersonal or indefinite object of a verb or a +preposition_; as in the following sentences:-- + + (_a_) Michael Paw, who _lorded it_ over the fair regions of + ancient Pavonia.--IRVING. + + I made up my mind _to foot it_.--HAWTHORNE. + + A sturdy lad ... who in turn tries all the professions, who + _teams it, farms it, peddles it_, keeps a school.--EMERSON. + + (_b_) "Thy mistress leads thee a dog's life _of it_."--IRVING. + + There was nothing _for it_ but to return.--SCOTT. + + An editor has only to say "respectfully declined," and there is + an end _of it_.--HOLMES. + + Poor Christian was hard put _to it_.--BUNYAN. + + +[Sidenote: _Reflexive use of the personal pronouns._] + +93. The personal pronouns in the objective case are often used +_reflexively_; that is, referring to the same person as the subject of +the accompanying verb. For example, we use such expressions as, "I +found _me_ a good book," "He bought _him_ a horse," etc. This +reflexive use of the _dative_-objective is very common in spoken and +in literary English. + +The personal pronouns are not often used reflexively, however, when +they are _direct_ objects. This occurs in poetry, but seldom in prose; +as,-- + + Now I lay _me_ down to sleep.--ANON. + + I set _me_ down and sigh.--BURNS. + + And millions in those solitudes, since first + The flight of years began, have laid _them_ down + In their last sleep.--BRYANT. + + + +REFLEXIVE OR COMPOUND PERSONAL PRONOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _Composed of the personal pronouns with_ -self, -selves.] + +94. The REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS, or COMPOUND PERSONAL, as they are also +called, are formed from the personal pronouns by adding the word +_self_, and its plural _selves_. + +They are _myself_, (_ourself_), _ourselves_, _yourself_, (_thyself_), +_yourselves_, _himself_, _herself_, _itself_, _themselves_. + +Of the two forms in parentheses, the second is the old form of the +second person, used in poetry. + +_Ourself_ is used to follow the word _we_ when this represents a +single person, especially in the speech of rulers; as,-- + + Methinks he seems no better than a girl; + As girls were once, as we _ourself_ have been.--TENNYSON. + + +[Sidenote: _Origin of these reflexives._] + +95. The question might arise, Why are _himself_ and _themselves_ not +_hisself_ and _theirselves_, as in vulgar English, after the analogy +of _myself_, _ourselves_, etc.? + +The history of these words shows they are made up of the +dative-objective forms, not the possessive forms, with _self_. In +Middle English the forms _meself_, _theself_, were changed into the +possessive _myself_, _thyself_, and the others were formed by analogy +with these. _Himself_ and _themselves_ are the only ones retaining a +distinct objective form. + +In the forms _yourself_ and _yourselves_ we have the possessive _your_ +marked as singular as well as plural. + + +[Sidenote: _Use of the reflexives._] + +96. There are three uses of reflexive pronouns:-- + +(1) _As object of a verb or preposition, and referring to the same +person or thing as the subject_; as in these sentences from Emerson:-- + + He who offers _himself_ a candidate for that covenant comes up + like an Olympian. + + I should hate _myself_ if then I made my other friends my asylum. + + We fill _ourselves_ with ancient learning. + + What do we know of nature or of _ourselves_? + +(2) _To emphasize a noun or pronoun_; for example,-- + + The great globe _itself_ ... shall dissolve.--SHAKESPEARE. + + Threats to all; + To _you yourself_, to us, to every one.--_Id._ + + Who would not sing for Lycidas! he knew + _Himself_ to sing, and build the lofty rhyme.--MILTON. + +NOTE.--In such sentences the pronoun is sometimes omitted, and the +reflexive modifies the pronoun understood; for example,-- + + Only _itself_ can inspire whom it will.--EMERSON. + + My hands are full of blossoms plucked before, Held dead within + them till _myself_ shall die.--E.B. BROWNING. + + As if it were _thyself_ that's here, I shrink with + pain.--WORDSWORTH. + +(3) _As the precise equivalent of a personal pronoun_; as,-- + + Lord Altamont designed to take his son and _myself_.--DE QUINCEY. + + Victories that neither _myself_ nor my cause always deserved.--B. + FRANKLIN. + + For what else have our forefathers and _ourselves_ been + taxed?--LANDOR. + + Years ago, Arcturus and _myself_ met a gentleman from China who + knew the language.--THACKERAY. + + + +Exercises on Personal Pronouns. + + +(_a_) Bring up sentences containing ten personal pronouns, some each +of masculine, feminine, and neuter. + +(_b_) Bring up sentences containing five personal pronouns in the +possessive, some of them being double possessives. + +(_c_) Tell which use each _it_ has in the following sentences:-- + +1. Come and trip it as we go, + On the light fantastic toe. + +2. Infancy conforms to nobody; all conform to it. + +3. It is an ill wind that blows nobody good. + +4. Courage, father, fight it out. + +5. And it grew wondrous cold. + +6. To know what is best to do, and how to do it, is wisdom. + +7. If any phenomenon remains brute and dark, it is because the +corresponding faculty in the observer is not yet active. + +8. But if a man do not speak from within the veil, where the word is +one with that it tells of, let him lowly confess it. + +9. It behooved him to keep on good terms with his pupils. + +10. Biscuit is about the best thing I know; but it is the soonest +spoiled; and one would like to hear counsel on one point, why it is +that a touch of water utterly ruins it. + + + +INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _Three now in use._] + +97. The interrogative pronouns now in use are _who_ (with the forms +_whose_ and _whom_), _which_, and _what_. + +[Sidenote: _One obsolete._] + +There is an old word, _whether_, used formerly to mean which of two, +but now obsolete. Examples from the Bible:-- + + _Whether_ of them twain did the will of his father? + + _Whether_ is greater, the gold, or the temple? + +From Steele (eighteenth century):-- + + It may be a question _whether_ of these unfortunate persons had + the greater soul. + + +[Sidenote: _Use of_ who _and its forms._] + +98. The use of _who_, with its possessive and objective, is seen in +these sentences:-- + + _Who_ is she in bloody coronation robes from Rheims?--DE QUINCEY. + + _Whose_ was that gentle voice, that, whispering sweet, + Promised, methought, long days of bliss sincere?--BOWLES. + + What doth she look on? _Whom_ doth she behold?--WORDSWORTH. + +From these sentences it will be seen that interrogative _who_ refers +to _persons only_; that it is not inflected for gender or number, but +for case alone, having three forms; it is always third person, as it +always asks _about_ somebody. + + +[Sidenote: _Use of_ which.] + +99. Examples of the use of interrogative _which_:-- + + _Which_ of these had speed enough to sweep between the question + and the answer, and divide the one from the other?--DE QUINCEY. + + _Which_ of you, shall we say, doth love us most?--SHAKESPEARE. + + _Which_ of them [the sisters] shall I take?--_Id._ + +As shown here, _which_ is not inflected for gender, number, or case; +it refers to either persons or things; it is selective, that is, picks +out one or more from a number of known persons or objects. + + +[Sidenote: _Use of_ what.] + +100. Sentences showing the use of interrogative _what_:-- + + Since I from Smaylho'me tower have been, + _What_ did thy lady do?--SCOTT. + + _What_ is so rare as a day in June?--LOWELL. + + _What_ wouldst thou do, old man?--SHAKESPEARE. + +These show that _what_ is not inflected for case; that it is always +singular and neuter, referring to things, ideas, actions, etc., not to +persons. + + + +DECLENSION OF INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS. + + +101. The following are all the interrogative forms:-- + + SING. AND PLUR. SING. AND PLUR. SINGULAR + +_Nom._ who? which? what? +_Poss._ whose? -- -- +_Obj._ whom? which? what? + +In spoken English, _who_ is used as objective instead of _whom_; as, +"_Who_ did you see?" "_Who_ did he speak to?" + + +[Sidenote: _To tell the case of interrogatives._] + +102. The interrogative _who_ has a separate form for each case, +consequently the case can be told by the form of the word; but the +case of _which_ and _what_ must be determined exactly as in nouns,--by +the _use_ of the words. + +For instance, in Sec. 99, _which_ is nominative in the first sentence, +since it is subject of the verb _had_; nominative in the second also, +subject of _doth love_; objective in the last, being the direct +object of the verb _shall take_. + + +[Sidenote: _Further treatment of_ who, which _and_ what.] + +103. _Who_, _which_, and _what_ are also relative pronouns; _which_ +and _what_ are sometimes adjectives; _what_ may be an adverb in some +expressions. + +They will be spoken of again in the proper places, especially in the +treatment of indirect questions (Sec. 127). + + + +RELATIVE PRONOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _Function of the relative pronoun_.] + +104. Relative pronouns differ from both personal and interrogative +pronouns in referring to an antecedent, and also in having a +conjunctive use. The advantage in using them is to unite short +statements into longer sentences, and so to make smoother discourse. +Thus we may say, "The last of all the Bards was he. These bards sang +of Border chivalry." Or, it may be shortened into,-- + + "The last of all the Bards was he, + _Who_ sung of Border chivalry." + +In the latter sentence, _who_ evidently refers to _Bards_, which is +called the antecedent of the relative. + + +[Sidenote: _The antecedent._] + +105. The antecedent of a pronoun is the noun, pronoun, or other +word or expression, for which the pronoun stands. It usually precedes +the pronoun. + +Personal pronouns of the third person may have antecedents also, as +they take the place usually of a word already used; as,-- + + The priest hath _his_ fee who comes and shrives us.--LOWELL + +In this, both _his_ and _who_ have the antecedent _priest_. + +The pronoun _which_ may have its antecedent following, and the +antecedent may be a word or a group of words, as will be shown in the +remarks on _which_ below. + + +[Sidenote: _Two kinds._] + +106. Relatives may be SIMPLE or INDEFINITE. + +When the word _relative_ is used, a simple relative is meant. +Indefinite relatives, and the indefinite use of simple relatives, will +be discussed further on. + +The SIMPLE RELATIVES are _who_, _which_, _that_, _what_. + + +[Sidenote: Who _and its forms._] + +107. Examples of the relative _who_ and its forms:-- + + 1. Has a man gained anything _who_ has received a hundred favors + and rendered none?--EMERSON. + + 2. That man is little to be envied _whose_ patriotism would not + gain force upon the plain of Marathon.--DR JOHNSON. + +3. For her enchanting son, + _Whom_ universal nature did lament.--MILTON. + + 4. The nurse came to us, _who_ were sitting in an adjoining + apartment.--THACKERAY. + +5. Ye mariners of England, + That guard our native seas; + _Whose_ flag has braved, a thousand years, + The battle and the breeze!--CAMPBELL. + + 6. The men _whom_ men respect, the women _whom_ women approve, + are the men and women _who_ bless their species.--PARTON + + +[Sidenote: Which _and its forms._] + +108. Examples of the relative _which_ and its forms:-- + + 1. They had not their own luster, but the look _which_ is not of + the earth.--BYRON. + + 2. The embattled portal arch he pass'd, + _Whose_ ponderous grate and massy bar + Had oft roll'd back the tide of war.--SCOTT. + + 3. Generally speaking, the dogs _which_ stray around the butcher + shops restrain their appetites.--COX. + + 4. The origin of language is divine, in the same sense in _which_ + man's nature, with all its capabilities ..., is a divine + creation.--W.D. WHITNEY. + + 5. (_a_) This gradation ... ought to be kept in view; else this + description will seem exaggerated, _which_ it certainly is + not.--BURKE. + + (_b_) The snow was three inches deep and still falling, _which_ + prevented him from taking his usual ride.--IRVING. + +[Sidenote: That.] + +109. Examples of the relative _that_:-- + + + 1. The man _that_ hath no music in himself,... + Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. + --SHAKESPEARE + + 2. The judge ... bought up all the pigs _that_ could be + had.--LAMB + + 3. Nature and books belong to the eyes _that_ see them.--EMERSON. + + 4. For the sake of country a man is told to yield everything + _that_ makes the land honorable.--H.W. BEECHER + + 5. Reader, _that_ do not pretend to have leisure for very much + scholarship, you will not be angry with me for telling you.--DE + QUINCEY. + + 6. The Tree Igdrasil, _that_ has its roots down in the kingdoms + of Hela and Death, and whose boughs overspread the highest + heaven!--CARLYLE. + +[Sidenote: What.] + +110. Examples of the use of the relative _what_:-- + + 1. Its net to entangle the enemy seems to be _what_ it chiefly + trusts to, and _what_ it takes most pains to render as complete + as possible.--GOLDSMITH. + + 2. For _what_ he sought below is passed above, Already done is + all that he would do.--MARGARET FULLER. + + 3. Some of our readers may have seen in India a crowd of crows + picking a sick vulture to death, no bad type of _what_ often + happens in that country.--MACAULAY + +[_To the Teacher._--If pupils work over the above sentences carefully, +and test every remark in the following paragraphs, they will get a +much better understanding of the relatives.] + + + +REMARKS ON THE RELATIVE PRONOUNS. + +[Sidenote: Who.] + +111. By reading carefully the sentences in Sec. 107, the following +facts will be noticed about the relative _who_:-- + +(1) It usually refers to persons: thus, in the first sentence, Sec. +107, _a man...who_; in the second, _that man...whose_; in the third, +_son_, _whom_; and so on. + +(2) It has three case forms,--_who_, _whose_, _whom_. + +(3) The forms do not change for person or number of the antecedent. In +sentence 4, _who_ is first person; in 5, _whose_ is second person; the +others are all third person. In 1, 2, and 3, the relatives are +singular; in 4, 5, and 6, they are plural. + +[Sidenote: Who _referring to animals_.] + +112. Though in most cases _who_ refers to persons there are +instances found where it refers to animals. It has been seen (Sec. 24) +that animals are referred to by personal pronouns when their +characteristics or habits are such as to render them important or +interesting to man. Probably on the same principle the personal +relative _who_ is used not infrequently in literature, referring to +animals. + +Witness the following examples:-- + + And you, warm little housekeeper [the cricket], _who_ class With + those who think the candles come too soon.--LEIGH HUNT. + + The robins...have succeeded in driving off the bluejays _who_ + used to build in our pines.--LOWELL. + + The little gorilla, _whose_ wound I had dressed, flung its arms + around my neck.--THACKERAY. + + A lake frequented by every fowl _whom_ Nature has taught to dip + the wing in water.--DR. JOHNSON. + + While we had such plenty of domestic insects _who_ infinitely + excelled the former, because they understood how to weave as well + as to spin.--SWIFT. + + My horse, _who_, under his former rider had hunted the buffalo, + seemed as much excited as myself.--IRVING. + +Other examples might be quoted from Burke, Kingsley, Smollett, Scott, +Cooper, Gibbon, and others. + +[Sidenote: Which.] + +113. The sentences in Sec. 108 show that-- + +(1) _Which_ refers to animals, things, or ideas, not persons. + +(2) It is not inflected for gender or number. + +(3) It is nearly always third person, rarely second (an example of its +use as second person is given in sentence 32, p. 96). + +(4) It has two case forms,--_which_ for the nominative and objective, +_whose_ for the possessive. + +[Sidenote: _Examples of_ whose, _possessive case of_ which.] + +114. Grammarians sometimes object to the statement that _whose_ is +the possessive of _which_, saying that the phrase _of which_ should +always be used instead; yet a search in literature shows that the +possessive form _whose_ is quite common in prose as well as in poetry: +for example,-- + + I swept the horizon, and saw at one glance the glorious + elevations, on _whose_ tops the sun kindled all the melodies and + harmonies of light.--BEECHER. + + Men may be ready to fight to the death, and to persecute without + pity, for a religion _whose_ creed they do not understand, and + _whose_ precepts they habitually disobey.--MACAULAY + + Beneath these sluggish waves lay the once proud cities of the + plain, _whose_ grave was dug by the thunder of the + heavens.--SCOTT. + + Many great and opulent cities _whose_ population now exceeds that + of Virginia during the Revolution, and _whose_ names are spoken + in the remotest corner of the civilized world.--MCMASTER. + + Through the heavy door _whose_ bronze network closes the place of + his rest, let us enter the church itself.--RUSKIN. + + This moribund '61, _whose_ career of life is just coming to its + terminus.--THACKERAY. + +So in Matthew Arnold, Kingsley, Burke, and numerous others. + +[Sidenote: Which _and its antecedents_.] + +115. The last two sentences in Sec. 108 show that _which_ may have +other antecedents than nouns and pronouns. In 5 (_a_) there is a +participial adjective used as the antecedent; in 5 (_b_) there is a +complete clause employed as antecedent. This often occurs. + +Sometimes, too, the antecedent follows _which_; thus,-- + + And, which is worse, _all you have done + Hath been but for a wayward son_. + --SHAKESPEARE. + + Primarily, which is very notable and curious, I observe that _men + of business rarely know the meaning of the word "rich_."--RUSKIN. + + I demurred to this honorary title upon two grounds,--first, as + being one toward which I had no natural aptitudes or predisposing + advantages; secondly (which made her stare), _as carrying with it + no real or enviable distinction_.--DE QUINCEY. + +[Sidenote: That.] + +116. In the sentences of Sec. 109, we notice that-- + +(1) _That_ refers to persons, animals, and things. + +(2) It has only one case form, no possessive. + +(3) It is the same form for first, second, and third persons. + +(4) It has the same form for singular and plural. + +It sometimes borrows the possessive _whose_, as in sentence 6, Sec. +109, but this is not sanctioned as good usage. + +[Sidenote: What.] + +117. The sentences of Sec. 110 show that-- + +(1) _What_ always refers to things; is always neuter. + +(2) It is used almost entirely in the singular. + 1. The man _that_ hath no music in himself,... + Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. + --SHAKESPEARE +(3) Its antecedent is hardly ever expressed. When expressed, it +usually follows, and is emphatic; as, for example,-- + + What I would, _that_ do I not; but what I hate, _that_ do + I.--_Bible_ + + What fates impose, _that_ men must needs abide.--SHAKESPEARE. + + What a man does, _that_ he has.--EMERSON. + +Compare this:-- + + Alas! is _it_ not too true, what we said?--CARLYLE. + + + +DECLENSION OF RELATIVE PRONOUNS. + + +118. These are the forms of the simple relatives:-- + + SINGULAR AND PLURAL. + + _Nom._ who which that what + _Poss._ whose whose -- -- + _Obj._ whom which that what + + +HOW TO PARSE RELATIVES. + +119. The _gender_, _number_, and _person_ of the relatives _who_, +_which_, and _that_ must be determined by those of the antecedent; the +_case_ depends upon the function of the relative in its own clause. + +For example, consider the following sentence: + + "He uttered truths _that_ wrought upon and molded the lives of + those _who_ heard him." + +Since the relatives hold the sentence together, we can, by taking them +out, let the sentence fall apart into three divisions: (1) "He uttered +truths;" (2) "The truths wrought upon and molded the lives of the +people;" (3) "These people heard him." + +_That_ evidently refers to _truths_, consequently is neuter, third +person, plural number. _Who_ plainly stands for _those_ or _the +people_, either of which would be neuter, third person, plural number. +Here the relative agrees with its antecedent. + +We cannot say the relative agrees with its antecedent in _case_. +_Truths_ in sentence (2), above, is subject of _wrought upon and +molded_; in (1), it is object of _uttered_. In (2), _people_ is the +object of the preposition _of_; in (3), it is subject of the verb +_heard_. Now, _that_ takes the case of _the truths_ in (2), not of +_truths_ which is expressed in the sentence: consequently _that_ is in +the nominative case. In the same way _who_, standing for _the people_ +understood, subject of _heard_, is in the nominative case. + +Exercise. + +First find the antecedents, then parse the relatives, in the following +sentences:-- + +1. How superior it is in these respects to the pear, whose blossoms +are neither colored nor fragrant! + +2. Some gnarly apple which I pick up in the road reminds me by its +fragrance of all the wealth of Pomona. + +3. Perhaps I talk with one who is selecting some choice barrels for +filling an order. + +4. Ill blows the wind that profits nobody. + +5. Alas! it is we ourselves that are getting buried alive under this +avalanche of earthly impertinences. + +6. This method also forces upon us the necessity of thinking, which +is, after all, the highest result of all education. + +7. I know that there are many excellent people who object to the +reading of novels as a waste of time. + +8. I think they are trying to outwit nature, who is sure to be +cunninger than they. + + +[Sidenote: _Parsing_ what, _the simple relative_.] + +120. The relative _what_ is handled differently, because it has +usually no antecedent, but is singular, neuter, third person. Its case +is determined exactly as that of other relatives. In the sentence, +"What can't be cured must be endured," the verb _must be endured_ is +the predicate of something. What must be endured? Answer, _What can't +be cured_. The whole expression is its subject. The word _what_, +however, is subject of the verb _can't be cured_, and hence is in the +nominative case. + +"What we call nature is a certain self-regulated motion or change." +Here the subject of _is_, etc., is _what we call nature_; but of this, +_we_ is the subject, and _what_ is the direct object of the verb +_call_, so is in the objective case. + +[Sidenote: _Another way._] + +Some prefer another method of treatment. As shown by the following +sentences, _what_ is equivalent to _that which_:-- + + It has been said that "common souls pay with _what_ they do, + nobler souls with _that which_ they are."--EMERSON. + + _That which_ is pleasant often appears under the name of evil; + and _what_ is disagreeable to nature is called good and + virtuous.--BURKE. + +Hence some take _what_ as a double relative, and parse _that_ in the +first clause, and _which_ in the second clause; that is, "common +souls pay with _that_ [singular, object of _with_] _which_ [singular, +object of _do_] they do." + + + +INDEFINITE RELATIVES. + + +[Sidenote: _List and examples._] + +121. INDEFINITE RELATIVES are, by meaning and use, not as direct as +the simple relatives. + +They are _whoever_, _whichever_, _whatever_, _whatsoever_; less common +are _whoso_, _whosoever_, _whichsoever_, _whatsoever_. The simple +relatives _who_, _which_, and _what_ may also be used as indefinite +relatives. Examples of indefinite relatives (from Emerson):-- + + 1. _Whoever_ has flattered his friend successfully must at once + think himself a knave, and his friend a fool. + + 2. It is no proof of a man's understanding, to be able to affirm + _whatever_ he pleases. + + 3. They sit in a chair or sprawl with children on the floor, or + stand on their head, or _what_ else _soever_, in a new and + original way. + + 4. _Whoso_ is heroic will always find crises to try his edge. + + 5. Only itself can inspire _whom_ it will. + + 6. God offers to every mind its choice between truth and repose. + Take _which_ you please,--you cannot have both. + + 7. Do _what_ we can, summer will have its flies. + +[Sidenote: _Meaning and use._] + +122. The fitness of the term _indefinite_ here cannot be shown +better than by examining the following sentences:-- + + 1. There is something so overruling in _whatever_ inspires us + with awe, in _all things which_ belong ever so remotely to + terror, that nothing else can stand in their presence.--BURKE. + + 2. Death is there associated, not with _everything that_ is most + endearing in social and domestic charities, but with _whatever_ + is darkest in human nature and in human destiny.--MACAULAY. + +It is clear that in 1, _whatever_ is equivalent to _all things +which_, and in 2, to _everything that_; no certain antecedent, no +particular thing, being referred to. So with the other indefinites. + +[Sidenote: What _simple relative and_ what _indefinite relative_.] + +123. The above helps us to discriminate between _what_ as a simple +and _what_ as an indefinite relative. + +As shown in Sec. 120, the simple relative _what_ is equivalent to +_that which_ or the _thing which_,--some particular thing; as shown by +the last sentence in Sec. 121, _what_ means _anything that_, +_everything that_ (or _everything which_). The difference must be seen +by the meaning of the sentence, as _what_ hardly ever has an +antecedent. + +The examples in sentences 5 and 6, Sec. 121, show that _who_ and +_which_ have no antecedent expressed, but mean _any one whom_, _either +one that_, etc. + + + +OTHER WORDS USED AS RELATIVES. + + +[Sidenote: But _and_ as.] + +124. Two words, but and as, are used with the force of relative +pronouns in some expressions; for example,-- + + 1. There is not a leaf rotting on the highway _but_ has force in + it: how else could it rot?--CARLYLE. + + 2. This, amongst such other troubles _as_ most men meet with in + this life, has been my heaviest affliction.--DE QUINCEY. + +[Sidenote: _Proof that they have the force of relatives._] + +Compare with these the two following sentences:-- + + 3. There is nothing _but_ is related to us, nothing _that_ does + _not_ interest us.--EMERSON. + + 4. There were articles of comfort and luxury such _as_ Hester + never ceased to use, but _which_ only wealth could have + purchased.--HAWTHORNE. + +Sentence 3 shows that _but_ is equivalent to the relative _that_ with +_not_, and that _as_ after _such_ is equivalent to _which_. + +For _as_ after _same_ see "Syntax" (Sec. 417). + +[Sidenote: _Former use of_ as.] + +125. In early modern English, _as_ was used just as we use _that_ or +_which_, not following the word _such_; thus,-- + + I have not from your eyes that gentleness + And show of love _as_ I was wont to have.--SHAKESPEARE + +This still survives in vulgar English in England; for example,-- + + "Don't you mind Lucy Passmore, _as_ charmed your warts for you + when you was a boy? "--KINGSLEY + +This is frequently illustrated in Dickens's works. + + +[Sidenote: _Other substitutes._] + +126. Instead of the phrases _in which_, _upon which_, _by which_, +etc., the conjunctions _wherein_, _whereupon_, _whereby_, etc., are +used. + + A man is the facade of a temple _wherein_ all wisdom and good + abide.--EMERSON. + + The sovereignty of this nature _whereof_ we speak.--_Id._ + + The dear home faces _whereupon_ + That fitful firelight paled and shone.--WHITTIER. + + + +PRONOUNS IN INDIRECT QUESTIONS. + + +[Sidenote: _Special caution needed here._] + +127. It is sometimes hard for the student to tell a relative from an +interrogative pronoun. In the regular direct question the +interrogative is easily recognized; so is the relative when an +antecedent is close by. But compare the following in pairs:-- + +1. (_a_) Like a gentleman of leisure _who_ is strolling out for + pleasure. + + (_b_) Well we knew _who_ stood behind, though the earthwork hid + them. + +2. (_a_) But _what_ you gain in time is perhaps lost in power. + + (_b_) But _what_ had become of them they knew not. + +3. (_a_) These are the lines _which_ heaven-commanded Toil shows on + his deed. + + (_b_) And since that time I thought it not amiss To judge _which_ + were the best of all these three. + +In sentences 1 (_a_), 2 (_a_) and 3 (_a_) the regular relative use is +seen; _who_ having the antecedent _gentleman_, _what_ having the +double use of pronoun and antecedent, _which_ having the antecedent +_lines_. + +But in 1 (_b_), 2 (_b_), and 3 (_b_), there are two points of +difference from the others considered: first, no antecedent is +expressed, which would indicate that they are not relatives; second, a +question is disguised in each sentence, although each sentence as a +whole is declarative in form. Thus, 1 (_b_), if expanded, would be, +"Who stood behind? We knew," etc., showing that _who_ is plainly +interrogative. So in 2 (_b_), _what_ is interrogative, the full +expression being, "But what had become of them? They knew not." +Likewise with _which_ in 3 (_b_). + +[Sidenote: _How to decide._] + +In studying such sentences, (1) see whether there is an antecedent of +_who_ or _which_, and whether _what_ = _that_ + _which_ (if so, it is +a simple relative; if not, it is either an indefinite relative or an +interrogative pronoun); (2) see if the pronoun introduces an indirect +question (if it does, it is an interrogative; if not, it is an +indefinite relative). + +[Sidenote: _Another caution._] + +128. On the other hand, care must be taken to see whether the +pronoun is the word that really _asks the question_ in an +interrogative sentence. Examine the following:-- + +1. Sweet rose! whence is this hue + _Which_ doth all hues excel? + --DRUMMOND + +2. And then what wonders shall you do + _Whose_ dawning beauty warms us so? + --WALKER + +3. Is this a romance? Or is it a faithful picture of _what_ has + lately been in a neighboring land?--MACAULAY + + +These are interrogative sentences, but in none of them does the +pronoun ask the question. In the first, _whence_ is the interrogative +word, _which_ has the antecedent _hue_. In the second, _whose_ has the +antecedent _you_, and asks no question. In the third, the question is +asked by the verb. + + + +OMISSION OF THE RELATIVES. + + +[Sidenote: _Relative omitted when_ object.] + +129. The relative is frequently omitted in spoken and in literary +English when it would be the object of a preposition or a verb. Hardly +a writer can be found who does not leave out relatives in this way +when they can be readily supplied in the mind of the reader. Thus,-- + + These are the sounds we feed upon.--FLETCHER. + + I visited many other apartments, but shall not trouble my reader + with all the curiosities I observed.--SWIFT. + + +Exercise. + +Put in the relatives _who_, _which_, or _that_ where they are omitted +from the following sentences, and see whether the sentences are any +smoother or clearer:-- + + 1. The insect I am now describing lived three years,--GOLDSMITH. + + 2. They will go to Sunday schools through storms their brothers + are afraid of.--HOLMES. + + 3. He opened the volume he first took from the shelf.--G. ELIOT. + + 4. He could give the coals in that queer coal scuttle we read of + to his poor neighbor.--THACKERAY. + + 5. When Goldsmith died, half the unpaid bill he owed to Mr. + William Filby was for clothes supplied to his nephew.--FORSTER + + 6. The thing I want to see is not Redbook Lists, and Court + Calendars, but the life of man in England.--CARLYLE. + + 7. The material they had to work upon was already democratical by + instinct and habitude.--LOWELL. + + +[Sidenote: _Relative omitted when_ subject.] + +130. We often hear in spoken English expressions like these:-- + + There isn't one here * knows how to play ball. + + There was such a crowd * went, the house was full. + +Here the omitted relative would be in the nominative case. Also in +literary English we find the same omission. It is rare in prose, and +comparatively so in poetry. Examples are,-- + + The silent truth that it was she was superior.--THACKERAY + + I have a mind presages me such thrift.--SHAKESPEARE. + + There is a nun in Dryburgh bower, + Ne'er looks upon the sun. + --SCOTT. + + And you may gather garlands there + Would grace a summer queen. + _Id._ + + 'Tis distance lends enchantment to the view.--CAMPBELL. + + +Exercises on the Relative Pronoun. + +(_a_) Bring up sentences containing ten instances of the relatives +_who_, _which_, _that_, and _what_. + +(_b_) Bring up sentences having five indefinite relatives. + +(_c_) Bring up five sentences having indirect questions introduced by +pronouns. + +(_d_) Tell whether the pronouns in the following are interrogatives, +simple relatives, or indefinite relatives:-- + +1. He ushered him into one of the wherries which lay ready to attend +the Queen's barge, which was already proceeding. + +2. The nobles looked at each other, but more with the purpose to see +what each thought of the news, than to exchange any remarks on what +had happened. + +3. Gracious Heaven! who was this that knew the word? + +4. It needed to be ascertained which was the strongest kind of men; +who were to be rulers over whom. + +5. He went on speaking to who would listen to him. + +6. What kept me silent was the thought of my mother. + + + +ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS. + +[Sidenote: _Function of adjective pronouns._] + +131. Most of the words how to be considered are capable of a double +use,--they may be pure modifiers of nouns, or they may stand for +nouns. In the first use they are adjectives; in the second they retain +an adjective _meaning_, but have lost their adjective _use_. Primarily +they are adjectives, but in this function, or use, they are properly +classed as adjective pronouns. + +The following are some examples of these:-- + + _Some_ say that the place was bewitched.--IRVING. + + That mysterious realm where _each_ shall take + His chamber in the silent halls of death. + --BRYANT. + + How happy is he born or taught + That serveth not _another's_ will. + --WOTTON + + _That_ is more than any martyr can stand.--EMERSON. + +[Sidenote: _Caution._] + +[Sidenote: _Adjectives, not pronouns._] + +Hence these words are like adjectives used as nouns, which we have +seen in such expressions as, "_The dead_ are there;" that is, a word, +in order to be an adjective pronoun, _must not modify any word, +expressed or understood_. It must come under the requirement of +pronouns, and _stand for a noun_. For instance, in the following +sentences--"The cubes are of stainless ivory, and on _each_ is +written, in letters of gold, '_Truth_;'" "You needs must play such +pranks as _these_;" "They will always have one bank to sun themselves +upon, and _another_ to get cool under;" "Where two men ride on a +horse, _one_ must ride behind"--the words italicized modify nouns +understood, necessarily thought of: thus, in the first, "each _cube_;" +in the second, "these _pranks_," in the others, "another _bank_," "one +_man_." + + +[Sidenote: _Classes of adjective pronouns._] + +132. Adjective pronouns are divided into three classes:-- + +(1) DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS, such as _this_, _that_, _the former_, etc. + +(2) DISTRIBUTIVE PRONOUNS, such as _each_, _either_, _neither_, etc. + +(3) NUMERAL PRONOUNS, as _some_, _any_, _few_, _many_, _none_, _all_, +etc. + + +DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS. + +[Sidenote: _Definition and examples._] + +133. A DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUN is one that definitely points out what +persons or things are alluded to in the sentence. + +The person or thing alluded to by the demonstrative may be in another +sentence, or may be the whole of a sentence. For example, "Be _that_ +as it may" could refer to a sentiment in a sentence, or an argument in +a paragraph; but the demonstrative clearly points to that thing. + +The following are examples of demonstratives:-- + + I did not say _this_ in so many words. + + All _these_ he saw; but what he fain had seen He could not see. + + Beyond _that_ I seek not to penetrate the veil. + + How much we forgive in _those_ who yield us the rare spectacle of + heroic manners! + + The correspondence of Bonaparte with his brother Joseph, when + _the latter_ was the King of Spain. + + _Such_ are a few isolated instances, accidentally preserved. + + Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, + reap _the same_. + + They know that patriotism has its glorious opportunities and its + sacred duties. They have not shunned _the one_, and they have + well performed _the other_. + +NOTE.--It will be noticed in the first four sentences that _this_ and +_that_ are inflected for number. + + + +Exercises. + +(_a_) Find six sentences using demonstrative adjective pronouns. + +(_b_) In which of the following is _these_ a pronoun?-- + + 1. Formerly the duty of a librarian was to keep people as much as + possible from the books, and to hand _these_ over to his + successor as little worn as he could.--LOWELL. + + 2. They had fewer books, but _these_ were of the best.--_Id._ + + 3. A man inspires affection and honor, because he was not lying + in wait for _these_.--EMERSON + + 4. Souls such as _these_ treat you as gods would.--_Id._ + + 5. _These_ are the first mountains that broke the uniform level + of the earth's surface.--AGASSIZ + + +DISTRIBUTIVE PRONOUNS. + +[Sidenote: _Definition and examples._] + +134. The DISTRIBUTIVE PRONOUNS are those which stand for the names +of persons or things considered singly. + +[Sidenote: _Simple._] + +Some of these are _simple_ pronouns; for example,-- + + They stood, or sat, or reclined, as seemed good to _each_. + + As two yoke devils sworn to _other's_ purpose. + + Their minds accorded into one strain, and made delightful music + which _neither_ could have claimed as all his own. + +[Sidenote: _Compound_.] + +Two are compound pronouns,--_each other_, _one another_. They may be +separated into two adjective pronouns; as, + + We violated our reverence _each_ for _the other's_ soul. + --HAWTHORNE. + +More frequently they are considered as one pronoun. + + They led one another, as it were, into a high pavilion of their + thoughts.--HAWTHORNE. + + Men take each other's measure when they react.--EMERSON. + +Exercise.--Find sentences containing three distributive pronouns. + + +NUMERAL PRONOUNS. + +[Sidenote: _Definition and examples_.] + +135. The NUMERAL PRONOUNS are those which stand for an uncertain +number or quantity of persons or things. + +The following sentences contain numeral pronouns:-- + + Trusting too much to _others'_ care is the ruin of _many_. + + 'Tis of no importance how large his house, you quickly come to + the end of _all_. + + _Another_ opposes him with sound argument. + + It is as if _one_ should be so enthusiastic a lover of poetry as + to care nothing for Homer or Milton. + + There were plenty _more_ for him to fall in company with, as + _some_ of the rangers had gone astray. + + The Soldan, imbued, as _most_ were, with the superstitions of his + time, paused over a horoscope. + + If those [taxes] were the only _ones_ we had to pay, we might the + more easily discharge them. + + _Much_ might be said on both sides. + + If hand of mine _another's_ task has lightened. + It felt the guidance that it does not claim. + So perish _all_ whose breast ne'er learned to glow + For _others_' good, or melt for _others_' woe. + + _None_ shall rule but the humble. + +[Sidenote: _Some inflected._] + +It will be noticed that some of these are inflected for case and +number; such as _one other_, _another_. + +The word _one_ has a reflexive form; for example,-- + +[Sidenote: One _reflexive_.] + + The best way to punish _oneself_ for doing ill seems to me to go + and do good.--KINGSLEY. + + The lines sound so prettily to _one's self_. HOLMES. + +Exercise.--Find sentences containing ten numeral pronouns. + + + +INDEFINITE PRONOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition and examples._] + +136. Indefinite pronouns are words which stand for an indefinite +number or quantity of persons or things; but, unlike adjective +pronouns, they are never used as adjectives. + +Most of them are compounds of two or more words:-- + +[Sidenote: _List._] + +_Somebody_, _some one_, _something_; _anybody_, _any one_ (or +_anyone_), _anything_; _everybody_, _every one_ (or _everyone_), +_everything_; _nobody_, _no one_, _nothing_; _somebody else_, _anyone +else_, _everybody else_, _every one else_, etc.; also _aught_, +_naught_; and _somewhat_, _what_, and _they_. + +The following sentences contain indefinite pronouns:-- + + As he had them of all hues, he hoped to fit _everybody's_ fancy. + + _Every one_ knows how laborious the usual method is of attaining + to arts and sciences. + + _Nothing_ sheds more honor on our early history than the + impression which these measures everywhere produced in America. + + Let us also perform _something_ worthy to be remembered. + + William of Orange was more than _anything else_ a religious man. + + Frederick was discerned to be a purchaser of _everything_ that + _nobody else_ would buy. + + These other souls draw me as _nothing else_ can. + + The genius that created it now creates _somewhat else_. + + _Every one else_ stood still at his post. + + That is perfectly true: I did not want _anybody else's_ authority + to write as I did. + +_They_ indefinite means people in general; as,-- + + At lovers' perjuries, _they_ say, Jove laughs.--SHAKESPEARE. + +_What_ indefinite is used in the expression "I tell you _what_." It +means _something_, and was indefinite in Old English. + + Now, in building of chaises, I tell you _what_, + There is always somewhere a weakest spot. + + +Exercise.--Find sentences with six indefinite pronouns. + + +137. Some indefinite pronouns are inflected for case, as shown in +the words _everybody's_, _anybody else's_, etc. + +See also "Syntax" (Sec. 426) as to the possessive case of the forms +with _else_. + + + +HOW TO PARSE PRONOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _A reminder._] + +138. In parsing pronouns the student will need particularly to +guard against the mistake of parsing words according to _form_ instead +of according to function or use. + + +Exercise. + +Parse in full the pronouns in the following sentences:-- + + 1. She could not help laughing at the vile English into which + they were translated. + + 2. Our readers probably remember what Mrs. Hutchinson tells us of + herself. + + 3. Whoever deals with M. de Witt must go the plain way that he + pretends to, in his negotiations. + + 4. Some of them from whom nothing was to be got, were suffered to + depart; but those from whom it was thought that anything could be + extorted were treated with execrable cruelty. + + 5. All was now ready for action. + + 6. Scarcely had the mutiny broken up when he was himself again. + + 7. He came back determined to put everything to the hazard. + + 8. Nothing is more clear than that a general ought to be the + servant of his government, and of no other. + + 9. Others did the same thing, but not to quite so enormous an + extent. + + 10. On reaching the approach to this about sunset of a beautiful + evening in June, I first found myself among the mountains,--a + feature of natural scenery for which, from my earliest days, it + was not extravagant to say that I hungered and thirsted. + + 11. I speak of that part which chiefly it is that I know. + + 12. A smaller sum I had given to my friend the attorney (who was + connected with the money lenders as their lawyer), to which, + indeed, he was entitled for his unfurnished lodgings. + + 13. Whatever power the law gave them would be enforced against + me to the utmost. + + 14. O thou that rollest above, round as the shield of my fathers! + + 15. But there are more than you ever heard of who die of grief in + this island of ours. + + 16. But amongst themselves is no voice nor sound. + + 17. For this did God send her a great reward. + + 18. The table was good; but that was exactly what Kate cared + little about. + + 19. Who and what was Milton? That is to say, what is the place + which he fills in his own vernacular literature? + + 20. These hopes are mine as much as theirs. + + 21. What else am I who laughed or wept yesterday, who slept last + night like a corpse? + + 22. I who alone am, I who see nothing in nature whose existence I + can affirm with equal evidence to my own, behold now the + semblance of my being, in all its height, variety, and curiosity + reiterated in a foreign form. + + 23. What hand but would a garland cull + For thee who art so beautiful? + + 24. And I had done a hellish thing, + And it would work 'em woe. + + 25. Whatever he knows and thinks, whatever in his apprehension is + worth doing, that let him communicate. + + 26. Rip Van Winkle was one of those foolish, well-oiled + dispositions, who take the world easy, eat white bread or brown, + whichever can be got with least thought or trouble. + + + 27. And will your mother pity me, + Who am a maiden most forlorn? + + 28. They know not I knew thee, + Who knew thee too well. + + 29. I did remind thee of our own dear Lake, + By the old Hall which may be mine no more. + + 30. He sate him down, and seized a pen, and traced + Words which I could not guess of. + + 31. Time writes no wrinkle on thine azure brow: + Such as creation's dawn beheld, thou rollest now. + + 32. Wild Spirit which art moving everywhere; + Destroyer and preserver; hear, oh, hear! + + 33. A smile of hers was like an act of grace. + + 34. No man can learn what he has not preparation for learning. + + 35. What can we see or acquire but what we are? + + 36. He teaches who gives, and he learns who receives. + + 37. We are by nature observers; that is our permanent state. + + 38. He knew not what to do, and so he read. + + 39. Who hears me, who understands me, becomes mine. + + 40. The men who carry their points do not need to inquire of + their constituents what they should say. + + 41. Higher natures overpower lower ones by affecting them with a + certain sleep. + + 42. Those who live to the future must always appear selfish to + those who live to the present. + + 43. I am sorry when my independence is invaded or when a gift + comes from such as do not know my spirit. + + 44. Here I began to howl and scream abominably, which was no bad + step towards my liberation. + + 45. The only aim of the war is to see which is the stronger of + the two--which is the master. + + + + +ADJECTIVES. + + +[Sidenote: _Office of Adjectives._] + +139. Nouns are seldom used as names of objects without additional +words joined to them to add to their meaning. For example, if we wish +to speak of a friend's house, we cannot guide one to it by merely +calling it _a house_. We need to add some words to tell its color, +size, position, etc., if we are at a distance; and if we are near, we +need some word to point out the house we speak of, so that no other +will be mistaken for it. So with any object, or with persons. + +As to the kind of words used, we may begin with the common adjectives +telling the _characteristics_ of an object. If a chemist discovers a +new substance, he cannot describe it to others without telling its +qualities: he will say it is _solid_, or _liquid_, or _gaseous_; +_heavy_ or _light_; _brittle_ or _tough_; _white_ or _red_; etc. + +Again, in _pointing out_ an object, adjectives are used; such as in +the expressions "_this_ man," "_that_ house," "_yonder_ hill," etc. + +Instead of using nouns indefinitely, the _number_ is limited by +adjectives; as, "_one_ hat," "_some_ cities," "_a hundred_ men." + +The office of an adjective, then, is to narrow down or limit the +application of a noun. It may have this office alone, or it may at the +same time add to the meaning of the noun. + + +[Sidenote: _Substantives._] + +140. Nouns are not, however, the only words limited by adjectives: +pronouns and other words and expressions also have adjectives joined +to them. Any word or word group that performs the same office as a +noun may be modified by adjectives. + +To make this clear, notice the following sentences:-- + +[Sidenote: _Pronoun._] + + If _he_ be _thankful_ for small benefits, it shows that he weighs + men's minds, and their trash.--BACON. + +[Sidenote: _Infinitives._] + + _To err_ is _human_; _to forgive, divine_.--POPE. + + With exception of the "and then," the "and there," and the still + less _significant_ "_and so_," they constitute all his + connections.--COLERIDGE. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +141. An adjective is a word joined to a noun or other substantive +word or expression, to describe it or to limit its application. + + +[Sidenote: _Classes of adjectives._] + +142. Adjectives are divided into four classes:-- + +(1) Descriptive adjectives, which describe by expressing qualities +or attributes of a substantive. + +(2) Adjectives of quantity, used to tell how many things are spoken +of, or how much of a thing. + +(3) Demonstrative adjectives, pointing out particular things. + +(4) Pronominal adjectives, words primarily pronouns, but used +adjectively sometimes in modifying nouns instead of standing for them. +They include relative and interrogative words. + + + +DESCRIPTIVE ADJECTIVES. + + +143. This large class includes several kinds of words:-- + +(1) SIMPLE ADJECTIVES expressing quality; such as _safe_, _happy_, +_deep_, _fair_, _rash_, _beautiful_, _remotest_, _terrible_, etc. + +(2) COMPOUND ADJECTIVES, made up of various words thrown together to +make descriptive epithets. Examples are, "_Heaven-derived_ power," +"this _life-giving_ book," "his spirit wrapt and _wonder-struck_," +"_ice-cold_ water," "_half-dead_ traveler," "_unlooked-for_ burden," +"_next-door_ neighbor," "_ivory-handled_ pistols," "the +_cold-shudder-inspiring_ Woman in White." + +(3) PROPER ADJECTIVES, derived from proper nouns; such as, "an old +_English_ manuscript," "the _Christian_ pearl of charity," "the +well-curb had a _Chinese_ roof," "the _Roman_ writer Palladius." + +(4) PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVES, which are either pure participles used to +describe, or participles which have lost all verbal force and have no +function except to express quality. Examples are,-- + +_Pure participial adjectives_: "The _healing_ power of the Messiah," +"The _shattering_ sway of one strong arm," "_trailing_ clouds," "The +_shattered_ squares have opened into line," "It came on like the +_rolling_ simoom," "God tempers the wind to the _shorn_ lamb." + +_Faded participial adjectives_: "Sleep is a _blessed_ thing;" "One is +hungry, and another is _drunken_;" "under the _fitting_ drapery of the +jagged and trailing clouds;" "The clearness and quickness are +_amazing_;" "an _aged_ man;" "a _charming_ sight." + + +[Sidenote: _Caution._] + +144. Care is needed, in studying these last-named words, to +distinguish between a participle that forms part of a verb, and a +participle or participial adjective that belongs to a noun. + +For instance: in the sentence, "The work was well and rapidly +accomplished," _was accomplished_ is a verb; in this, "No man of his +day was more brilliant or more accomplished," _was_ is the verb, and +_accomplished_ is an adjective. + + + +Exercises. + +1. Bring up sentences with twenty descriptive adjectives, having some +of each subclass named in Sec. 143. + +2. Is the italicized word an adjective in this?-- + +The old sources of intellectual excitement seem to be well-nigh +_exhausted_. + + + +ADJECTIVES OF QUANTITY. + + +145. Adjectives of quantity tell _how much_ or _how many_. They have +these three subdivisions:-- + +[Sidenote: _How much._] + +(1) QUANTITY IN BULK: such words as _little_, _much_, _some_, _no_, +_any_, _considerable_, sometimes _small_, joined usually to singular +nouns to express an indefinite measure of the thing spoken of. + +The following examples are from Kingsley:-- + + So he parted with _much_ weeping of the lady. + Which we began to do with _great_ labor and _little_ profit. + Because I had _some_ knowledge of surgery and blood-letting. + But ever she looked on Mr. Oxenham, and seemed to take _no_ + care as long as he was by. + +Examples of _small_ an adjective of quantity:-- + + "The deil's in it but I bude to anger him!" said the woman, and + walked away with a laugh of _small_ satisfaction.--MACDONALD. + + 'Tis midnight, but _small_ thoughts have I of sleep.--COLERIDGE. + + It gives _small_ idea of Coleridge's way of talking.--CARLYLE. + +When _some_, _any_, _no_, are used with plural nouns, they come under +the next division of adjectives. + +[Sidenote: _How many._] + +(2) QUANTITY IN NUMBER, which may be expressed exactly by numbers or +remotely designated by words expressing indefinite amounts. Hence the +natural division into-- + +(_a_) _Definite numerals_; as, "_one_ blaze of musketry;" "He found in +the pathway _fourteen_ Spaniards;" "I have lost _one_ brother, but I +have gained _fourscore_;" "_a dozen_ volunteers." + +(_b_) _Indefinite numerals_, as the following from Kingsley: "We gave +_several_ thousand pounds for it;" "In came some five and twenty more, +and with them _a few_ negroes;" "Then we wandered for _many_ days;" +"Amyas had evidently _more_ schemes in his head;" "He had lived by +hunting for _some_ months;" "That light is far too red to be the +reflection of _any_ beams of hers." + + +[Sidenote: _Single ones of any number of changes._] + +(3) DISTRIBUTIVE NUMERALS, which occupy a place midway between the +last two subdivisions of numeral adjectives; for they are indefinite +in telling how many objects are spoken of, but definite in referring +to the objects one at a time. Thus,-- + + _Every_ town had its fair; _every_ village, its wake.--THACKERAY. + + An arrow was quivering in _each_ body.--KINGSLEY. + + Few on _either_ side but had their shrewd scratch to show.--_Id._ + + Before I taught my tongue to wound + My conscience with a sinful sound, + Or had the black art to dispense + A _several_ sin to _every_ sense.--VAUGHAN. + + +Exercise.--Bring up sentences with ten adjectives of quantity. + + + +DEMONSTRATIVE ADJECTIVES. + + +[Sidenote: _Not primarily pronouns._] + +146. The words of this list are placed here instead of among +pronominal adjectives, for the reason that they are felt to be +primarily adjectives; their pronominal use being evidently a +shortening, by which the words point out but stand for words omitted, +instead of modifying them. Their natural and original use is to be +joined to a noun following or in close connection. + +[Sidenote: _The list._] + +The demonstrative adjectives are _this_, _that_, (plural _these_, +_those_), _yonder_ (or _yon_), _former_, _latter_; also the pairs +_one_ (or _the one_)--_the other_, _the former_--_the latter_, used to +refer to two things which have been already named in a sentence. + +[Sidenote: _Examples._] + +The following sentences present some examples:-- + + The bashful virgin's sidelong looks of love, The matron's glance + that would _those_ looks reprove.--GOLDSMITH. + + These were thy charms...but all _these_ charms are fled.--_Id._ + + About _this_ time I met with an odd volume of the + "Spectator."--B. FRANKLIN. + + _Yonder_ proud ships are not means of annoyance to you.--D. + WEBSTER. + + _Yon_ cloud with _that_ long purple cleft.--WORDSWORTH. + + I chose for the students of Kensington two characteristic + examples of early art, of equal skill; but in _the one_ case, + skill which was progressive--in _the other_, skill which was at + pause.--RUSKIN. + +Exercise.--Find sentences with five demonstrative adjectives. + + +[Sidenote: _Ordinal numerals classed under demonstratives._] + +147. The class of numerals known as ordinals must be placed here, +as having the same function as demonstrative adjectives. They point +out which thing is meant among a series of things mentioned. The +following are examples:-- + + The _first_ regular provincial newspapers appear to have been + created in the last decade of the _seventeenth_ century, and by + the middle of the _eighteenth_ century almost every important + provincial town had its local organ.--BANCROFT. + +These do not, like the other numerals, tell _how many_ things are +meant. When we speak of the seventeenth century, we imply nothing as +to how many centuries there may be. + + + +PRONOMINAL ADJECTIVES. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +148. As has been said, pronominal adjectives are primarily +pronouns; but, when they _modify_ words instead of referring to them +as antecedents, they are changed to adjectives. They are of two +kinds,--RELATIVE and INTERROGATIVE,--and are used to join sentences or +to ask questions, just as the corresponding pronouns do. + + +[Sidenote: _Modify names of persons or things._] + +149. The RELATIVE ADJECTIVES are _which_ and _what_; for example,-- + + It matters not _what_ rank he has, _what_ revenues or garnitures. + --CARLYLE. + + The silver and laughing Xenil, careless _what_ lord should + possess the banks that bloomed by its everlasting + course.--BULWER. + + The taking of _which_ bark. I verily believe, was the ruin of + every mother's son of us.--KINGSLEY. + + In _which_ evil strait Mr. Oxenham fought desperately.--_Id._ + + +[Sidenote: _Indefinite relative adjectives._] + +150. The INDEFINITE RELATIVE adjectives are _what_, _whatever_, +_whatsoever_, _whichever_, _whichsoever_. Examples of their use are,-- + + He in his turn tasted some of its flavor, which, make _what_ sour + mouths he would for pretense, proved not altogether displeasing + to him.--LAMB. + + _Whatever_ correction of our popular views from insight, nature + will be sure to bear us out in.--EMERSON. + + _Whatsoever_ kind of man he is, you at least give him full + authority over your son.--RUSKIN. + + Was there, as it rather seemed, a circle of ominous shadow moving + along with his deformity, _whichever_ way he turned + himself?--HAWTHORNE. + + New torments I behold, and new tormented + Around me, _whichsoever_ way I move, + And _whichsoever_ way I turn, and gaze. + --LONGFELLOW (FROM DANTE). + + +151. The INTERROGATIVE ADJECTIVES are _which_ and _what_. They may +be used in direct and indirect questions. As in the pronouns, _which_ +is selective among what is known; _what_ inquires about things or +persons not known. + +[Sidenote: _In direct questions._] + +Sentences with _which_ and _what_ in direct questions:-- + + _Which_ debt must I pay first, the debt to the rich, or the debt + to the poor?--EMERSON. + + But when the Trojan war comes, _which_ side will you take? + --THACKERAY. + + But _what_ books in the circulating library circulate?--LOWELL. + + _What_ beckoning ghost along the moonlight shade + Invites my steps, and points to yonder glade?--POPE. + +[Sidenote: _In indirect questions._] + +Sentences with _which_ and _what_ in indirect questions:-- + + His head...looked like a weathercock perched upon his spindle + neck to tell _which_ way the wind blew.--IRVING. + + A lady once remarked, he [Coleridge] could never fix _which_ side + of the garden walk would suit him best.--CARLYLE. + + He was turned before long into all the universe, where it was + uncertain _what_ game you would catch, or whether any.--_Id._ + + At _what_ rate these materials would be distributed and + precipitated in regular strata, it is impossible to + determine.--AGASSIZ. + + +[Sidenote: _Adjective_ what _in exclamations_.] + +152. In exclamatory expressions, _what_ (or _what a_) has a force +somewhat like a descriptive adjective. It is neither relative nor +interrogative, but might be called an EXCLAMATORY ADJECTIVE; as,-- + + Oh, _what a_ revolution! and _what a_ heart must I have, to + contemplate without emotion that elevation and that fall!--BURKE. + + _What a_ piece of work is man!--SHAKESPEARE. + + And yet, alas, the making of it right, _what a_ business for long + time to come!--CARLYLE + + Through _what_ hardships it may attain to bear a sweet + fruit!--THOREAU. + + +Exercise.--Find ten sentences containing pronominal adjectives. + + + +INFLECTIONS OF ADJECTIVES. + + +153 .Adjectives have two inflections,--number and comparison. + + +NUMBER.--_This_, _That_. + + +[Sidenote: _History of_ this--these _and_ that--those.] + +154. The only adjectives having a plural form are _this_ and _that_ +(plural _these_, _those_). + +_This_ is the old demonstrative; _that_ being borrowed from the forms +of the definite article, which was fully inflected in Old English. The +article _that_ was used with neuter nouns. + +In Middle English the plural of _this_ was _this_ or _thise_, which +changed its spelling to the modern form _these_. + +[Sidenote: Those _borrowed from_ this.] + +But _this_ had also another plural, _thas_ (modern _those_). The old +plural of _that_ was _tha_ (Middle English _tho_ or _thow_): +consequently _tho_ (plural of _that_) and _those_ (plural of _this_) +became confused, and it was forgotten that _those_ was really the +plural of _this_; and in Modern English we speak of _these_ as the +plural of _this_, and _those_ as the plural of _that_. + + +COMPARISON. + +155. Comparison is an inflection not possessed by nouns and +pronouns: it belongs to adjectives and adverbs. + +[Sidenote: _Meaning of comparison._] + +When we place two objects side by side, we notice some differences +between them as to size, weight, color, etc. Thus, it is said that a +cow is _larger_ than a sheep, gold is _heavier_ than iron, a sapphire +is _bluer_ than the sky. All these have certain qualities; and when we +compare the objects, we do so by means of their qualities,--cow and +sheep by the quality of largeness, or size; gold and iron by the +quality of heaviness, or weight, etc.,--but not the same degree, or +amount, of the quality. + +The degrees belong to any beings or ideas that may be known or +conceived of as possessing quality; as, "untamed thought, great, +giant-like, enormous;" "the commonest speech;" "It is a nobler valor;" +"the largest soul." + +Also words of quantity may be compared: for example, "more matter, +with less wit;" "no fewer than a hundred." + + +[Sidenote: _Words that cannot be compared._] + +156. There are some descriptive words whose meaning is such as not +to admit of comparison; for example,-- + + His company became very agreeable to the brave old professor of + arms, whose _favorite_ pupil he was.--THACKERAY. + + A _main_ difference betwixt men is, whether they attend their own + affair or not.--EMERSON + + It was his business to administer the law in its _final_ and + closest application to the offender--HAWTHORNE. + + Freedom is a _perpetual, organic, universal_ institution, in + harmony with the Constitution of the United States.--SEWARD. + +So with the words _sole_, _sufficient_, _infinite_, _immemorial_, +_indefatigable_, _indomitable_, _supreme_, and many others. + +It is true that words of comparison are sometimes prefixed to them, +but, strictly considered, they are not compared. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +157. Comparison means the changes that words undergo to express +degrees in quality, or amounts in quantity. + +[Sidenote: _The two forms._] + +158. There are two forms for this inflection: the comparative, +expressing a greater degree of quality; and the superlative, +expressing the greatest degree of quality. + +These are called degrees of comparison. + +These are properly the only degrees, though the simple, uninflected +form is usually called the positive degree. + + +159. The comparative is formed by adding _-er_, and the superlative +by adding _-est_, to the simple form; as, _red_, _redder_, _reddest_; +_blue_, _bluer_, _bluest_; _easy_, _easier_, _easiest_. + + +[Sidenote: _Substitute for inflection in comparison._] + +160. Side by side with these inflected forms are found comparative +and superlative expressions making use of the adverbs more and +most. These are often useful as alternative with the inflected +forms, but in most cases are used before adjectives that are never +inflected. + +They came into use about the thirteenth century, but were not common +until a century later. + + +[Sidenote: _Which rule_,-- -er _and_ -est _or_ more _and_ most?] + +161. The English is somewhat capricious in choosing between the +inflected forms and those with _more_ and _most_, so that no +inflexible rule can be given as to the formation of the comparative +and the superlative. + +The general rule is, that monosyllables and easily pronounced words of +two syllables add _-er_ and _-est_; and other words are preceded by +_more_ and _most_. + +But room must be left in such a rule for pleasantness of sound and for +variety of expression. + +To see how literary English overrides any rule that could be given, +examine the following taken at random:-- + +From Thackeray: "The _handsomest_ wives;" "the _immensest_ quantity of +thrashing;" "the _wonderfulest_ little shoes;" "_more odd, strange_, +and yet familiar;" "_more austere_ and _holy_." + +From Ruskin: "The sharpest, finest chiseling, and _patientest_ +fusing;" "_distantest_ relationships;" "_sorrowfulest_ spectacles." + +Carlyle uses _beautifulest_, _mournfulest_, _honestest_, +_admirablest_, _indisputablest_, _peaceablest_, _most small_, etc. + +These long, harsh forms are usually avoided, but _more_ and _most_ are +frequently used with monosyllables. + + +162. Expressions are often met with in which a superlative form does +not carry the superlative meaning. These are equivalent usually to +_very_ with the positive degree; as,-- + + To this the Count offers a _most wordy_ declaration of the + benefits conferred by Spain.--_The Nation_, No 1507 + + In all formulas that Johnson could stand by, there needed to be a + _most genuine_ substance.--CARLYLE + + A gentleman, who, though born in no very high degree, was _most + finished_, _polished_, _witty_, _easy_, _quiet_.--THACKERAY + + He had actually nothing else save a rope around his neck, which + hung behind in the _queerest_ way.--_Id._ + + "So help me God, madam, I will," said Henry Esmond, falling on + his knees, and kissing the hand of his _dearest_ mistress.--_Id._ + + +[Sidenote: _Adjectives irregularly compared._] + +163. Among the variously derived adjectives now in our language +there are some which may always be recognized as native English. These +are adjectives irregularly compared. + +Most of them have worn down or become confused with similar words, but +they are essentially the same forms that have lived for so many +centuries. + +The following lists include the majority of them:-- + + + LIST I. + + 1. Good or well Better Best + 2. Evil, bad, ill Worse Worst + 3. Little Less, lesser Least + 4. Much or many More Most + 5. Old Elder, older Eldest, oldest + 6. Nigh Nigher Nighest, next + 7. Near Nearer Nearest + 8. Far Farther, further Farthest, furthest + 9. Late Later, latter Latest, last + 10. Hind Hinder Hindmost, hindermost + + + LIST II. + + These have no adjective positive:-- + + 1. [In] Inner Inmost, innermost + 2. [Out] Outer, utter {Outmost, outermost + {Utmost, uttermost + 3. [Up] Upper Upmost, uppermost + + + LIST III. + + A few of comparative form but not comparative meaning:-- + + After Over Under Nether + +Remarks on Irregular Adjectives. + + +[Sidenote: _List I._] + +164. (1) The word good has no comparative or superlative, but takes +the place of a positive to _better_ and _best_. There was an old +comparative _bet_, which has gone out of use; as in the sentence (14th +century), "Ich singe _bet_ than thu dest" (I sing better than thou +dost). The superlative I form was _betst_, which has softened to the +modern _best_. + +(2) In Old English, evil was the positive to _worse_, _worst_; but +later _bad_ and _ill_ were borrowed from the Norse, and used as +positives to the same comparative and superlative. _Worser_ was once +used, a double comparative; as in Shakespeare,-- + + O, throw away the _worser_ part of it.--HAMLET. + +(3) Little is used as positive to _less_, _least_, though from a +different root. A double comparative, _lesser_, is often used; as,-- + + We have it in a much _lesser_ degree.--MATTHEW ARNOLD. + + Thrust the _lesser_ half by main force into the fists of Ho-ti. + --LAMB. + +(4) The words much and many now express quantity; but in former +times _much_ was used in the sense of _large_, _great_, and was the +same word that is found in the proverb, "Many a little makes _a +mickle_." Its spelling has been _micel_, _muchel_, _moche_, _much_, +the parallel form _mickle_ being rarely used. + +The meanings _greater_, _greatest_, are shown in such phrases as,-- + + The _more_ part being of one mind, to England we + sailed.--KINGSLEY. + + The _most_ part kept a stolid indifference.--_Id._ + +The latter, meaning _the largest part_, is quite common. + +(5) The forms elder, eldest, are earlier than _older_, _oldest_. A +few other words with the vowel _o_ had similar change in the +comparative and superlative, as _long_, _strong_, etc.; but these have +followed _old_ by keeping the same vowel _o_ in all the forms, instead +of _lenger_, _strenger_, etc., the old forms. + +(6) and (7) Both nigh and near seem regular in Modern English, +except the form _next_; but originally the comparison was _nigh_, +_near_, _next_. In the same way the word high had in Middle English +the superlative _hexte_. + +By and by the comparative _near_ was regarded as a positive form, and +on it were built a double comparative _nearer_, and the superlative +_nearest_, which adds _-est_ to what is really a comparative instead +of a simple adjective. + +(8) These words also show confusion and consequent modification, +coming about as follows: further really belongs to another +series,--_forth_, _further_, _first_. First became entirely +detached from the series, and _furthest_ began to be used to follow +the comparative _further_; then these were used as comparative and +superlative of _far_. + +The word far had formerly the comparative and superlative _farrer_, +_farrest_. In imitation of _further_, _furthest_, _th_ came into the +others, making the modern _farther_, _farthest_. Between the two sets +as they now stand, there is scarcely any distinction, except perhaps +_further_ is more used than _farther_ in the sense of _additional_; +as, for example,-- + + When that evil principle was left with no _further_ material to + support it.--HAWTHORNE. + +(9) Latter and last are the older forms. Since _later_, _latest_, +came into use, a distinction has grown up between the two series. +_Later_ and _latest_ have the true comparative and superlative force, +and refer to time; _latter_ and _last_ are used in speaking of +succession, or series, and are hardly thought of as connected in +meaning with the word _late_. + +(10) Hinder is comparative in form, but not in meaning. The form +_hindmost_ is really a double superlative, since the _m_ is for _-ma_, +an old superlative ending, to which is added _-ost_, doubling the +inflection. _Hind-er-m-ost_ presents the combination comparative + +superlative + superlative. + + +[Sidenote: _List II._] + +165. In List II. (Sec. 163) the comparatives and superlatives are +adjectives, but they have no adjective positives. + +The comparatives are so in form, but not in their meaning. + +The superlatives show examples again of double inflection, and of +comparative added to double-superlative inflection. + +Examples (from Carlyle) of the use of these adjectives: "revealing the +_inner_ splendor to him;" "a mind that has penetrated into the +_inmost_ heart of a thing;" "This of painting is one of the +_outermost_ developments of a man;" "The _outer_ is of the day;" +"far-seeing as the sun, the _upper_ light of the world;" "the +_innermost_ moral soul;" "their _utmost_ exertion." + + +[Sidenote: -Most _added to other words_.] + +166. The ending _-most_ is added to some words that are not usually +adjectives, or have no comparative forms. + + There, on the very _topmost_ twig, sits that ridiculous but + sweet-singing bobolink.--H.W. BEECHER. + + Decidedly handsome, having such a skin as became a young woman of + family in _northernmost_ Spain.--DE QUINCEY. + + Highest and _midmost_, was descried The royal banner floating + wide.--SCOTT. + + +[Sidenote: _List III._] + +167. The adjectives in List III. are like the comparative forms in +List II. in having no adjective positives. They have no superlatives, +and have no comparative force, being merely descriptive. + + Her bows were deep in the water, but her _after_ deck was still + dry.--KINGSLEY. + + Her, by the by, in _after_ years I vainly endeavored to + trace.--DE QUINCEY. + + The upper and the _under_ side of the medal of Jove.--EMERSON. + + Have you ever considered what a deep _under_ meaning there lies + in our custom of strewing flowers?--RUSKIN. + + Perhaps he rose out of some _nether_ region.--HAWTHORNE. + +_Over_ is rarely used separately as an adjective. + + + +CAUTION FOR ANALYZING OR PARSING. + +[Sidenote: _Think what each adjective belongs to._] + +168. Some care must be taken to decide what word is modified by an +adjective. In a series of adjectives in the same sentence, all may +belong to the same noun, or each may modify a different word or group +of words. + +For example, in this sentence, "The young pastor's voice was +tremulously sweet, rich, deep, and broken," it is clear that all four +adjectives after _was_ modify the noun _voice_. But in this sentence, +"She showed her usual prudence and her usual incomparable decision," +_decision_ is modified by the adjective _incomparable_; _usual_ +modifies _incomparable decision_, not _decision_ alone; and the +pronoun _her_ limits _usual incomparable decision_. + +Adjectives modifying the same noun are said to be of the _same rank_; +those modifying different words or word groups are said to be +adjectives of _different rank_. This distinction is valuable in a +study of punctuation. + +Exercise. + +In the following quotations, tell what each adjective modifies:-- + + 1. Whenever that look appeared in her wild, bright, deeply black + eyes, it invested them with a strange remoteness and + intangibility.--HAWTHORNE. + + 2. It may still be argued, that in the present divided state of + Christendom a college which is positively Christian must be + controlled by some religious denomination.--NOAH PORTER. + + 3. Every quaking leaf and fluttering shadow sent the blood + backward to her heart.--MRS. STOWE. + + 4. This, our new government, is the first in the history of the + world based upon this great physical, philosophical, and moral + truth.--A.H. STEPHENS + + 5. May we not, therefore, look with confidence to the ultimate + universal acknowledgment of the truths upon which our system + rests?--_Id._ + + 6. A few improper jests and a volley of good, round, solid, + satisfactory, and heaven-defying oaths.--HAWTHORNE. + + 7. It is well known that the announcement at any private rural + entertainment that there is to be ice cream produces an immediate + and profound impression.--HOLMES. + + + +ADVERBS USED AS ADJECTIVES. + +169. By a convenient brevity, adverbs are sometimes used as +adjectives; as, instead of saying, "the one who was then king," in +which _then_ is an adverb, we may say "the _then_ king," making _then_ +an adjective. Other instances are,-- + + My _then_ favorite, in prose, Richard Hooker.--RUSKIN. + + Our _sometime_ sister, now our queen.--SHAKESPEARE + + Messrs. Bradbury and Evans, the _then_ and _still_ owners. + --TROLLOPE. + + The _seldom_ use of it.--TRENCH. + + For thy stomach's sake, and thine _often_ infirmities.--_Bible._ + + + +HOW TO PARSE ADJECTIVES. + + +[Sidenote: _What to tell in parsing._] + +170. Since adjectives have no gender, person, or case, and very few +have number, the method of parsing is simple. + +In parsing an adjective, tell-- + +(1) The class and subclass to which it belongs. + +(2) Its number, if it has number. + +(3) Its degree of comparison, if it can be compared. + +(4) What word or words it modifies. + + +MODEL FOR PARSING. + +These truths are not unfamiliar to your thoughts. + +_These_ points out _what_ truths, therefore demonstrative; plural +number, having a singular, _this_; cannot be compared; modifies the +word _truths_. + +_Unfamiliar_ describes _truths_, therefore descriptive; not inflected +for number; compared by prefixing _more_ and _most_; positive degree; +modifies _truths_. + + +Exercise. + +Parse in full each adjective in these sentences:-- + + 1. A thousand lives seemed concentrated in that one moment to + Eliza. + + 2. The huge green fragment of ice on which she alighted pitched + and creaked. + + 3. I ask nothing of you, then, but that you proceed to your end + by a direct, frank, manly way. + + 4. She made no reply, and I waited for none. + + 5. A herd of thirty or forty tall ungainly figures took their + way, with awkward but rapid pace, across the plain. + + 6. Gallantly did the lion struggle in the folds of his terrible + enemy, whose grasp each moment grew more fierce and secure, and + most astounding were those frightful yells. + + 7. This gave the young people entire freedom, and they enjoyed it + to the fullest extent. + + 8. I will be as harsh as truth and as uncompromising as justice. + + 9. To every Roman citizen he gives, To every several man, + seventy-five drachmas. + + 10. Each member was permitted to entertain all the rest on his or + her birthday, on which occasion the elders of the family were + bound to be absent. + + 11. Instantly the mind inquires whether these fishes under the + bridge, yonder oxen in the pasture, those dogs in the yard, are + immutably fishes, oxen, and dogs. + + 12. I know not what course others may take. + + 13. With every third step, the tomahawk fell. + + 14. What a ruthless business this war of extermination is! + + 15. I was just emerging from that many-formed crystal country. + + 16. On what shore has not the prow of your ships dashed? + + 17. The laws and institutions of his country ought to have been + more to him than all the men in his country. + + 18. Like most gifted men, he won affections with ease. + + 19. His letters aim to elicit the inmost experience and outward + fortunes of those he loves, yet are remarkably self-forgetful. + + 20. Their name was the last word upon his lips. + + 21. The captain said it was the last stick he had seen. + + 22. Before sunrise the next morning they let us out again. + + 23. He was curious to know to what sect we belonged. + + 24. Two hours elapsed, during which time I waited. + + 25. In music especially, you will soon find what personal benefit + there is in being serviceable. + + 26. To say what good of fashion we can, it rests on reality, and + hates nothing so much as pretenders. + + 27. Here lay two great roads, not so much for travelers that were + few, as for armies that were too many by half. + + 28. On whichever side of the border chance had thrown Joanna, the + same love to France would have been nurtured. + + 29. What advantage was open to him above the English boy? + + 30. Nearer to our own times, and therefore more interesting to + us, is the settlement of our own country. + + 31. Even the topmost branches spread out and drooped in all + directions, and many poles supported the lower ones. + + 32. Most fruits depend entirely on our care. + + 33. Even the sourest and crabbedest apple, growing in the most + unfavorable position, suggests such thoughts as these, it is so + noble a fruit. + + 34. Let him live in what pomps and prosperities he like, he is no + literary man. + + 35. Through what hardships it may bear a sweet fruit! + + 36. Whatsoever power exists will have itself organized. + + 37. A hard-struggling, weary-hearted man was he. + + + + +ARTICLES. + +171. There is a class of words having always an adjectival use in +general, but with such subtle functions and various meanings that they +deserve separate treatment. In the sentence, "He passes an ordinary +brick house on the road, with an ordinary little garden," the words +_the_ and _an_ belong to nouns, just as adjectives do; but they cannot +be accurately placed under any class of adjectives. They are nearest +to demonstrative and numeral adjectives. + +[Sidenote: _Their origin._] + +172. The article the comes from an old demonstrative adjective +(_se_, _seo_, _ethat_, later _the_, _theo_, _that_) which was also an +article in Old English. In Middle English _the_ became an article, and +_that_ remained a demonstrative adjective. + +An or a came from the old numeral _an_, meaning _one_. + +[Sidenote: _Two relics._] + +Our expressions _the one_, _the other_, were formerly _that one_, +_that other_; the latter is still preserved in the expression, in +vulgar English, _the tother_. Not only this is kept in the Scotch +dialect, but the former is used, these occurring as _the tane, the +tother_, or _the tane, the tither_; for example,-- + + We ca' her sometimes _the tane_, sometimes _the tother_.--SCOTT. + +[Sidenote: An _before vowel sounds_, a _before consonant sounds_.] + +173. Ordinarily _an_ is used before vowel sounds, and _a_ before +consonant sounds. Remember that a _vowel sound_ does not necessarily +mean beginning with a vowel, nor does _consonant sound_ mean +beginning with a consonant, because English spelling does not +coincide closely with the sound of words. Examples: "_a_ house," "_an_ +orange," "_a_ European," "_an_ honor," "_a_ yelling crowd." + +[Sidenote: An _with consonant sounds_.] + +174. Many writers use _an_ before _h_, even when not silent, when +the word is not accented on the first syllable. + + _An_ historian, such as we have been attempting to describe, + would indeed be an intellectual prodigy.--MACAULAY. + + The Persians were _an_ heroic people like the Greeks.--BREWER. + + He [Rip] evinced _an_ hereditary disposition to attend to + anything else but his business.--IRVING. + + _An_ habitual submission of the understanding to mere events and + images.--COLERIDGE. + + _An_ hereditary tenure of these offices.--THOMAS JEFFERSON. + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +175. An article is a limiting word, not descriptive, which cannot +be used alone, but always joins to a substantive word to denote a +particular thing, or a group or class of things, or any individual of +a group or class. + +[Sidenote: _Kinds._] + +176. Articles are either definite or indefinite. + +The is the definite article, since it points out a particular +individual, or group, or class. + +An or a is the indefinite article, because it refers to any one of +a group or class of things. + +An and a are different forms of the same word, the older _an_. + + + +USES OF THE DEFINITE ARTICLE. + + +[Sidenote: _Reference to a known object._] + +177. The most common use of the definite article is to refer to an +object that the listener or reader is already acquainted with; as in +the sentence,-- + + Don't you remember how, when _the_ dragon was infesting _the_ + neighborhood of Babylon, _the_ citizens used to walk dismally out + of evenings, and look at _the_ valleys round about strewed with + _the_ bones?--THACKERAY. + + NOTE.--This use is noticed when, on opening a story, a person is + introduced by _a_, and afterwards referred to by _the_:-- + + By and by _a_ giant came out of the dark north, and lay down on + the ice near Audhumla.... _The_ giant frowned when he saw the + glitter of the golden hair.--_Heroes of Asgard._ + + +[Sidenote: _With names of rivers._] + +178. _The_ is often prefixed to the names of rivers; and when the +word _river_ is omitted, as "_the_ Mississippi," "_the_ Ohio," the +article indicates clearly that a river, and not a state or other +geographical division, is referred to. + + No wonder I could face _the_ Mississippi with so much courage + supplied to me.--THACKERAY. + + The Dakota tribes, doubtless, then occupied the country southwest + of _the_ Missouri.--G. BANCROFT. + + +[Sidenote: _To call attention to attributes._] + +179. When _the_ is prefixed to a proper name, it alters the force of +the noun by directing attention to _certain qualities_ possessed by +the person or thing spoken of; thus,-- + + _The_ Bacon, _the_ Spinoza, _the_ Hume, Schelling, Kant, or + whosoever propounds to you a philosophy of the mind, is only a + more or less awkward translator of things in your + consciousness.--EMERSON. + + +[Sidenote: _With plural of abstract nouns._] + +180. _The_, when placed before the pluralized abstract noun, marks +it as half abstract or a common noun. + +[Sidenote: _Common._] + + His messages to _the_ provincial _authorities_.--MOTLEY. + +[Sidenote: _Half abstract._] + + He was probably skilled in _the subtleties_ of Italian + statesmanship.--_Id._ + +[Sidenote: _With adjectives used as nouns._] + +181. When _the_ precedes adjectives of the positive degree used +substantively, it marks their use as common and plural nouns when they +refer to persons, and as singular and abstract when they refer to +qualities. + + 1. _The simple_ rise as by specific levity, not into a particular + virtue, but into the region of all the virtues.--EMERSON. + + 2. If _the good_ is there, so is _the evil_.--_Id._ + +[Sidenote: _Caution._] + +NOTE.--This is not to be confused with words that have shifted from +adjectives and become pure nouns; as,-- + + As she hesitated to pass on, _the gallant_, throwing his cloak + from his shoulders, laid it on the miry spot.--SCOTT. + + But De Soto was no longer able to abate the confidence or punish + the temerity of _the natives_.--G. BANCROFT. + +[Sidenote: _One thing for its class._] + +182. _The_ before class nouns may mark one thing as a representative +of the class to which it belongs; for example,-- + + The faint, silvery warblings heard over the partially bare and + moist fields from _the bluebird_, _the song sparrow_, and _the + redwing_, as if the last flakes of winter tinkled as they + fell!--THOREAU. + + In the sands of Africa and Arabia _the camel_ is a sacred and + precious gift.--GIBBON. + +[Sidenote: _For possessive person pronouns._] + +183. _The_ is frequently used instead of the possessive case of the +personal pronouns _his_, _her_, etc. + + More than one hinted that a cord twined around _the head_, or a + match put between _the fingers_, would speedily extract the + required information.--KINGSLEY. + + _The_ mouth, and the region of the mouth, were about the + strongest features in Wordsworth's face.--DE QUINCEY. + + +[Sidenote: The _for_ a.] + +184. In England and Scotland _the_ is often used where we use _a_, +in speaking of measure and price; as,-- + + Wheat, the price of which necessarily varied, averaged in the + middle of the fourteenth century tenpence _the bushel_, barley + averaging at the same time three shillings _the + quarter_.--FROUDE. + + +[Sidenote: _A very strong restrictive._] + +185. Sometimes _the_ has a strong force, almost equivalent to a +descriptive adjective in emphasizing a word,-- + + No doubt but ye are _the_ people, and wisdom shall die with + you.--_Bible._ + + As for New Orleans, it seemed to me _the_ city of the world where + you can eat and drink the most and suffer the least.--THACKERAY. + + He was _the_ man in all Europe that could (if any could) have + driven six-in-hand full gallop over Al Sirat.--DE QUINCEY. + + +[Sidenote: _Mark of a substantive._] + +186. _The_, since it belongs distinctively to substantives, is a +sure indication that a word of verbal form is not used participially, +but substantively. + + In the hills of Sacramento there is gold for _the + gathering_.--EMERSON. + + I thought _the writing_ excellent, and wished, if possible, to + imitate it.--FRANKLIN. + + +[Sidenote: _Caution._] + +187. There is one use of _the_ which is different from all the +above. It is an adverbial use, and is spoken of more fully in Sec. +283. Compare this sentence with those above:-- + + There was something ugly and evil in his face, which they had not + previously noticed, and which grew still _the more obvious_ to + the sight _the oftener_ they looked upon him.--HAWTHORNE. + +Exercise.--Find sentences with five uses of the definite article. + + + +USES OF THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE. + + +[Sidenote: _Denotes any one of a class._] + +188. The most frequent use of the indefinite article is to denote +any one of a class or group of objects: consequently it belongs to +singular words; as in the sentence,-- + + Near the churchyard gate stands _a_ poor-box, fastened to _a_ + post by iron bands and secured by _a_ padlock, with _a_ sloping + wooden roof to keep off the rain.--LONGFELLOW + +[Sidenote: _Widens the scope of proper nouns._] + +189. When the indefinite article precedes proper names, it alters +them to class names. The qualities or attributes of the object are +made prominent, and transferred to any one possessing them; as,-- + + The vulgar riot and debauchery, which scarcely disgraced _an + Alcibiades_ or _a Caesar_, have been exchanged for the higher + ideals of _a Bayard_ or _a Sydney_.--PEARSON + +[Sidenote: _With abstract nouns._] + +190. _An_ or _a_ before abstract nouns often changes them to half +abstract: the idea of quality remains, but the word now denotes only +one instance or example of things possessing the quality. + +[Sidenote: _Become half abstract._] + + The simple perception of natural forms is _a delight_.--EMERSON + + If thou hadst _a sorrow_ of thine own, the brook might tell thee + of it.--HAWTHORNE + +In the first sentence, instead of the general abstract notion of +delight, which cannot be singular or plural, _a delight_ means one +thing delightful, and implies others having the same quality. + +So _a sorrow_ means one cause of sorrow, implying that there are +other things that bring sorrow. + +[Sidenote: _Become pure class nouns._] + +NOTE.--Some abstract nouns become common class nouns with the +indefinite article, referring simply to persons; thus,-- + + If the poet of the "Rape of the Lock" be not _a wit_, who + deserves to be called so?--THACKERAY. + + He had a little brother in London with him at this time,--as + great _a beauty_, as great a dandy, as great a villain.--_Id._ + + _A youth_ to fortune and to fame unknown.--GRAY. + +[Sidenote: _Changes material to class nouns._] + +191. _An_ or _a_ before a material noun indicates the change to a +class noun, meaning one kind or a detached portion; as,-- + + They that dwell up in the steeple,... + Feel a glory in so rolling + On the human heart _a stone_. + --POE. + + When God at first made man, + Having _a glass_ of blessings standing by. + --HERBERT. + + The roofs were turned into arches of massy stone, joined by _a + cement_ that grew harder by time.--JOHNSON. + +[Sidenote: _Like the numeral adjective_ one.] + +192. In some cases _an_ or _a_ has the full force of the numeral +adjective _one_. It is shown in the following:-- + + To every room there was _an_ open and _a_ secret + passage.--JOHNSON. + + In a short time these become a small tree, _an_ inverted pyramid + resting on the apex of the other.--THOREAU. + + All men are at last of _a_ size.--EMERSON. + + At the approach of spring the red squirrels got under my house, + two at _a_ time.--THOREAU. + +[Sidenote: _Equivalent to the word_ each _or_ every.] + +193. Often, also, the indefinite article has the force of _each_ or +_every_, particularly to express measure or frequency. + + It would be so much more pleasant to live at his ease than to + work eight or ten hours _a day_.--BULWER + +[Sidenote: _Compare to Sec. 184._] + + Strong beer, such as we now buy for eighteenpence _a gallon_, was + then a penny _a gallon_.--FROUDE + + +[Sidenote: _With_ such, many, what.] + +194. _An_ or _a_ is added to the adjectives _such_, _many_, and +_what_, and may be considered a part of these in modifying +substantives. + + How was I to pay _such a_ debt?--THACKERAY. + + _Many a_ one you and I have had here below.--THACKERAY. + + _What a_ world of merriment then melody foretells!--POE. + +[Sidenote: _With_ not _and_ many.] + +195 LIST III. + + A few of comparative form but not comparative meaning:-- + + After Over Under Nether. + +_Not_ and _never_ with _a_ or _an_ are numeral adjectives, +instead of adverbs, which they are in general. + + _Not a_ drum was heard, _not a_ funeral note.--WOLFE + + My Lord Duke was as hot as a flame at this salute, but said + _never a_ word.--THACKERAY. + +NOTE.--All these have the function of adjectives; but in the last +analysis of the expressions, _such_, _many_, _not_, etc., might be +considered as adverbs modifying the article. + + +[Sidenote: _With_ few _or_ little.] + +196. The adjectives _few_ and _little_ have the negative meaning of +_not much_, _not many_, without the article; but when _a_ is put +before them, they have the positive meaning of _some_. Notice the +contrast in the following sentences:-- + + Of the country beyond the Mississippi _little_ more was known + than of the heart of Africa.--MCMASTER + + To both must I of necessity cling, supported always by the hope + that when _a little_ time, _a few_ years, shall have tried me + more fully in their esteem, I may be able to bring them + together.--_Keats's Letters_. + + _Few_ of the great characters of history have been so differently + judged as Alexander.--SMITH, _History of Greece_ + +[Sidenote: _With adjectives, changed to nouns_.] + +197. When _the_ is used before adjectives with no substantive +following (Sec. 181 and note), these words are adjectives used as +nouns, or pure nouns; but when _an_ or _a_ precedes such words, they +are always nouns, having the regular use and inflections of nouns; for +example,-- + + Such are the words _a brave_ should use.--COOPER. + + In the great society of wits, John Gay deserves to be _a + favorite_, and to have a good place.--THACKERAY + + Only the name of one obscure epigrammatist has been embalmed for + use in the verses of _a rival_.--PEARSON. + +Exercise.--Bring up sentences with five uses of the indefinite +article. + + + +HOW TO PARSE ARTICLES. + +198. In parsing the article, tell-- + + +(1) What word it limits. + +(2) Which of the above uses it has. + + +Exercise. + +Parse the articles in the following:-- + + 1. It is like gathering a few pebbles off the ground, or bottling + a little air in a phial, when the whole earth and the whole + atmosphere are ours. + + 2. Aristeides landed on the island with a body of Hoplites, + defeated the Persians and cut them to pieces to a man. + + 3. The wild fire that lit the eye of an Achilles can gleam no + more. + + 4. But it is not merely the neighborhood of the cathedral that is + mediaeval; the whole city is of a piece. + + 5. To the herdsman among his cattle in remote woods, to the + craftsman in his rude workshop, to the great and to the little, a + new light has arisen. + + 6. When the manners of Loo are heard of, the stupid become + intelligent, and the wavering, determined. + + 7. The student is to read history actively, and not passively. + + 8. This resistance was the labor of his life. + + 9. There was always a hope, even in the darkest hour. + + 10. The child had a native grace that does not invariably coexist + with faultless beauty. + + 11. I think a mere gent (which I take to be the lowest form of + civilization) better than a howling, whistling, clucking, + stamping, jumping, tearing savage. + + 12. Every fowl whom Nature has taught to dip the wing in water. + + 13. They seem to be lines pretty much of a length. + + 14. Only yesterday, but what a gulf between now and then! + + 15. Not a brick was made but some man had to think of the making + of that brick. + + 16. The class of power, the working heroes, the Cortes, the + Nelson, the Napoleon, see that this is the festivity and + permanent celebration of such as they; that fashion is funded + talent. + + + + +VERBS AND VERBALS.. + + + + +VERBS. + + +[Sidenote: _Verb,--the word of the sentence._] + +199. The term _verb_ is from the Latin _verbum_ meaning _word_: +hence it is _the_ word of a sentence. A thought cannot be expressed +without a verb. When the child cries, "Apple!" it means, _See_ the +apple! or I _have_ an apple! In the mariner's shout, "A sail!" the +meaning is, "Yonder _is_ a sail!" + +Sentences are in the form of declarations, questions, or commands; and +none of these can be put before the mind without the use of a verb. + +[Sidenote: _One group or a group of words._] + +200. The verb may not always be a single word. On account of the +lack of inflections, _verb phrases_ are very frequent. Hence the verb +may consist of: + +(1) _One word_; as, "The young man _obeyed_." + +(2) _Several words of verbal nature, making one expression_; as, (_a_) +"Some day it _may be considered_ reasonable," (_b_) "Fearing lest he +_might have been anticipated_." + +(3) _One or more verbal words united with other words to compose one +verb phrase_: as in the sentences, (_a_) "They knew well that this +woman _ruled over_ thirty millions of subjects;" (_b_) "If all the +flummery and extravagance of an army _were done away with_, the money +could be made to go much further;" (_c_) "It is idle cant to pretend +anxiety for the better distribution of wealth until we can devise +means by which this preying upon people of small incomes _can be put a +stop to_." + +In (_a_), a verb and a preposition are used as one verb; in (_b_), a +verb, an adverb, and a preposition unite as a verb; in (_c_), an +article, a noun, a preposition, are united with verbs as one verb +phrase. + +[Sidenote: _Definition and caution._] + +201. A verb is a word used as a predicate, to say something to or +about some person or thing. In giving a definition, we consider a verb +as one word. + +Now, it is indispensable to the nature of a verb that it is "a word +used as a predicate." Examine the sentences in Sec. 200: In (1), +_obeyed_ is a predicate; in (2, _a_), _may be considered_ is a unit in +doing the work of one predicate; in (2, _b_), _might have been +anticipated_ is also one predicate, but _fearing_ is not a predicate, +hence is not a verb; in (3, _b_), _to go_ is no predicate, and not a +verb; in (3, _c_), _to pretend_ and _preying_ have something of +verbal nature in expressing action in a faint and general way, but +cannot be predicates. + +In the sentence, "_Put_ money in thy purse," _put_ is the predicate, +with some word understood; as, "Put _thou_ money in thy purse." + + + +VERBS CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO MEANING AND USE. + +TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE VERBS. + + +[Sidenote: _The nature of the transitive verb._] + +202. By examining a few verbs, it may be seen that not all verbs are +used alike. All do not express action: some denote state or condition. +Of those expressing action, all do not express it in the same way; for +example, in this sentence from Bulwer,--"The proud lone _took_ care to +conceal the anguish she _endured_; and the pride of woman _has_ an +hypocrisy which _can deceive_ the most penetrating, and _shame_ the +most astute,"--every one of the verbs in Italics has one or more words +before or after it, representing something which it influences or +controls. In the first, lone _took_ what? answer, _care_; _endured_ +what? _anguish_; etc. Each influences some object, which may be a +person, or a material thing, or an idea. _Has_ takes the object +_hypocrisy_; _can deceive_ has an object, _the most penetrating_; +(can) _shame_ also has an object, _the most astute_. + +In each case, the word following, or the object, is necessary to the +completion of the action expressed in the verb. + +All these are called transitive verbs, from the Latin _transire_, +which means _to go over_. Hence + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +203. A transitive verb is one which must have an object to complete +its meaning, and to receive the action expressed. + +[Sidenote: _The nature of intransitive verbs._] + +204. Examine the verbs in the following paragraph:-- + + She _sprang up_ at that thought, and, taking the staff which + always guided her steps, she _hastened_ to the neighboring shrine + of Isis. Till she _had been_ under the guardianship of the kindly + Greek, that staff _had sufficed_ to conduct the poor blind girl + from corner to corner of Pompeii.--BULWER + +In this there are some verbs unlike those that have been examined. +_Sprang_, or _sprang up_, expresses action, but it is complete in +itself, does not affect an object; _hastened_ is similar in use; _had +been_ expresses condition, or state of being, and can have no object; +_had sufficed_ means _had been sufficient_, and from its meaning +cannot have an object. + +Such verbs are called intransitive (not crossing over). Hence + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +205. An intransitive verb is one which is complete in itself, or +which is completed by other words without requiring an object. + + +[Sidenote: _Study_ use, _not_ form, _of verbs here._] + +206. Many verbs can be either transitive or intransitive, according to +their use in the sentence, It can be said, "The boy _walked_ for two +hours," or "The boy _walked_ the horse;" "The rains _swelled_ the +river," or "The river _swelled_ because of the rain;" etc. + +The important thing to observe is, many words must be distinguished as +transitive or intransitive by _use_, not by _form_. + + +207. Also verbs are sometimes made transitive by prepositions. +These may be (1) compounded with the verb; or (2) may follow the verb, +and be used as an integral part of it: for example,-- + + Asking her pardon for having _withstood_ her.--SCOTT. + + I can wish myself no worse than to have it all to _undergo_ a + second time.--KINGSLEY. + + A weary gloom in the deep caverns of his eyes, as of a child that + has _outgrown_ its playthings.--HAWTHORNE. + + It is amusing to walk up and down the pier and _look at_ the + countenances passing by.--B. TAYLOR. + + He was at once so out of the way, and yet so sensible, that I + loved, _laughed at_, and pitied him.--GOLDSMITH. + + My little nurse told me the whole matter, which she had cunningly + _picked out_ from her mother.--SWIFT. + + +Exercises. + +(_a_) Pick out the transitive and the intransitive verbs in the +following:-- + +1. The women and children collected together at a distance. + +2. The path to the fountain led through a grassy savanna. + +3. As soon as I recovered my senses and strength from so sudden a +surprise, I started back out of his reach where I stood to view him; +he lay quiet whilst I surveyed him. + +4. At first they lay a floor of this kind of tempered mortar on the +ground, upon which they deposit a layer of eggs. + +5. I ran my bark on shore at one of their landing places, which was a +sort of neck or little dock, from which ascended a sloping path or +road up to the edge of the meadow, where their nests were; most of +them were deserted, and the great thick whitish eggshells lay broken +and scattered upon the ground. + +6. Accordingly I got everything on board, charged my gun, set sail +cautiously, along shore. As I passed by Battle Lagoon, I began to +tremble. + +7. I seized my gun, and went cautiously from my camp: when I had +advanced about thirty yards, I halted behind a coppice of orange +trees, and soon perceived two very large bears, which had made their +way through the water and had landed in the grove, and were advancing +toward me. + +(_b_) Bring up sentences with five transitive and five intransitive +verbs. + + + +VOICE, ACTIVE AND PASSIVE. + + +[Sidenote: _Meaning of active voice._] + +208. As has been seen, transitive verbs are the only kind that can +express action so as to go over to an object. This implies three +things,--the agent, or person or thing acting; the verb representing +the action; the person or object receiving the act. + +In the sentence, "We reached the village of Sorgues by dusk, and +accepted the invitation of an old dame to lodge at her inn," these +three things are found: the actor, or agent, is expressed by _we_; the +action is asserted by _reached_ and _accepted_; the things acted upon +are _village_ and _invitation_. Here the subject is represented as +doing something. The same word is the subject and the agent. This use +of a transitive verb is called the active voice. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +209. The active voice is that form of a verb which represents the +subject as acting; or + +The active voice is that form of a transitive verb which makes the +_subject_ and the _agent_ the same word. + + +[Sidenote: _A question._] + +210. Intransitive verbs are _always active voice_. Let the student +explain why. + + +[Sidenote: _Meaning of passive voice._] + +211. In the assertion of an action, it would be natural to suppose, +that, instead of always representing the subject as acting upon some +person or thing, it must often happen that the subject is spoken of as +_acted upon_; and the person or thing acting may or may not be +expressed in the sentence: for example,-- + + All infractions of love and equity in our social relations are + speedily punished. They are punished by fear.--EMERSON. + +Here the subject _infractions_ does nothing: it represents the object +toward which the action of _are punished_ is directed, yet it is the +subject of the same verb. In the first sentence the agent is not +expressed; in the second, _fear_ is the agent of the same action. + +So that in this case, instead of having the agent and subject the same +word, we have the _object_ and _subject_ the same word, and the agent +may be omitted from the statement of the action. + +_Passive_ is from the Latin word _patior_, meaning _to endure_ or +_suffer_; but in ordinary grammatical use _passive_ means _receiving +an action_. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +212. The passive voice is that form of the verb which represents the +subject as being acted upon; or-- + +The passive voice is that form of the verb which represents the +_subject_ and the _object_ by the same word. + +Exercises. + +(_a_) Pick out the verbs in the active and the passive voice:-- + +1. In the large room some forty or fifty students were walking about +while the parties were preparing. + +2. This was done by taking off the coat and vest and binding a great +thick leather garment on, which reached to the knees. + +3. They then put on a leather glove reaching nearly to the shoulder, +tied a thick cravat around the throat, and drew on a cap with a large +visor. + +4. This done, they were walked about the room a short time; their +faces all this time betrayed considerable anxiety. + +5. We joined the crowd, and used our lungs as well as any. + +6. The lakes were soon covered with merry skaters, and every afternoon +the banks were crowded with spectators. + +7. People were setting up torches and lengthening the rafts which had +been already formed. + +8. The water was first brought in barrels drawn by horses, till some +officer came and opened the fire plug. + +9. The exclusive in fashionable life does not see that he excludes +himself from enjoyment, in the attempt to appropriate it. + + +(_b_) Find sentences with five verbs in the active and five in the +passive voice. + + + +MOOD. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +213. The word _mood_ is from the Latin _modus_, meaning _manner_, +_way_, _method_. Hence, when applied to verbs,-- + +Mood means the manner of conceiving and expressing action or being +of some subject. + + +[Sidenote: _The three ways._] + +214. There are three chief ways of expressing action or being:-- + +(1) As a fact; this may be a question, statement, or assumption. + +(2) As doubtful, or merely conceived of in the mind. + +(3) As urged or commanded. + + + +INDICATIVE MOOD. + + +[Sidenote: _Deals with facts._] + +215. The term _indicative_ is from the Latin _indicare_ (to declare, +or assert). The indicative represents something as a fact,-- + +[Sidenote: _Affirms or denies._] + +(1) _By declaring a thing to be true or not to be true_; thus,-- + + Distinction _is_ the consequence, never the object, of a great + mind.--ALLSTON. + + I _do not remember_ when or by whom I _was taught_ to read; + because I _cannot_ and never _could recollect_ a time when I + _could not read_ my Bible.--D. WEBSTER. + +[Sidenote: _Assumed as a fact._] + +[Sidenote: _Caution._] + +(2) _By assuming a thing to be true_ without declaring it to be so. +This kind of indicative clause is usually introduced by _if_ (meaning +_admitting that, granting that_, etc.), _though, although_, etc. +Notice that the action is not merely conceived as possible; it is +assumed to be a fact: for example,-- + + If the penalties of rebellion hung over an unsuccessful contest; + if America was yet in the cradle of her political existence; if + her population little exceeded two millions; if she was without + government, without fleets or armies, arsenals or magazines, + without military knowledge,--still her citizens had a just and + elevated sense of her rights.--A. HAMILTON. + +(3) _By asking a question to find out some fact_; as,-- + + Is private credit the friend and patron of industry?--HAMILTON. + + With respect to novels what shall I say?--N. WEBSTER. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +216 .The indicative mood is that form of a verb which represents a +thing as a fact, or inquires about some fact. + + + +SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD. + + +[Sidenote: _Meaning of the word._] + +217. _Subjunctive_ means _subjoined_, or joined as dependent or +subordinate to something else. + +[Sidenote: _This meaning is misleading._] + +If its original meaning be closely adhered to, we must expect every +dependent clause to have its verb in the subjunctive mood, and every +clause _not_ dependent to have its verb in some other mood. + +But this is not the case. In the quotation from Hamilton (Sec. 215, 2) +several subjoined clauses introduced by _if_ have the indicative mood, +and also independent clauses are often found having the verb in the +subjunctive mood. + +[Sidenote: _Cautions._] + +Three cautions will be laid down which must be observed by a student +who wishes to understand and use the English subjunctive:-- + +(1) You cannot tell it always by the form of the word. The main +difference is, that the subjunctive has no _-s_ as the ending of the +present tense, third person singular; as, "If he _come_." + +(2) The fact that its clause is dependent or is introduced by certain +words will not be a safe rule to guide you. + +(3) The _meaning_ of the verb itself must be keenly studied. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +218. The subjunctive mood is that form or use of the verb which +expresses action or being, not as a fact, but as merely conceived of +in the mind. + + +Subjunctive in Independent Clauses. + + +I. Expressing a Wish. + +219. The following are examples of this use:-- + + Heaven _rest_ her soul!--MOORE. + + God _grant_ you find one face there You loved when all was + young.--KINGSLEY. + + Now _tremble_ dimples on your cheek, Sweet _be_ your lips to + taste and speak.--BEDDOES. + + Long _die_ thy happy days before thy death.--SHAKESPEARE. + + +II. A Contingent Declaration or Question. + +220. This really amounts to the conclusion, or principal clause, in +a sentence, of which the condition is omitted. + + Our chosen specimen of the hero as literary man [if we were to + choose one] _would be_ this Goethe.--CARLYLE. + + I _could lie_ down like a tired child, + And _weep_ away the life of care + Which I have borne and yet must bear.--SHELLEY. + + Most excellent stranger, as you come to the lakes simply to see + their loveliness, _might_ it not _be_ as well to ask after the + most beautiful road, rather than the shortest?--DE QUINCEY. + + +Subjunctive in Dependent Clauses. + + +I. Condition or Supposition. + + +221. The most common way of representing the action or being as +merely thought of, is by putting it into the form of a _supposition_ +or _condition_; as,-- + + Now, if the fire of electricity and that of lightning _be_ the + same, this pasteboard and these scales may represent electrified + clouds.--FRANKLIN. + +Here no assertion is made that the two things _are_ the same; but, if +the reader merely _conceives_ them for the moment to be the same, the +writer can make the statement following. Again,-- + + If it _be_ Sunday [supposing it to be Sunday], the peasants sit + on the church steps and con their psalm books.--LONGFELLOW. + + + +STUDY OF CONDITIONAL SENTENCES. + + +222. There are three kinds of conditional sentences:-- + +[Sidenote: _Real or true._] + +(1) Those in which an assumed or admitted fact is placed before the +mind in the form of a condition (see Sec. 215, 2); for example,-- + + If they _were_ unacquainted with the works of philosophers and + poets, they were deeply read in the oracles of God. If their + names _were not found_ in the registers of heralds, they were + recorded in the Book of Life.--MACAULAY. + +[Sidenote: _Ideal,--may or may not be true._] + +(2) Those in which the condition depends on something uncertain, and +_may or may not be regarded true, or be fulfilled_; as,-- + + If, in our case, the representative system ultimately _fail_, + popular government must be pronounced impossible.--D. WEBSTER. + + If this _be_ the glory of Julius, the first great founder of the + Empire, so it is also the glory of Charlemagne, the second + founder.--BRYCE. + + If any man _consider_ the present aspects of what is called by + distinction society, he will see the need of these ethics. + --EMERSON. + +[Sidenote: _Unreal--cannot be true._] + +(3) Suppositions _contrary to fact_, which cannot be true, or +conditions that cannot be fulfilled, but are presented only in order +to suggest what _might be_ or _might have been_ true; thus,-- + + If these things _were_ true, society could not hold together. + --LOWELL. + + _Did not_ my writings _produce_ me some solid pudding, the great + deficiency of praise would have quite discouraged me.--FRANKLIN. + + _Had_ he for once _cast_ all such feelings aside, and _striven_ + energetically to save Ney, it _would have cast_ such an enhancing + light over all his glories, that we cannot but regret its + absence.--BAYNE. + + + NOTE.--Conditional sentences are usually introduced by _if_, + _though_, _except_, _unless_, etc.; but when the verb precedes + the subject, the conjunction is often omitted: for example, + "_Were I bidden_ to say how the highest genius could be most + advantageously employed," etc. + + +Exercise. + +In the following conditional clauses, tell whether each verb is +indicative or subjunctive, and what kind of condition:-- + + 1. The voice, if he speak to you, is of similar physiognomy, + clear, melodious, and sonorous.--CARLYLE. + + 2. Were you so distinguished from your neighbors, would you, do + you think, be any the happier?--THACKERAY. + + 3. Epaminondas, if he was the man I take him for, would have sat + still with joy and peace, if his lot had been mine.--EMERSON. + + 4. If a damsel had the least smattering of literature, she was + regarded as a prodigy.--MACAULAY. + + 5. I told him, although it were the custom of our learned in + Europe to steal inventions from each other,... yet I would take + such caution that he should have the honor entire.--SWIFT. + + 6. If he had reason to dislike him, he had better not have + written, since he [Byron] was dead.--N.P. WILLIS. + + 7. If it were prostrated to the ground by a profane hand, what + native of the city would not mourn over its fall?--GAYARRE. + + 8. But in no case could it be justified, except it be for a + failure of the association or union to effect the object for + which it was created.--CALHOUN. + + + +II. Subjunctive of Purpose. + + +223. The subjunctive, especially _be_, _may_, _might_, and _should_, +is used to express purpose, the clause being introduced by _that_ or +_lest_; as,-- + + It was necessary, he supposed, to drink strong beer, that he + _might be_ strong to labor.--FRANKLIN. + + I have been the more particular...that you _may compare_ such + unlikely beginnings with the figure I have since made + there.--_Id._ + + He [Roderick] with sudden impulse that way rode, To tell of what + had passed, lest in the strife They _should engage_ with Julian's + men.--SOUTHEY. + + + +III. Subjunctive of Result. + + +224. The subjunctive may represent the result toward which an action +tends:-- + + So many thoughts move to and fro, + That vain it _were_ her eyes to close. + --COLERIDGE. + + So live, that when thy summons comes to join + The innumerable caravan... + Thou _go_ not, like the quarry-slave at night. + --BRYANT. + + + +IV. In Temporal Clauses. + +225. The English subjunctive, like the Latin, is sometimes used in a +clause to express the time when an action is to take place. + + Let it rise, till it _meet_ the sun in his coming.--D. WEBSTER. + + Rise up, before it _be_ too late!--HAWTHORNE. + + But it will not be long + Ere this _be thrown_ aside. + --WORDSWORTH. + + + +V. In Indirect Questions. + + +226. The subjunctive is often found in indirect questions, the +answer being regarded as doubtful. + + Ask the great man if there _be_ none greater.--EMERSON + + What the best arrangement _were_, none of us could say.--CARLYLE. + + Whether it _were_ morning or whether it _were_ afternoon, in her + confusion she had not distinctly known.--DE QUINCEY. + + + +VI. Expressing a Wish. + + +227. After a verb of wishing, the subjunctive is regularly used in +the dependent clause. + + The transmigiation of souls is no fable. I would it _were_! + --EMERSON. + + Bright star! Would I _were_ steadfast as thou art!--KEATS. + + I've wished that little isle _had_ wings, + And we, within its fairy bowers, + _Were wafted_ off to seas unknown. + --MOORE. + + + +VII. In a Noun Clause. + + +[Sidenote: _Subject._] + +228. The noun clause, in its various uses as subject, object, in +apposition, etc., often contains a subjunctive. + + The essence of originality is not that it _be_ new.--CARLYLE + +[Sidenote: _Apposition or logical subject._] + + To appreciate the wild and sharp flavors of those October fruits, + it is necessary that you _be breathing_ the sharp October or + November air.--THOREAU. + +[Sidenote: _Complement._] + + The first merit, that which admits neither substitute nor + equivalent, is, that everything _be_ in its place.--COLERIDGE. + +[Sidenote: _Object._] + + As sure as Heaven shall rescue me, I have no thought what men + they _be_.--COLERIDGE. + + Some might lament that I _were_ cold.--SHELLEY. + +[Sidenote: _After verbs of commanding._] + +This subjunctive is very frequent after verbs of _commanding_. + + See that there _be_ no traitors in your camp.--TENNYSON. + + Come, tell me all that thou hast seen, + And look thou _tell_ me true. + --SCOTT. + + See that thy scepter _be_ heavy on his head.--DE QUINCEY. + + + +VIII. Concessive Clauses. + + +229. The concession may be expressed-- + +(1) In the nature of the verb; for example,-- + + _Be_ the matter how it may, Gabriel Grub was afflicted with + rheumatism to the end of his days.--DICKENS. + + _Be_ the appeal _made_ to the understanding or the heart, the + sentence is the same--that rejects it.--BROUGHAM + +(2) By an indefinite relative word, which may be + +(_a_) _Pronoun._ + + Whatever _betide_, we'll turn aside, + And see the Braes of Yarrow. + --WORDSWORTH. + +(_b_) _Adjective._ + + That hunger of applause, of cash, or whatsoever victual it _may + be_, is the ultimate fact of man's life.--CARLYLE. + +(_c_) _Adverb._ + + Wherever he _dream_ under mountain or stream, + The spirit he loves remains. + --SHELLEY. + + + +Prevalence of the Subjunctive Mood. + + +230. As shown by the wide range of literature from which these +examples are selected, the subjunctive is very much used in literary +English, especially by those who are artistic and exact in the +expression of their thought. + +At the present day, however, the subjunctive is becoming less and +less used. Very many of the sentences illustrating the use of the +subjunctive mood could be replaced by numerous others using the +indicative to express the same thoughts. + +The three uses of the subjunctive now most frequent are, to express a +wish, a concession, and condition contrary to fact. + +In spoken English, the subjunctive _were_ is much used in a wish or a +condition contrary to fact, but hardly any other subjunctive forms +are. + +It must be remembered, though, that many of the verbs in the +subjunctive have the same form as the indicative. Especially is this +true of unreal conditions in past time; for example,-- + + Were we of open sense as the Greeks were, we _had found_ [should + have found] a poem here.--CARLYLE. + + + +IMPERATIVE MOOD. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +231. The imperative mood is the form of the verb used in direct +commands, entreaties, or requests. + + +[Sidenote: _Usually second person._] + +232. The imperative is naturally used mostly with the second +person, since commands are directed to a person addressed. + +(1) _Command._ + + _Call up_ the shades of Demosthenes and Cicero to vouch for your + words; _point_ to their immortal works.--J.Q. ADAMS. + + _Honor_ all men; _love_ all men; _fear_ none.--CHANNING. + +(2) _Entreaty._ + + Oh, from these sterner aspects of thy face + _Spare_ me and mine, nor _let_ us need the wrath + Of the mad unchained elements. + --BRYANT. + +(3) _Request._ + + "_Hush_! mother," whispered Kit. "_Come_ along with me."--DICKENS + + _Tell_ me, how was it you thought of coming here?--_Id._ + +[Sidenote: _Sometimes with_ first person _in the plural_.] + +But the imperative may be used with the plural of the first person. +Since the first person plural person is not really I + I, but I + you, +or I + they, etc., we may use the imperative with _we_ in a command, +request, etc., to _you_ implied in it. This is scarcely ever found +outside of poetry. + + _Part we_ in friendship from your land, + And, noble earl, receive my hand. + --SCOTT. + + Then _seek we_ not their camp--for there + The silence dwells of my despair. + --CAMPBELL. + + _Break we_ our watch up.--SHAKESPEARE. + +Usually this is expressed by _let_ with the objective: "_Let_ us go." +And the same with the third person: "_Let_ him be accursed." + + +Exercises on the Moods. + +(_a_) Tell the mood of each verb in these sentences, and what special +use it is of that mood:-- + + 1. Wherever the standard of freedom and independence has been or + shall be unfurled, there will her heart and her prayers be. + + 2. Mark thou this difference, child of earth! + While each performs his part, + Not all the lip can speak is worth + The silence of the heart. + + 3. Oh, that I might be admitted to thy presence! that mine were + the supreme delight of knowing thy will! + + 4. 'Twere worth ten years of peaceful life, + One glance at their array! + + 5. Whatever inconvenience ensue, nothing is to be preferred + before justice. + + 6. The vigorous sun would catch it up at eve + And use it for an anvil till he had filled + The shelves of heaven with burning thunderbolts. + + 7. Meet is it changes should control + Our being, lest we rust in ease. + + 8. Quoth she, "The Devil take the goose, + And God forget the stranger!" + + 9. Think not that I speak for your sakes. + + 10. "Now tread we a measure!" said young Lochinvar. + + 11. Were that a just return? Were that Roman magnanimity? + + 12. Well; how he may do his work, whether he do it right or + wrong, or do it at all, is a point which no man in the world has + taken the pains to think of. + + 13. He is, let him live where else he like, in what pomps and + prosperities he like, no literary man. + + 14. Could we one day complete the immense figure which these + flagrant points compose! + + 15. "Oh, then, my dear madam," cried he, "tell me where I may + find my poor, ruined, but repentant child." + + 16. That sheaf of darts, will it not fall unbound, + Except, disrobed of thy vain earthly vaunt, + Thou bring it to be blessed where saints and angels haunt? + + 17. Forget thyself to marble, till + With a sad leaden downward cast + Thou fix them on the earth as fast. + + 18. He, as though an instrument, + Blew mimic hootings to the silent owls, + That they might answer him. + + 19. From the moss violets and jonquils peep, + And dart their arrowy odor through the brain, + Till you might faint with that delicious pain. + + 20. That a man parade his doubt, and get to imagine that debating + and logic is the triumph and true work of what intellect he has; + alas! this is as if you should overturn the tree. + + 21. The fat earth feed thy branchy root + That under deeply strikes! + The northern morning o'er thee shoot, + High up in silver spikes! + + 22. Though abyss open under abyss, and opinion displace opinion, + all are at last contained in the Eternal cause. + + 23. God send Rome one such other sight! + + 24. "Mr. Marshall," continued Old Morgan, "see that no one + mentions the United States to the prisoner." + + 25. If there is only one woman in the nation who claims the right + to vote, she ought to have it. + + 26. Though he were dumb, it would speak. + + 27. Meantime, whatever she did,--whether it were in display of + her own matchless talents, or whether it were as one member of a + general party,--nothing could exceed the amiable, kind, and + unassuming deportment of Mrs. Siddons. + + 28. It makes a great difference to the force of any sentence + whether there be a man behind it or no. + +(_b_) Find sentences with five verbs in the indicative mood, five in +the subjunctive, five in the imperative. + + +TENSE. + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +233. _Tense_ means _time_. The tense of a verb is the form or use +indicating the time of an action or being. + +[Sidenote: _Tenses in English._] + +Old English had only two tenses,--the present tense, which represented +present and future time; and the past tense. We still use the present +for the future in such expressions as, "I _go_ away to-morrow;" "If he +_comes_, tell him to wait." + +But English of the present day not only has a tense for each of the +natural time divisions,--present, past, and future,--but has other +tenses to correspond with those of highly inflected languages, such as +Latin and Greek. + +The distinct inflections are found only in the present and past +tenses, however: the others are compounds of verbal forms with +various helping verbs, called auxiliaries; such as _be_, _have_, +_shall_, _will_. + +[Sidenote: _The tenses in detail._] + +234. Action or being may be represented as occurring in present, +past, or future time, by means of the present, the past, and the +future tense. It may also be represented as _finished_ in present or +past or future time by means of the present perfect, past perfect, and +future perfect tenses. + +Not only is this so: there are what are called definite forms of +these tenses, showing more exactly the time of the action or being. +These make the English speech even more exact than other languages, as +will be shown later on, in the conjugations. + + +PERSON AND NUMBER. + +235. The English verb has never had full inflections for number and +person, as the classical languages have. + +When the older pronoun _thou_ was in use, there was a form of the verb +to correspond to it, or agree with it, as, "Thou walk_est_," present; +"Thou walked_st_," past; also, in the third person singular, a form +ending in -_eth_, as, "It is not in man that walk_eth_, to direct his +steps." + +But in ordinary English of the present day there is practically only +one ending for person and number. This is the third person, singular +number; as, "He walk_s_;" and this only in the present tense +indicative. This is important in questions of agreement when we come +to syntax. + + + +CONJUGATION. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +236. Conjugation is the regular arrangement of the forms of the +verb in the various voices, moods, tenses, persons, and numbers. + +In classical languages, conjugation means _joining together_ the +numerous endings to the stem of the verb; but in English, inflections +are so few that conjugation means merely the exhibition of the forms +and the different verb phrases that express the relations of voice, +mood, tense, etc. + +[Sidenote: _Few forms._] + +237. Verbs in modern English have only four or five forms; for +example, _walk_ has _walk_, _walks_, _walked_, _walking_, sometimes +adding the old forms _walkest_, _walkedst_, _walketh_. Such verbs as +_choose_ have five,--_choose_, _chooses_, _chose_, _choosing_, +_chosen_ (old, _choosest_, _chooseth_, _chosest_). + +The verb _be_ has more forms, since it is composed of several +different roots,--_am_, _are_, _is_, _were_, _been_, etc. + +238. INFLECTIONS OF THE VERB _BE_. + + + Indicative Mood. + + PRESENT TENSE. | PAST TENSE. + | + _Singular_ _Plural_ | _Singular_ _Plural_ + | +1. I am We are | 1. I was We were +2. You are You are | 2. You were You were + (thou art) | (thou wast, wert) +3. [He] is [They] are | 3. [He] was [They were] + + + Subjunctive Mood. + + PRESENT TENSE. | PAST TENSE. + | + _Singular_ _Plural_ | _Singular_ _Plural_ + | +1. I be We be | 1. I were We were +2. You (thou) be You be | 2. You were You were + | (thou wert) +3. [He] be [They] be | 3. [He] were [They] were + + + Imperative Mood. + + PRESENT TENSE, _Singular and Plural_, Be. + +[Sidenote: _Remarks on the verb_ be.] + +239. This conjugation is pieced out with three different roots: (1) +_am_, _is_; (2) _was_, _were_; (3) _be_. + +Instead of the plural _are_, Old English had _beoth_ and _sind_ or +_sindon_, same as the German _sind_. _Are_ is supposed to have come +from the Norse language. + +The old indicative third person plural _be_ is sometimes found in +literature, though it is usually a dialect form; for example,-- + + Where _be_ the sentries who used to salute as the Royal chariots + drove in and out?--THACKERAY + + Where _be_ the gloomy shades, and desolate mountains?--WHITTIER + +[Sidenote: _Uses of_ be.] + +240. The forms of the verb _be_ have several uses:-- + +(1) _As principal verbs._ + + The light that never _was_ on sea and land.--WORDSWORTH. + +(2) _As auxiliary verbs_, in four ways,-- + +(_a_) With verbal forms in _-ing_ (imperfect participle) to form the +definite tenses. + + Broadswords _are maddening_ in the rear,--Each broadsword bright + _was brandishing_ like beam of light.--SCOTT. + +(_b_) With the past participle in _-ed_, _-en_, etc., to form the +passive voice. + + By solemn vision and bright silver dream, + His infancy _was nurtured_. + --SHELLEY. + +(_c_) With past participle of intransitive verbs, being equivalent to +the present perfect and past perfect tenses active; as, + + When we _are gone_ + From every object dear to mortal sight. + --WORDSWORTH + + We drank tea, which _was_ now _become_ an occasional + banquet.--GOLDSMITH. + +(_d_) With the infinitive, to express intention, obligation, +condition, etc.; thus, + + It _was to have been called_ the Order of Minerva.--THACKERAY. + + Ingenuity and cleverness _are to be rewarded_ by State + prizes.--_Id._ + + If I _were to explain_ the motion of a body falling to the + ground.--BURKE + + +241. INFLECTIONS OF THE VERB _CHOOSE_. + + Indicative Mood. + + PRESENT TENSE. + + _Singular._ _Plural._ + + 1. I choose We choose + 2. You choose You choose + 3. [He] chooses [They] choose + + PAST TENSE. + + _Singular._ _Plural._ + + 1. I chose We chose + 2. You chose You chose + 3. [He] chose [They] chose + + Subjunctive Mood. + + PRESENT TENSE. + + _Singular._ _Plural._ + + 1. I choose We choose + 2. You choose You choose + 3. [He] choose [They] choose + + PAST TENSE. + + _Singular._ _Plural._ + + 1. I chose We chose + 2. You chose You chose + 3. [He] chose [They] chose + + Imperative Mood. + + PRESENT TENSE, _Singular and Plural_, Choose. + + +FULL CONJUGATION OF THE VERB _CHOOSE_. + + +[Sidenote: _Machinery of a verb in the voices, tenses, etc._] + +242. In addition to the above _inflected_ forms, there are many +periphrastic or _compound_ forms, made up of auxiliaries with the +infinitives and participles. Some of these have been indicated in +Sec. 240, (2). + +The ordinary tenses yet to be spoken of are made up as follows:-- + +(1) _Future tense_, by using _shall_ and _will_ with the simple or +root form of the verb; as, "I _shall be_," "He _will choose._" + +(2) _Present perfect_, _past perfect_, _future perfect_, tenses, by +placing _have_, _had_, and _shall_ (or _will_) _have_ before the past +participle of any verb; as, "I _have gone_" (present perfect), "I _had +gone_" (past perfect), "I _shall have gone_" (future perfect). + +(3) The _definite form_ of each tense, by using auxiliaries with the +imperfect participle active; as, "I _am running_," "They _had been +running_." + +(4) The _passive forms_, by using the forms of the verb _be_ before +the past participle of verbs; as, "I _was chosen_," "You _are +chosen_." + + +243. The following scheme will show how rich our language is in verb +phrases to express every variety of meaning. Only the third person, +singular number, of each tense, will be given. + + ACTIVE VOICE. + + Indicative Mood. + + + _Present._ He chooses. + _Present definite._ He is choosing. + _Past._ He chose. + _Past definite._ He was choosing. + _Future._ He will choose. + _Future definite._ He will he choosing. + _Present perfect._ He has chosen. + _Present perfect definite._ He has been choosing. + _Past perfect._ He had chosen. + _Past perfect definite._ He had been choosing. + _Future perfect._ He will have chosen. + _Future perfect definite._ He will have been choosing. + + Subjunctive Mood. + + _Present._ [If, though, he choose. + _Present definite._ lest, etc.] he be choosing. + _Past._ " he chose (or were to choose). + _Past definite._ " he were choosing + (or were to be choosing). + _Present perfect._ " he have chosen. + _Present perfect definite._ " he have been choosing. + _Past perfect._ " Same as indicative. + _Past perfect definite._ " " " + + + + Imperative Mood. + + + _Present._ (2d per.) Choose. + _Present definite._ " Be choosing. + +NOTE.--Since participles and infinitives are not really verbs, but +verbals, they will be discussed later (Sec. 262). + + + PASSIVE VOICE. + + Indicative Mood. + + + _Present._ He is chosen. + _Present definite._ He is being chosen. + _Past._ He was chosen. + _Past definite._ He was being chosen. + _Future._ He will be chosen. + _Future definite._ None. + _Present perfect._ He has been chosen. + _Present perfect definite._ None. + _Past perfect._ He had been chosen. + _Past perfect definite._ None. + _Future perfect._ He will have been chosen. + _Future perfect definite._ None. + + Subjunctive Mood. + + + _Present._. [If, though, he be chosen. + _Present definite._ lest, etc.] None. + _Past._ " he were chosen + (or were to be chosen). + _Past definite._ " he were being chosen. + _Present perfect._ " he have been chosen. + _Present perfect definite._ " None. + _Past Perfect._ " he had been chosen. + _Past perfect definite._ " None. + + + Imperative Mood. + + + _Present tense._ (2d per.) Be chosen. + +Also, in _affirmative sentences_, the indicative present and past +tenses have emphatic forms made up of _do_ and _did_ with the +infinitive or simple form; as, "He _does strike_," "He _did strike_." + +[_Note to Teacher_.--This table is not to be learned now; if learned +at all, it should be as practice work on strong and weak verb forms. +Exercises should be given, however, to bring up sentences containing +such of these conjugation forms as the pupil will find readily in +literature.] + + + +VERBS CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO FORM. + +[Sidenote: _Kinds._] + +244. According to form, verbs are strong or weak. + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +A strong verb forms its past tense by changing the vowel of the +present tense form, but adds no ending; as, _run_, _ran_; _drive_, +_drove_. + +A weak verb always adds an ending to the present to form the past +tense, and _may_ or _may not_ change the vowel: as, _beg_, _begged_; +_lay_, _laid_; _sleep_, _slept_; _catch_, _caught_. + + +245. TABLE OF STRONG VERBS. + +NOTE. Some of these also have weak forms, which are in parentheses + + _Present Tense._ _Past Tense._ _Past Participle._ + + abide abode abode + arise arose arisen + awake awoke (awaked) awoke (awaked) + bear bore {borne (active) + {born (passive) + begin began begun + behold beheld beheld + bid bade, bid bidden, bid + bind bound {bound, + {[_adj._ bounden] + bite bit bitten, bit + blow blew blown + break broke broken + chide chid chidden, chid + choose chose chosen + cleave clove, clave (cleft) cloven (cleft) + climb [clomb] climbed climbed + cling clung clung + come came come + crow crew (crowed) (crowed) + dig dug dug + do did done + draw drew drawn + drink drank {drunk, drank + {[_adj._ drunken] + drive drove driven + eat ate, eat eaten, eat + fall fell fallen + fight fought fought + find found found + fling flung flung + fly flew flown + forbear forbore forborne + forget forgot forgotten + forsake forsook forsaken + freeze froze frozen + get got got [gotten] + give gave given + go went gone + grind ground ground + grow grew grown + hang hung (hanged) hung (hanged) + hold held held + know knew known + lie lay lain + ride rode ridden + ring rang rung + run ran run + see saw seen + shake shook shaken + shear shore (sheared) shorn (sheared) + shine shone shone + shoot shot shot + shrink shrank or shrunk shrunk + shrive shrove shriven + sing sang or sung sung + sink sank or sunk sunk _[adj._ sunken] + sit sat [sate] sat + slay slew slain + slide slid slidden, slid + sling slung slung + slink slunk slunk + smite smote smitten + speak spoke spoken + spin spun spun + spring sprang, sprung sprung + stand stood stood + stave stove (staved) (staved) + steal stole stolen + stick stuck stuck + sting stung stung + stink stunk, stank stunk + stride strode stridden + strike struck struck, stricken + string strung strung + strive strove striven + swear swore sworn + swim swam or swum swum + swing swung swung + take took taken + tear tore torn + thrive throve (thrived) thriven (thrived) + throw threw thrown + tread trod trodden, trod + wear wore worn + weave wove woven + win won won + wind wound wound + wring wrung wrung + write wrote written + + + +Remarks on Certain Verb Forms. + +246. Several of the perfect participles are seldom used except as +adjectives: as, "his _bounden_ duty," "the _cloven_ hoof," "a +_drunken_ wretch," "a _sunken_ snag." _Stricken_ is used mostly of +diseases; as, "_stricken_ with paralysis." + +The verb bear (to bring forth) is peculiar in having one participle +(_borne_) for the active, and another (_born_) for the passive. When +it means _to carry_ or to _endure_, _borne_ is also a passive. + +The form clomb is not used in prose, but is much used in vulgar +English, and sometimes occurs in poetry; as,-- + + Thou hast _clomb_ aloft.--WORDSWORTH + + Or pine grove whither woodman never _clomb_.--COLERIDGE + +The forms of cleave are really a mixture of two verbs,--one meaning +_to adhere_ or _cling_; the other, _to split_. The former used to be +_cleave_, _cleaved_, _cleaved_; and the latter, _cleave_, _clave_ or +_clove_, _cloven_. But the latter took on the weak form _cleft_ in the +past tense and past participle,--as (from Shakespeare), "O Hamlet! +thou hast _cleft_ my heart in twain,"--while _cleave_ (to cling) +sometimes has _clove_, as (from Holmes), "The old Latin tutor _clove_ +to Virgilius Maro." In this confusion of usage, only one set remains +certain,--_cleave_, _cleft_, _cleft_ (to split). + +Crew is seldom found in present-day English. + + Not a cock _crew_, nor a dog barked.--IRVING. + + Our cock, which always _crew_ at eleven, now told us it was time + for repose.--GOLDSMITH. + +Historically, drunk is the one correct past participle of the verb +_drink_. But _drunk_ is very much used as an adjective, instead of +_drunken_ (meaning intoxicated); and, probably to avoid confusion with +this, drank is a good deal used as a past participle: thus,-- + + We had each _drank_ three times at the well.--B. TAYLOR. + + This liquor _was_ generally _drank_ by Wood and Billings. + --THACKERAY. + +Sometimes in literary English, especially in that of an earlier +period, it is found that the verb eat has the past tense and past +participle _eat_ (et), instead of _ate_ and _eaten_; as, for +example,-- + + It ate the food it ne'er had _eat_.--COLERIDGE. + + How fairy Mab the junkets _eat_.--MILTON. + + The island princes overbold + Have _eat_ our substance.--TENNYSON. + +This is also very much used in spoken and vulgar English. + +The form gotten is little used, _got_ being the preferred form of +past participle as well as past tense. One example out of many is,-- + + We _had_ all _got_ safe on shore.--DE FOE. + +Hung and hanged both are used as the past tense and past +participle of _hang_; but _hanged_ is the preferred form when we speak +of execution by hanging; as, + + The butler _was hanged_.--_Bible._ + +The verb sat is sometimes spelled _sate_; for example,-- + + Might we have _sate_ and talked where gowans blow.--WORDSWORTH. + + He _sate_ him down, and seized a pen.--BYRON. + + "But I _sate_ still and finished my plaiting."--KINGSLEY. + +Usually shear is a weak verb. _Shorn_ and _shore_ are not commonly +used: indeed, _shore_ is rare, even in poetry. + + This heard Geraint, and grasping at his sword, + _Shore_ thro' the swarthy neck.--TENNYSON. + +_Shorn_ is used sometimes as a participial adjective, as "a _shorn_ +lamb," but not much as a participle. We usually say, "The sheep were +_sheared_" instead of "The sheep were _shorn_." + +Went is borrowed as the past tense of _go_ from the old verb _wend_, +which is seldom used except in poetry; for example,-- + + If, maiden, thou would'st _wend_ with me + To leave both tower and town.--SCOTT. + +Exercises. + +(_a_) From the table (Sec. 245), make out lists of verbs having the +same vowel changes as each of the following:-- + + 1. Fall, fell, fallen. + + 2. Begin, began, begun. + + 3. Find, found, found. + + 4. Give, gave, given. + + 5. Drive, drove, driven. + + 6. Throw, threw, thrown. + + 7. Fling, flung, flung. + + 8. Break, broke, broken. + + 9. Shake, shook, shaken. + + 10. Freeze, froze, frozen. + +(_b_) Find sentences using ten past-tense forms of strong verbs. + +(_c_) Find sentences using ten past participles of strong verbs. + +[_To the Teacher_,--These exercises should be continued for several +lessons, for full drill on the forms.] + + + +DEFECTIVE STRONG VERBS. + + +247. There are several verbs which are lacking in one or more +principal parts. They are as follows:-- + + PRESENT. PAST. | PRESENT. PAST. + | + may might | [ought] ought + can could | shall should + [must] must | will would + + +248. May is used as either indicative or subjunctive, as it has two +meanings. It is indicative when it expresses _permission_, or, as it +sometimes does, _ability_, like the word _can_: it is subjunctive when +it expresses doubt as to the reality of an action, or when it +expresses wish, purpose, etc. + +[Sidenote: _Indicative Use: Permission. Ability._] + + If I _may_ lightly employ the Miltonic figure, "far off his + coming shines."--WINIER. + + A stripling arm _might_ sway + A mass no host could raise.--SCOTT. + + His superiority none _might_ question.--CHANNING. + +[Sidenote: _Subjunctive use._] + + In whatever manner the separate parts of a constitution _may_ be + arranged, there is one general principle, etc.--PAINE. + +[Sidenote: (_See also Sec. 223._)] + + And from her fair and unpolluted flesh + _May_ violets spring! + --SHAKESPEARE. + + +249. Can is used in the indicative only. The _l_ in _could_ did +not belong there originally, but came through analogy with _should_ +and _would_. _Could_ may be subjunctive, as in Sec. 220. + +250. Must is historically a past-tense form, from the obsolete +verb _motan_, which survives in the sentence, "So _mote_ it be." +_Must_ is present or past tense, according to the infinitive used. + + All _must concede_ to him a sublime power of action.--CHANNING + + This, of course, _must have been_ an ocular + deception.--HAWTHORNE. + +251. The same remarks apply to ought, which is historically the +past tense of the verb _owe_. Like _must_, it is used only in the +indicative mood; as, + + The just imputations on our own faith _ought_ first _to be + removed_.... Have we valuable territories and important + posts...which _ought_ long since _to have been surrendered_?--A. + HAMILTON. + +It will be noticed that all the other defective verbs take the pure +infinitive without _to_, while _ought_ always has _to_. + +Shall and Will. + +252. The principal trouble in the use of _shall_ and _will_ is the +disposition, especially in the United States, to use _will_ and +_would_, to the neglect of _shall_ and _should_, with pronouns of the +first person; as, "I think I _will_ go." + +[Sidenote: _Uses of_ shall _and_ should.] + +The following distinctions must be observed:-- + +(1) With the FIRST PERSON, shall and should are used,-- + +[Sidenote: _Futurity and questions--first person._] + +(_a_) In making simple statements or predictions about future time; +as,-- + + The time will come full soon, I _shall_ be gone.--L.C. MOULTON. + +(_b_) In questions asking for orders, or implying obligation or +authority resting upon the subject; as,-- + + With respect to novels, what _shall_ I say?--N. WEBSTER. + + How _shall_ I describe the luster which at that moment burst upon + my vision?--C. BROCKDEN BROWN. + +[Sidenote: _Second and third persons._] + +(2) With the SECOND AND THIRD PERSONS, _shall_ and _should_ are +used,-- + +(_a_) To express authority, in the form of command, promise, or +confident prediction. The following are examples:-- + + Never mind, my lad, whilst I live thou _shalt_ never want a + friend to stand by thee.--IRVING. + + They _shall_ have venison to eat, and corn to hoe.--COOPER. + + The sea _shall_ crush thee; yea, the ponderous wave up the loose + beach _shall_ grind and scoop thy grave.--THAXTER. + + She _should_ not walk, he said, through the dust and heat of + the noonday; + Nay, she _should_ ride like a queen, not plod along like a + peasant.--LONGFELLOW. + +(_b_) In _indirect quotations_, to express the same idea that the +original speaker put forth (i.e., future action); for example,-- + + He declares that he _shall_ win the purse from you.--BULWER. + + She rejects his suit with scorn, but assures him that she _shall_ + make great use of her power over him.--MACAULAY. + + Fielding came up more and more bland and smiling, with the + conviction that he _should_ win in the end.--A. LARNED. + + Those who had too presumptuously concluded that they _should_ + pass without combat were something disconcerted.--SCOTT. + +(_c_) With _direct questions_ of the second person, when the answer +expected would express simple futurity; thus,-- + + "_Should_ you like to go to school at Canterbury?"--DICKENS. + +[Sidenote: _First, second and third persons._] + +(3) With ALL THREE PERSONS,-- + +(_a_) _Should_ is used with the meaning of obligation, and is +equivalent to _ought_. + + I never was what I _should_ be.--H. JAMES, JR. + + Milton! thou _should'st_ be living at this hour.--WORDSWORTH. + + He _should_ not flatter himself with the delusion that he can + make or unmake the reputation of other men.--WINTER. + +(_b_) _Shall_ and _should_ are both used in _dependent clauses_ of +condition, time, purpose, etc.; for example,-- + + When thy mind + _Shall_ be a mansion for all stately forms.--WORDSWORTH. + + Suppose this back-door gossip _should_ be utterly blundering and + untrue, would any one wonder?--THACKERAY. + + Jealous lest the sky _should_ have a listener.--BYRON. + + If thou _should'st_ ever come by chance or choice to + Modena.--ROGERS. + + If I _should_ be where I no more can hear thy voice.--WORDSWORTH. + + That accents and looks so winning _should_ disarm me of my + resolution, was to be expected.--C.B. BROWN. + + +253. Will and would are used as follows:-- + +[Sidenote: _Authority as to future action--first person._] + +(1) With the FIRST PERSON, _will_ and _would_ are used to express +determination as to the future, or a promise; as, for example,-- + + I _will_ go myself now, and _will_ not return until all is + finished.--CABLE. + + And promised...that I _would_ do him justice, as the sole + inventor.--SWIFT. + +[Sidenote: _Disguising a command._] + +(2) With the SECOND PERSON, _will_ is used to express command. This +puts the order more mildly, as if it were merely expected action; +as,-- + + Thou _wilt_ take the skiff, Roland, and two of my people,... and + fetch off certain plate and belongings.--SCOTT. + + You _will_ proceed to Manassas at as early a moment as + practicable, and mark on the grounds the works, etc.--_War + Records._ + +[Sidenote: _Mere futurity._] + +(3) With both SECOND AND THIRD PERSONS, _will_ and _would_ are used to +express simple futurity, action merely expected to occur; for +example,-- + + All this _will_ sound wild and chimerical.--BURKE. + + She _would_ tell you that punishment is the reward of the + wicked.--LANDOR. + + When I am in town, _you'll_ always have somebody to sit with you. + To be sure, so you _will_.--DICKENS. + +(4) With FIRST, SECOND, AND THIRD PERSONS, _would_ is used to express +a _wish_,--the original meaning of the word _will_; for example,-- + +[Sidenote: _Subject_ I _omitted: often so._] + + _Would_ that a momentary emanation from thy glory would visit + me!--C.B. BROWN. + + Thine was a dangerous gift, when thou wast born, The gift of + Beauty. _Would_ thou hadst it not.--ROGERS + + It shall be gold if thou _wilt_, but thou shalt answer to me for + the use of it.--SCOTT. + + What _wouldst_ thou have a good great man obtain?--COLERIDGE. + +(5) With the THIRD PERSON, _will_ and _would_ often denote an action +as customary, without regard to future time; as, + + They _will_ go to Sunday schools, through storms their brothers + are afraid of.... They _will_ stand behind a table at a fair all + day.--HOLMES + + On a slight suspicion, they _would_ cut off the hands of numbers + of the natives, for punishment or intimidation.--BANCROFT. + + In this stately chair _would_ he sit, and this magnificent pipe + _would_ he smoke, shaking his right knee with a constant + motion.--IRVING. + + +Conjugation of _Shall_ and _Will_ as Auxiliaries (with _Choose_). + + +254. To express simply expected action:-- + + ACTIVE VOICE. PASSIVE VOICE. + + _Singular_. _Singular_. + + 1. I shall choose. I shall be chosen. + 2. You will choose. You will be chosen. + 3. [He] will choose. [He] will be chosen. + + _Plural_. _Plural_. + + 1. We shall choose. We shall be chosen. + 2. You will choose. You will be chosen. + 3. [They] will choose. [They] will be chosen. + + To express determination, promise, etc.:-- + + ACTIVE VOICE. PASSIVE VOICE. + + _Singular_. _Singular_. + + 1. I will choose. I will be chosen. + 2. You shall choose. You shall be chosen. + 3. [He] shall choose. [He] shall be chosen. + + ACTIVE VOICE. PASSIVE VOICE. + + _Plural_. _Plural_. + + 1. We will choose. 1. We will be chosen. + 2. You shall choose. 2. You shall be chosen. + 3. [They] shall choose. 3. [They] shall be chosen. + + +Exercises on _Shall_ and _Will_. + +(_a_) From Secs. 252 and 253, write out a summary or outline of the +various uses of _shall_ and _will_. + +(_b_) Examine the following sentences, and justify the use of _shall_ +and _will_, or correct them if wrongly used:-- + +1. Thou art what I would be, yet only seem. + +2. We would be greatly mistaken if we thought so. + +3. Thou shalt have a suit, and that of the newest cut; the wardrobe +keeper shall have orders to supply you. + +4. "I shall not run," answered Herbert stubbornly. + +5. He informed us, that in the course of another day's march we would +reach the prairies on the banks of the Grand Canadian. + +6. What shall we do with him? This is the sphinx-like riddle which we +must solve if we would not be eaten. + +7. Will not our national character be greatly injured? Will we not be +classed with the robbers and destroyers of mankind? + +8. Lucy stood still, very anxious, and wondering whether she should +see anything alive. + +9. I would be overpowered by the feeling of my disgrace. + +10. No, my son; whatever cash I send you is yours: you will spend it +as you please, and I have nothing to say. + +11. But I will doubtless find some English person of whom to make +inquiries. + +12. Without having attended to this, we will be at a loss to +understand several passages in the classics. + +13. "I am a wayfarer," the stranger said, "and would like permission +to remain with you a little while." + +14. The beast made a sluggish movement, then, as if he would have more +of the enchantment, stirred her slightly with his muzzle. + + +WEAK VERBS. + + +255. Those weak verbs which add _-d_ or _-ed_ to form the past tense +and past participle, and have no change of vowel, are so easily +recognized as to need no special treatment. Some of them are already +given as secondary forms of the strong verbs. + +But the rest, which may be called irregular weak verbs, need some +attention and explanation. + + +256. The irregular weak verbs are divided into two classes,-- + +[Sidenote: _The two classes of irregular weak verbs._] + +(1) Those which retain the _-d_ or _-t_ in the past tense, with some +change of form for the past tense and past participle. + +(2) Those which end in _-d_ or _-t_, and have lost the ending which +formerly was added to this. + +The old ending to verbs of Class II. was _-de_ or _-te_; as,-- + + This worthi man ful wel his wit _bisette_ [used].--CHAUCER. + + Of smale houndes _hadde_ she, that sche _fedde_ With rosted + flessh, or mylk and wastel breed.--_Id._ + +This ending has now dropped off, leaving some weak verbs with the same +form throughout: as set, set, set; put, put, put. + + +257. Irregular Weak Verbs.--Class I. + + _Present Tense_. _Past Tense_. _Past Participle_. + + bereave bereft, bereave bereft, bereaved + beseech besought besought + burn burned, burnt burnt + buy bought bought + catch caught caught + creep crept crept + deal dealt dealt + dream dreamt, dreamed dreamt, dreamed + dwell dwelt dwelt + feel felt felt + flee fled fled + have had had (_once_ haved) + hide hid hidden, hid + keep kept kept + kneel knelt knelt + lay laid laid + lean leaned, leant leaned, leant + leap leaped, leapt leaped, leapt + leave left left + lose lost lost + make made (_once_ maked) made + mean meant meant + pay paid paid + pen [inclose] penned, pen penned, pent + say said said + seek sought sought + sell sold sold + shoe shod shod + sleep slept slept + spell spelled, spelt spelt + spill spilt spilt + stay staid, stayed staid, stayed + sweep swept swept + teach taught taught + tell told told + think thought thought + weep wept wept + work worked, wrought worked, wrought + + +258. Irregular Weak Verbs.--Class II. + + _Present Tense_. _Past Tense_. _Past Participle_. + + bend bent, bended bent, bended + bleed bled bled + breed bred bred + build built built + cast cast cast + cost cost cost + feed fed fed + gild gilded, gilt gilded, gilt + gird girt, girded girt, girded + hit hit hit + hurt hurt hurt + knit knit, knitted knit, knitted + lead led led + let let let + light lighted, lit lighted, lit + meet met met + put put put + quit quit, quitted quit, quitted + read read read + rend rent rent + rid rid rid + send sent sent + set set set + shed shed shed + shred shred shred + shut shut shut + slit slit slit + speed sped sped + spend spent spent + spit spit [_obs._ spat] spit [_obs._ spat] + split split split + spread spread spread + sweat sweat sweat + thrust thrust thrust + wed wed, wedded wed, wedded + wet wet, wetted wet, wetted + + +[Sidenote: _Tendency to phonetic spelling._] + +250. There seems to be in Modern English a growing tendency toward +phonetic spelling in the past tense and past participle of weak verbs. +For example, _-ed_, after the verb _bless_, has the sound of _t_: +hence the word is often written _blest_. So with _dipt_, _whipt_, +_dropt_, _tost_, _crost_, _drest_, _prest_, etc. This is often seen in +poetry, and is increasing in prose. + + +Some Troublesome Verbs. + + +[Sidenote: Lie _and_ lay _in use and meaning._] + +260. Some sets of verbs are often confused by young students, weak +forms being substituted for correct, strong forms. + +Lie and lay need close attention. These are the forms:-- + + _Present Tense._ _Past Tense._ _Pres. Participle._ _Past Participle._ + + 1. Lie lay lying lain + 2. Lay laid laying laid + +The distinctions to be observed are as follows:-- + +(1) _Lie_, with its forms, is regularly _intransitive_ as to use. As +to meaning, _lie_ means to rest, to recline, to place one's self in a +recumbent position; as, "There _lies_ the ruin." + +(2) _Lay_, with its forms, is always _transitive_ as to use. As to +meaning, _lay_ means to put, to place a person or thing in position; +as, "Slowly and sadly we _laid_ him down." Also _lay_ may be used +without any object expressed, but there is still a transitive meaning; +as in the expressions, "to _lay_ up for future use," "to _lay_ on with +the rod," "to _lay_ about him lustily." + + +[Sidenote: Sit _and_ set.] + +261. Sit and set have principal parts as follows:-- + + _Present Tense._ _Past Tense._ _Pres. Participle._ _Past Participle._ + + 1. Sit sat sitting sat + 2. Set set setting set + +Notice these points of difference between the two verbs:-- + +(1) _Sit_, with its forms, is always _intransitive_ in use. In +meaning, _sit_ signifies (_a_) to place one's self on a seat, to rest; +(_b_) to be adjusted, to fit; (_c_) to cover and warm eggs for +hatching, as, "The hen _sits_." + +(2) _Set_, with its forms, is always _transitive_ in use when it has +the following meanings: (_a_) to put or place a thing or person in +position, as "He _set_ down the book;" (_b_) to fix or establish, as, +"He _sets_ a good example." + +_Set_ is _intransitive_ when it means (_a_) to go down, to decline, +as, "The sun has _set_;" (_b_) to become fixed or rigid, as, "His eyes +_set_ in his head because of the disease;" (_c_) in certain idiomatic +expressions, as, for example, "to _set_ out," "to _set_ up in +business," "to _set_ about a thing," "to _set_ to work," "to _set_ +forward," "the tide _sets_ in," "a strong wind _set_ in," etc. + + +Exercise. + +Examine the forms of _lie_, _lay_, _sit_ and _set_ in these sentences; +give the meaning of each, and correct those used wrongly. + +1. If the phenomena which lie before him will not suit his purpose, +all history must be ransacked. + +2. He sat with his eyes fixed partly on the ghost and partly on +Hamlet, and with his mouth open. + +3. The days when his favorite volume set him upon making wheelbarrows +and chairs,... can never again be the realities they were. + +4. To make the jacket sit yet more closely to the body, it was +gathered at the middle by a broad leathern belt. + +5. He had set up no unattainable standard of perfection. + +6. For more than two hundred years his bones lay undistinguished. + +7. The author laid the whole fault on the audience. + +8. Dapple had to lay down on all fours before the lads could bestride +him. + +9. And send'st him...to his gods where happy lies + His petty hope in some near port or bay, + And dashest him again to earth:--there let him lay. + +10. Achilles is the swift-footed when he is sitting still. + +11. It may be laid down as a general rule, that history begins in +novel, and ends in essay. + +12. I never took off my clothes, but laid down in them. + + + + +VERBALS. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +262. Verbals are words that express action in a general way, +without limiting the action to any time, or asserting it of any +subject. + +[Sidenote: _Kinds._] + +Verbals may be participles, infinitives, or gerunds. + + +PARTICIPLES. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +263. Participles are _adjectival_ verbals; that is, they either +belong to some substantive by expressing action in connection with it, +or they express action, and directly modify a substantive, thus having +a descriptive force. Notice these functions. + +[Sidenote: _Pure participle in function._] + + 1. At length, _wearied_ by his cries and agitations, and not + _knowing_ how to put an end to them, he addressed the animal as + if he had been a rational being.--DWIGHT. + +Here _wearied_ and _knowing_ belong to the subject _he_, and express +action in connection with it, but do not describe. + +[Sidenote: _Express action and also describe._] + + 2. Another name glided into her petition--it was that of the + _wounded_ Christian, whom fate had placed in the hands of + bloodthirsty men, his _avowed_ enemies.--SCOTT. + +Here _wounded_ and _avowed_ are participles, but are used with the +same adjectival force that _bloodthirsty_ is (see Sec. 143, 4). + +Participial adjectives have been discussed in Sec. 143 (4), but we +give further examples for the sake of comparison and distinction. + +[Sidenote: _Fossil participles as adjectives._] + + 3. As _learned_ a man may live in a cottage or a college + commmon-room.--THACKERAY + + 4. Not merely to the soldier are these campaigns _interesting_ + --BAYNE. + + 5. How _charming_ is divine philosophy!--MILTON. + + +[Sidenote: _Forms of the participle._] + +264. Participles, in expressing action, may be active or +passive, incomplete (or imperfect), complete (perfect or past), +and perfect definite. + +They cannot be divided into tenses (present, past, etc.), because they +have no tense of their own, but derive their tense from the verb on +which they depend; for example,-- + + 1. He walked conscientiously through the services of the day, + _fulfilling_ every section the minutest, etc.--DE QUINCEY. + +_Fulfilling_ has the form to denote continuance, but depends on the +verb _walked_, which is past tense. + + + 2. Now the bright morning star, day's harbinger, + Comes _dancing_ from the East.--MILTON. + +_Dancing_ here depends on a verb in the present tense. + + +265. PARTICIPLES OF THE VERB _CHOOSE_. + + ACTIVE VOICE. + +_Imperfect._ Choosing. +_Perfect._ Having chosen. +_Perfect definite._ Having been choosing. + + PASSIVE VOICE. + +_Imperfect._ None +_Perfect._ Chosen, being chosen, having been chosen. +_Perfect definite._ None. + + +Exercise. + +Pick out the participles, and tell whether active or passive, +imperfect, perfect, or perfect definite. If pure participles, tell to +what word they belong; if adjectives, tell what words they modify. + +1. The change is a large process, accomplished within a large and +corresponding space, having, perhaps, some central or equatorial line, +but lying, like that of our earth, between certain tropics, or limits +widely separated. + +2. I had fallen under medical advice the most misleading that it is +possible to imagine. + +3. These views, being adopted in a great measure from my mother, were +naturally the same as my mother's. + +4. Endowed with a great command over herself, she soon obtained an +uncontrolled ascendency over her people. + +5. No spectacle was more adapted to excite wonder. + +6. Having fully supplied the demands of nature in this respect, I +returned to reflection on my situation. + +7. Three saplings, stripped of their branches and bound together at +their ends, formed a kind of bedstead. + +8. This all-pervading principle is at work in our system,--the +creature warring against the creating power. + +9. Perhaps I was too saucy and provoking. + +10. Nothing of the kind having been done, and the principles of this +unfortunate king having been distorted,... try clemency. + + + +INFINITIVES. + + +266. Infinitives, like participles, have no tense. When active, +they have an indefinite, an imperfect, a perfect, and a perfect +definite form; and when passive, an indefinite and a perfect form, to +express action unconnected with a subject. + + +267. INFINITIVES OF THE VERB _CHOOSE._ + + ACTIVE VOICE. + +_Indefinite._ [To] choose. _Imperfect._ [To] be choosing. + _Perfect._ [To] have chosen. + _Perfect definite._ [To] have been choosing. + + PASSIVE VOICE. + +_Indefinite._ [To] be chosen. _Perfect._ [To] have been chosen. + + +[Sidenote: To _with the infinitive._] + +268. In Sec. 267 the word _to_ is printed in brackets because it is +not a necessary part of the infinitive. + +It originally belonged only to an inflected form of the infinitive, +expressing purpose; as in the Old English, "Ut eode se saedere his saed +to sawenne" (Out went the sower his seed _to sow_). + +[Sidenote: _Cases when_ to _is omitted._] + +But later, when inflections became fewer, _to_ was used before the +infinitive generally, except in the following cases:-- + +(1) After the auxiliaries _shall_, _will_ (with _should_ and _would_). + +(2) After the verbs _may (might), can (could), must_; also _let_, +_make_, _do_ (as, "I _do go_" etc.), _see_, _bid_ (command), _feel_, +_hear_, _watch_, _please_; sometimes _need_ (as, "He _need_ not _go_") +and _dare_ (to venture). + +(3) After _had_ in the idiomatic use; as, "You _had_ better _go_" "He +_had_ rather _walk_ than _ride_." + +(4) In exclamations; as in the following examples:-- + + "He _find_ pleasure in doing good!" cried Sir + William.--GOLDSMITH. + + + + I _urge_ an address to his kinswoman! I _approach_ her when in a + base disguise! I _do_ this!--SCOTT. + + "She _ask_ my pardon, poor woman!" cried Charles.--MACAULAY. + + +269. _Shall_ and _will_ are not to be taken as separate verbs, but +with the infinitive as one tense of a verb; as, "He _will choose_," "I +_shall have chosen_," etc. + +Also _do_ may be considered an auxiliary in the interrogative, +negative, and emphatic forms of the present and past, also in the +imperative; as,-- + + What! _doth_ she, too, as the credulous imagine, _learn_ [_doth + learn_ is one verb, present tense] the love of the great stars? + --BULWER. + + _Do_ not _entertain_ so weak an imagination--BURKE. + + She _did_ not _weep_--she _did_ not _break forth_ into + reproaches.--IRVING. + + +270. The infinitive is sometimes active in form while it is passive +in meaning, as in the expression, "a house _to let_." Examples are,-- + + She was a kind, liberal woman; rich rather more than needed where + there were no opera boxes _to rent_.--DE QUINCEY. + + Tho' it seems my spurs are yet _to win_.--TENNYSON. + + But there was nothing _to do_.--HOWELLS. + + They shall have venison _to eat_, and corn _to hoe_.--COOPER. + + Nolan himself saw that something was _to pay_.--E.E. HALE. + + +271. The various offices which the infinitive and the participle +have in the sentence will be treated in Part II., under "Analysis," as +we are now learning merely to recognize the forms. + + + +GERUNDS. + + +272. The gerund is like the participle in form, and like a noun in +use. + +The participle has been called an adjectival verbal; the gerund may +be called a _noun verbal_. While the gerund expresses action, it has +several attributes of a noun,--it may be governed as a noun; it may be +the subject of a verb, or the object of a verb or a preposition; it is +often preceded by the definite article; it is frequently modified by a +possessive noun or pronoun. + + +[Sidenote: _Distinguished from participle and verbal noun._] + +273. It differs from the participle in being always used as a noun: +it never belongs to or limits a noun. + +It differs from the verbal noun in having the property of governing a +noun (which the verbal noun has not) and of expressing action (the +verbal noun merely names an action, Sec. II). + +The following are examples of the uses of the gerund:-- + +(1) _Subject_: "The _taking_ of means not to see another morning had +all day absorbed every energy;" "Certainly _dueling_ is bad, and has +been put down." + +(2) _Object_: (_a_) "Our culture therefore must not omit the _arming_ +of the man." (_b_) "Nobody cares for _planting_ the poor fungus;" "I +announce the good of _being interpenetrated_ by the mind that made +nature;" "The guilt of _having been cured_ of the palsy by a Jewish +maiden." + +(3) _Governing and Governed_: "We are far from _having exhausted_ the +significance of the few symbols we use," also (2, _b_), above; "He +could embellish the characters with new traits without _violating_ +probability;" "He could not help _holding_ out his hand in return." + +Exercise.--Find sentences containing five participles, five +infinitives, and five gerunds. + + + +SUMMARY OF WORDS IN _-ING_. + + +274. Words in -ing are of six kinds, according to use as well as +meaning. They are as follows:-- + +(1) _Part of the verb_, making the definite tenses. + +(2) _Pure participles_, which express action, but do not assert. + +(3) _Participial adjectives_, which express action and also modify. + +(4) _Pure adjectives_, which have lost all verbal force. + +(5) _Gerunds_, which express action, may govern and be governed. + +(6) _Verbal nouns,_ which name an action or state, but cannot govern. + + +Exercise. + +Tell to which of the above six classes each _-ing_ word in the +following sentences belongs:-- + +1. Here is need of apologies for shortcomings. + +2. Then how pleasing is it, on your leaving the spot, to see the +returning hope of the parents, when, after examining the nest, they +find the nurslings untouched! + +3. The crowning incident of my life was upon the bank of the Scioto +Salt Creek, in which I had been unhorsed by the breaking of the saddle +girths. + +4. What a vast, brilliant, and wonderful store of learning! + +5. He is one of the most charming masters of our language. + +6. In explaining to a child the phenomena of nature, you must, by +object lessons, give reality to your teaching. + +7. I suppose I was dreaming about it. What is dreaming? + +8. It is years since I heard the laughter ringing. + +9. Intellect is not speaking and logicizing: it is seeing and +ascertaining. + +10. We now draw toward the end of that great martial drama which we +have been briefly contemplating. + +11. The second cause of failure was the burning of Moscow. + +12. He spread his blessings all over the land. + +13. The only means of ascending was by my hands. + +14. A marble figure of Mary is stretched upon the tomb, round which is +an iron railing, much corroded, bearing her national emblem. + +15. The exertion left me in a state of languor and sinking. + +16. Thackeray did not, like Sir Walter Scott, write twenty pages +without stopping, but, dictating from his chair, he gave out sentence +by sentence, slowly. + + + + +HOW TO PARSE VERBS AND VERBALS. + + +I. VERBS. + + +275. In parsing verbs, give the following points:-- + +(1) Class: (_a_) as to _form_,--strong or weak, giving principal +parts; (_b_) as to _use_,--transitive or intransitive. + +(2) Voice,--active or passive. + +(3) Mood,--indicative, subjunctive, or imperative. + +(4) Tense,--which of the tenses given in Sec. 234. + +(5) Person and number, in determining which you must tell-- + +(6) What the subject is, for the form of the verb may not show the +person and number. + + +[Sidenote: _Caution._] + +276. It has been intimated in Sec. 235, we must beware of the rule, +"A verb agrees with its subject in person and number." Sometimes it +does; usually it does not, if _agrees_ means that the verb changes its +form for the different persons and numbers. The verb _be_ has more +forms than other verbs, and may be said to _agree_ with its subject in +several of its forms. But unless the verb is present, and ends in +_-s_, or is an old or poetic form ending in _-st_ or _-eth_, it is +best for the student not to state it as a general rule that "the verb +agrees with its subject in person and number," but merely to _tell +what the subject of the verb is_. + + + +II. VERB PHRASES. + + +277. Verb phrases are made up of a principal verb followed by an +infinitive, and should always be analyzed as phrases, and not taken as +single verbs. Especially frequent are those made up of _should_, +_would_, _may_, _might_, _can_, _could_, _must_, followed by a pure +infinitive without _to_. Take these examples:-- + +1. Lee _should_ of himself _have replenished_ his stock. + +2. The government _might have been_ strong and prosperous. + +In such sentences as 1, call _should_ a weak verb, intransitive, +therefore active; indicative, past tense; has for its subject _Lee_. +_Have replenished_ is a perfect active infinitive. + +In 2, call _might_ a weak verb, intransitive, active, indicative (as +it means could), past tense; has the subject _government_. _Have been_ +is a perfect active infinitive. + +For fuller parsing of the infinitive, see Sec. 278(2). + + +III. VERBALS. + + +278. (1) Participle. Tell (_a_) from what verb it is derived; +(_b_) whether active or passive, imperfect, perfect, etc.; (_c_) to +what word it belongs. If a participial adjective, give points (_a_) +and (_b_), then parse it as an adjective. + +(2) Infinitive. Tell (_a_) from what verb it is derived; (_b_) +whether indefinite, perfect, definite, etc. + +(3) Gerund. (_a_) From what verb derived; (_b_) its use (Sec. 273). + + +Exercise. + +Parse the verbs, verbals, and verb phrases in the following +sentences:-- + +1. Byron builds a structure that repeats certain elements in nature or +humanity. + +2. The birds were singing as if there were no aching hearts, no sin +nor sorrow, in the world. + +3. Let it rise! let it rise, till it meet the sun in his coming; let +the earliest light of the morning gild it, and parting day linger and +play on its summit. + +4. You are gathered to your fathers, and live only to your country in +her grateful remembrance. + +5. Read this Declaration at the head of the army. + +6. Right graciously he smiled on us, as rolled from wing to wing, + Down all the line, a deafening shout, "God save our Lord the King!" + +7. When he arose in the morning, he thought only of her, and wondered +if she were yet awake. + +8. He had lost the quiet of his thoughts, and his agitated soul +reflected only broken and distorted images of things. + +9. So, lest I be inclined + To render ill for ill, + Henceforth in me instill, + O God, a sweet good will. + +10. The sun appears to beat in vain at the casements. + +11. Margaret had come into the workshop with her sewing, as usual. + +12. Two things there are with memory will abide-- + Whatever else befall--while life flows by. + +13. To the child it was not permitted to look beyond into the hazy +lines that bounded his oasis of flowers. + +14. With them, morning is not a new issuing of light, a new bursting +forth of the sun; a new waking up of all that has life, from a sort of +temporary death. + +15. Whatever ground you sow or plant, see that it is in good +condition. + +16. However that be, it is certain that he had grown to delight in +nothing else than this conversation. + +17. The soul having been often born, or, as the Hindoos say, +"traveling the path of existence through thousands of births," there +is nothing of which she has not gained knowledge. + +18. The ancients called it ecstasy or absence,--a getting-out of their +bodies to think. + +19. Such a boy could not whistle or dance. + +20. He had rather stand charged with the imbecility of skepticism than +with untruth. + +21. He can behold with serenity the yawning gulf between the ambition +of man and his power of performance. + +22. He passed across the room to the washstand, leaving me upon the +bed, where I afterward found he had replaced me on being awakened by +hearing me leap frantically up and down on the floor. + +23. In going for water, he seemed to be traveling over a desert plain +to some far-off spring. + +24. Hasheesh always brings an awakening of perception which magnifies +the smallest sensation. + +25. I have always talked to him as I would to a friend. + +26. Over them multitudes of rosy children came leaping to throw +garlands on my victorious road. + +27. Oh, had we some bright little isle of our own! + +28. Better it were, thou sayest, to consent; + Feast while we may, and live ere life be spent. + +29. And now wend we to yonder fountain, for the hour of rest is at +hand. + + + + +ADVERBS. + + +[Sidenote: _Adverbs modify._] + +279. The word _adverb_ means _joined to a verb_. The adverb is the +only word that can join to a verb to modify it. + +[Sidenote: _A verb._] + +When action is expressed, an adverb is usually added to define the +action in some way,--time, place, or manner: as, "He began _already_ +to be proud of being a Rugby boy [time];" "One of the young heroes +scrambled up _behind_ [place];" "He was absolute, but _wisely_ and +_bravely_ ruling [manner]." + +[Sidenote: _An adjective or an adverb._] + +But this does not mean that adverbs modify verbs _only_: many of them +express degree, and limit adjectives or adverbs; as, "William's +private life was _severely_ pure;" "Principles of English law are put +down _a little_ confusedly." + +[Sidenote: _Sometimes a noun or pronoun._] + +Sometimes an adverb may modify a noun or pronoun; for example,-- + + The young man reveres men of genius, because, to speak truly, + they are _more_ himself than he is.--EMERSON. + + Is it _only_ poets, and men of leisure and cultivation, who live + with nature?--_Id._ + + To the _almost_ terror of the persons present, Macaulay began + with the senior wrangler of 1801-2-3-4, and so on.--THACKERAY. + + Nor was it _altogether_ nothing.--CARLYLE. + + Sounds overflow the listener's brain So sweet that joy is + _almost_ pain.--SHELLEY. + + The condition of Kate is _exactly_ that of Coleridge's "Ancient + Mariner."--DE QUINCEY. + + He was _incidentally_ news dealer.--T.B. ALDRICH. + +NOTE.--These last differ from the words in Sec. 169, being adverbs +naturally and fitly, while those in Sec. 169 are felt to be +elliptical, and rather forced into the service of adjectives. + +Also these adverbs modifying nouns are to be distinguished from those +standing _after_ a noun by ellipsis, but really modifying, not the +noun, but some verb understood; thus,-- + + The gentle winds and waters [that are] near, Make music to the + lonely ear.--BYRON. + + With bowering leaves [that grow] _o'erhead_, to which the eye + Looked up half sweetly, and half awfully.--LEIGH HUNT. + +[Sidenote: _A phrase._] + +An adverb may modify a phrase which is equivalent to an adjective or +an adverb, as shown in the sentences,-- + + They had begun to make their effort much _at the same + time_.--TROLLOPE. + + I draw forth the fruit, all wet and glossy, maybe _nibbled by + rabbits and hollowed out by crickets_, and perhaps _with a leaf + or two cemented to it_, but still _with a rich bloom to + it_.--THOREAU. + +[Sidenote: _A clause or sentence._] + +It may also modify a sentence, emphasizing or qualifying the +statement expressed; as, for example,-- + + And _certainly_ no one ever entered upon office with so few + resources of power in the past.--LOWELL. + + _Surely_ happiness is reflective, like the light of heaven. + --IRVING. + + We are offered six months' credit; and that, _perhaps_, has + induced some of us to attend it.--FRANKLIN. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +280. An adverb, then, is a modifying word, which may qualify an +action word or a statement, and may add to the meaning of an adjective +or adverb, or a word group used as such. + +NOTE.--The expression _action word_ is put instead of _verb_, because +_any_ verbal word may be limited by an adverb, not simply the forms +used in predication. + + +281. Adverbs may be classified in two ways: (1) according to the +meaning of the words; (2) according to their use in the sentence. + + +ADVERBS CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO MEANING. + + +282. Thus considered, there are six classes:-- + +(1) Time; as _now_, _to-day_, _ever_, _lately_, _before_, +_hitherto_, etc. + +(2) Place. These may be adverbs either of + +(_a_) PLACE WHERE; as _here_, _there_, _where_, _near_, _yonder_, +_above_, etc. + +(_b_) PLACE TO WHICH; as _hither_, _thither_, _whither_, +_whithersoever_, etc. + +(_c_) PLACE FROM WHICH; as _hence_, _thence_, _whence_, +_whencesoever_, etc. + +(3) Manner, telling _how_ anything is done; as _well_, _slowly_, +_better_, _bravely_, _beautifully_. Action is conceived or performed +in so many ways, that these adverbs form a very large class. + +(4) Number, telling _how many times_: _once_, _twice_, _singly_, +_two by two_, etc. + +(5) Degree, telling _how much_; as _little_, _slightly_, _too_, +_partly_, _enough_, _greatly_, _much_, _very_, _just_, etc. (see also +Sec. 283). + +(6) Assertion, telling the speaker's belief or disbelief in a +statement, or how far he believes it to be true; as _perhaps_, +_maybe_, _surely_, _possibly_, _probably_, _not_, etc. + + +[Sidenote: _Special remarks on adverbs of degree._] + +283. The is an adverb of degree when it limits an adjective or an +adverb, especially the comparative of these words; thus,-- + + But not _the_ less the blare of the tumultuous organ wrought its + own separate creations.--DE QUINCEY. + + _The_ more they multiply, _the_ more friends you will have; _the_ + more evidently they love liberty, _the_ more perfect will be + their obedience.--BURKE. + +This and that are very common as adverbs in spoken English, and +not infrequently are found in literary English; for example,-- + + The master...was for _this_ once of her opinion.--R. LOUIS + STEVENSON. + + Death! To die! I owe _that_ much To what, at least, I + was.--BROWNING. + + _This_ long's the text.--SHAKESPEARE. + +[Sidenote _The status of such_.] + +Such is frequently used as an equivalent of _so_: _such_ precedes an +adjective with its noun, while _so_ precedes only the adjective +usually. + + Meekness,...which gained him _such_ universal + popularity.--IRVING. + + _Such_ a glittering appearance that no ordinary man would have + been able to close his eyes there.--HAWTHORNE. + + An eye of _such_ piercing brightness and _such_ commanding power + that it gave an air of inspiration.--LECKY. + +So also in Grote, Emerson, Thackeray, Motley, White, and others. + +[Sidenote: _Pretty._] + +Pretty has a wider adverbial use than it gets credit for. + + I believe our astonishment is _pretty_ equal.--FIELDING. + + Hard blows and hard money, the feel of both of which you know + _pretty_ well by now.--KINGSLEY. + + The first of these generals is _pretty_ generally recognized as + the greatest military genius that ever lived.--BAYNE. + + A _pretty_ large experience.--THACKERAY. + +_Pretty_ is also used by Prescott, Franklin, De Quincey, Defoe, +Dickens, Kingsley, Burke, Emerson, Aldrich, Holmes, and other writers. + +[Sidenote: Mighty.] + +The adverb mighty is very common in colloquial English; for example,-- + + "_Mighty_ well, Deacon Gookin!" replied the solemn tones of the + minister.--HAWTHORNE. + + "Maybe you're wanting to get over?--anybody sick? Ye seem + _mighty_ anxious!"--H.B. STOWE. + +It is only occasionally used in literary English; for example,-- + + You are _mighty_ courteous.--BULWER. + + Beau Fielding, a _mighty_ fine gentleman.--THACKERAY. + + "Peace, Neville," said the king, "thou think'st thyself _mighty_ + wise, and art but a fool."--SCOTT. + + I perceived his sisters _mighty_ busy.--GOLDSMITH. + + +[Sidenote: _Notice meanings._] + +284. Again, the meaning of words must be noticed rather than their +form; for many words given above may be moved from one class to +another at will: as these examples,--"He walked too _far_ [place];" +"That were _far_ better [degree];" "He spoke _positively_ [manner];" +"That is _positively_ untrue [assertion];" "I have seen you _before_ +[time];" "The house, and its lawn _before_ [place]." + + + +ADVERBS CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO USE. + + +[Sidenote: _Simple._] + +285. All adverbs which have no function in the sentence except to +modify are called simple adverbs. Such are most of those given +already in Sec. 282. + +[Sidenote: _Interrogative._] + +286. Some adverbs, besides modifying, have the additional function +of asking a question. + +[Sidenote: _Direct questions._] + +These may introduce direct questions of-- + +(1) Time. + + _When_ did this humane custom begin?--H. CLAY. + +(2) Place. + + _Where_ will you have the scene?--LONGFELLOW + +(3) Manner. + + And _how_ looks it now?--HAWTHORNE. + +(4) Degree. + + "_How_ long have you had this whip?" asked he.--BULWER. + +(5) Reason. + + _Why_ that wild stare and wilder cry?--WHITTIER + + Now _wherefore_ stopp'st thou me?--COLERIDGE + +[Sidenote: _Indirect questions._] + +Or they may introduce indirect questions of-- + +(1) Time. + + I do not remember _when_ I was taught to read.--D. WEBSTER. + +(2) Place. + + I will not ask _where_ thou liest low.--BYRON + +(3) Manner. + + Who set you to cast about what you should say to the select + souls, or _how_ to say anything to such?--EMERSON. + +(4) Degree. + + Being too full of sleep to understand + _How_ far the unknown transcends the what we know. + --LONGFELLOW + +(5) Reason. + + I hearkened, I know not _why_.--POE. + + +287. There is a class of words usually classed as conjunctive +adverbs, as they are said to have the office of conjunctions in +joining clauses, while having the office of adverbs in modifying; for +example,-- + + _When_ last I saw thy young blue eyes, they smiled.--BYRON. + +But in reality, _when_ does not express time and modify, but the whole +clause, _when_..._eyes_; and _when_ has simply the use of a +conjunction, not an adverb. For further discussion, see Sec. 299 under +"Subordinate Conjunctions." + + +Exercise.--Bring up sentences containing twenty adverbs, +representing four classes. + + + +COMPARISON OF ADVERBS. + + +288. Many adverbs are compared, and, when compared, have the same +inflection as adjectives. + +The following, irregularly compared, are often used as adjectives:-- + + _Positive._ _Comparative._ _Superlative._ + + well better best + ill or badly worse worst + much more most + little less least + nigh or near nearer nearest or next + far farther, further farthest, furthest + late later latest, last + (rathe, _obs._) rather + + +289. Most monosyllabic adverbs add _-er_ and _-est_ to form the +comparative and superlative, just as adjectives do; as, _high_, +_higher_, _highest_; _soon_, _sooner_, _soonest_. + +Adverbs in _-ly_ usually have _more_ and _most_ instead of the +inflected form, only occasionally having _-er_ and _-est_. + + Its strings _boldlier_ swept.--COLERIDGE. + + None can deem _harshlier_ of me than I deem.--BYRON. + + Only that we may _wiselier_ see.--EMERSON. + + Then must she keep it _safelier_.--TENNYSON. + + I should _freelier_ rejoice in that absence.--SHAKESPEARE. + + +[Sidenote: _Form_ vs. _use._] + +290. The fact that a word ends in _-ly_ does not make it an adverb. +Many adjectives have the same ending, and must be distinguished by +their use in the sentence. + + +Exercise. + +Tell what each word in _ly_ modifies, then whether it is an adjective +or an adverb. + +1. It seems certain that the Normans were more cleanly in their +habits, more courtly in their manners. + +2. It is true he was rarely heard to speak. + +3. He would inhale the smoke slowly and tranquilly. + +4. The perfectly heavenly law might be made law on earth. + +5. The king winced when he saw his homely little bride. + +6. With his proud, quick-flashing eye, + And his mien of kingly state. + +7. And all about, a lovely sky of blue + Clearly was felt, or down the leaves laughed through. + +8. He is inexpressibly mean, curiously jolly, kindly and good-natured +in secret. + + +291. Again, many words without _-ly_ have the same form, whether +adverbs or adjectives. + +The reason is, that in Old and Middle English, adverbs derived from +adjectives had the ending _-e_ as a distinguishing mark; as,-- + + If men smoot it with a yerde _smerte_ [If men smote it with a rod + smartly].--CHAUCER. + +This _e_ dropping off left both words having the same form. + + Weeds were sure to grow _quicker_ in his fields.--IRVING. + + O _sweet_ and _far_ from cliff and scar The horns of Elfland + faintly blowing.--TENNYSON. + + But he must do his errand _right._--DRAKE + + _Long_ she looked in his tiny face.--_Id._ + + Not _near_ so black as he was painted.--THACKERAY. + +In some cases adverbs with _-ly_ are used side by side with those +without _-ly_, but with a different meaning. Such are _most_, +_mostly_; _near_, _nearly_; _even_, _evenly_; _hard_, _hardly_; etc. + + +[Sidenote: _Special use of_ there.] + +292. Frequently the word there, instead of being used adverbially, +merely introduces a sentence, and inverts the usual order of subject +and predicate. + +This is such a fixed idiom that the sentence, if it has the verb _be_, +seems awkward or affected without this "_there_ introductory." Compare +these:-- + + 1. _There_ are eyes, to be sure, that give no more admission into + the man than blueberries.--EMERSON. + + 2. Time was when field and watery cove With modulated echoes + rang.--WORDSWORTH. + + + +HOW TO PARSE ADVERBS. + + +293. In parsing adverbs, give-- + +(1) The class, according to meaning and also use. + +(2) Degree of comparison, if the word is compared. + +(3) What word or word group it modifies. + + +Exercise. + +Parse all the adverbs in the following sentences:-- + +1. Now the earth is so full that a drop overfills it. + +2. The higher we rise in the scale of being, the more certainly we +quit the region of the brilliant eccentricities and dazzling contrasts +which belong to a vulgar greatness. + +3. We sit in the warm shade and feel right well + How the sap creeps up and blossoms swell. + +4. Meanwhile the Protestants believed somewhat doubtfully that he was +theirs. + +5. Whence else could arise the bruises which I had received, but from +my fall? + +6. We somehow greedily gobble down all stories in which the characters +of our friends are chopped up. + +7. How carefully that blessed day is marked in their little calendars! + +8. But a few steps farther on, at the regular wine-shop, the Madonna +is in great glory. + +9. The foolish and the dead alone never change their opinion. + +10. It is the Cross that is first seen, and always, burning in the +center of the temple. + +11. For the impracticable, however theoretically enticing, is always +politically unwise. + +12. Whence come you? and whither are you bound? + +13. How comes it that the evil which men say spreads so widely and +lasts so long, whilst our good kind words don't seem somehow to take +root and blossom? + +14. At these carousals Alexander drank deep. + +15. Perhaps he has been getting up a little architecture on the road +from Florence. + +16. It is left you to find out why your ears are boxed. + +17. Thither we went, and sate down on the steps of a house. + +18. He could never fix which side of the garden walk would suit him +best, but continually shifted. + +19. But now the wind rose again, and the stern drifted in toward the +bank. + +20. He caught the scent of wild thyme in the air, and found room to +wonder how it could have got there. + +21. They were soon launched on the princely bosom of the Thames, upon +which the sun now shone forth. + +22. Why should we suppose that conscientious motives, feeble as they +are constantly found to be in a good cause, should be omnipotent for +evil? + +24. It was pretty bad after that, and but for Polly's outdoor +exercise, she would undoubtedly have succumbed. + + + + +CONJUNCTIONS. + + +294. Unlike adverbs, conjunctions do not modify: they are used +solely for the purpose of connecting. + +Examples of the use of conjunctions:-- + +[Sidenote: _They connect_ words.] + +(1) _Connecting words_: "It is the very necessity _and_ condition of +existence;" "What a simple _but_ exquisite illustration!" + +[Sidenote: Word groups: _Phrases._] + +[Sidenote: _Clauses._] + +(2) _Connecting word groups_: "Hitherto the two systems have existed +in different States, _but_ side by side within the American Union;" +"This has happened _because_ the Union is a confederation of States." + +[Sidenote: _Sentences._] + +(3) _Connecting sentences_: "Unanimity in this case can mean only a +very large majority. _But_ even unanimity itself is far from +indicating the voice of God." + +[Sidenote: _Paragraphs._] + +(4) _Connecting sentence groups_: Paragraphs would be too long to +quote here, but the student will readily find them, in which the +writer connects the divisions of narration or argument by such words +as _but_, _however_, _hence_, _nor_, _then_, _therefore_, etc. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +295. A conjunction is a linking word, connecting words, word +groups, sentences, or sentence groups. + + +[Sidenote: _Classes of conjunctions._] + +296. Conjunctions have two principal divisions:-- + +(1) Cooerdinate, joining words, word groups, etc., of the _same +rank_. + +(2) Subordinate, joining a subordinate or dependent clause to a +principal or independent clause. + + + +COOeRDINATE CONJUNCTIONS. + +297. Cooerdinate conjunctions are of four kinds: + +(1) COPULATIVE, coupling or uniting words and expressions in the same +line of thought; as _and_, _also_, _as well as_, _moreover_, etc. + +(2) ADVERSATIVE, connecting words and expressions that are opposite in +thought; as _but_, _yet_, _still_, _however_, _while_, _only_, etc. + +(3) CAUSAL, introducing a reason or cause. The chief ones are, _for_, +_therefore_, _hence_, _then_. + +(4) ALTERNATIVE, expressing a choice, usually between two things. They +are _or_, _either_, _else_, _nor_, _neither_, _whether_. + +[Sidenote: _Correlatives._] + +298. Some of these go in pairs, answering to each other in the same +sentence; as, _both_..._and_; _not only_..._but_ (or _but also_); +_either_..._or_; _whether_..._or_; _neither_..._nor_; _whether_..._or +whether_. + +Some go in threes; as, _not only_..._but_... _and_; +_either_..._or_..._or_; _neither_..._nor_... _nor_. + +Further examples of the use of cooerdinate conjunctions:-- + +[Sidenote: _Copulative._] + +Your letter, _likewise_, had its weight; the bread was spent, the +butter _too_; the window being open, _as well as_ the room door. + +[Sidenote: _Adversative._] + +The assertion, _however_, serves but to show their ignorance. "Can +this be so?" said Goodman Brown. "_Howbeit_, I have nothing to do with +the governor and council." + +_Nevertheless_, in this mansion of gloom I now proposed to myself a +sojourn of some weeks. + +[Sidenote: _Alternative._] + +While the earth bears a plant, _or_ the sea rolls its waves. + + _Nor_ mark'd they less, where in the air + A thousand streamers flaunted fair. + +[Sidenote: _Causal._] + +_Therefore_ the poet is not any permissive potentate, but is emperor +in his own right. _For_ it is the rule of the universe that corn shall +serve man, and not man corn. + +Examples of the use of correlatives:-- + + He began to doubt whether _both_ he _and_ the world around him + were not bewitched.--IRVING. + + He is _not only_ bold and vociferous, _but_ possesses a + considerable talent for mimicry, _and_ seems to enjoy great + satisfaction in mocking and teasing other birds.--WILSON. + + It is...the same _whether_ I move my hand along the surface of a + body, _or whether_ such a body is moved along my hand.--BURKE. + + _Neither_ the place in which he found himself, _nor_ the + exclusive attention that he attracted, disturbed the + self-possession of the young Mohican.--COOPER. + + _Neither_ was there any phantom memorial of life, _nor_ wing of + bird, _nor_ echo, _nor_ green leaf, _nor_ creeping thing, that + moved or stirred upon the soundless waste.--DE QUINCEY. + + + +SUBORDINATE CONJUNCTIONS. + +299. Subordinate conjunctions are of the following kinds:-- + +(1) PLACE: _where_, _wherever_, _whither_, _whereto_, _whithersoever_, +_whence_, etc. + +(2) TIME: _when_, _before_, _after_, _since_, _as_, _until_, +_whenever_, _while_, _ere_, etc. + +(3) MANNER: _how_, _as_, _however_, _howsoever_. + +(4) CAUSE or REASON: _because_, _since_, _as_, _now_, _whereas_, +_that_, _seeing_, etc. + +(5) COMPARISON: _than_ and _as_. + +(6) PURPOSE: _that_, _so_, _so that_, _in order that_, _lest_, +_so_..._as_. + +(7) RESULT: _that_, _so that_, especially _that_ after _so_. + +(8) CONDITION or CONCESSION: _if_, _unless_, _so_, _except_, _though_, +_although_; _even if_, _provided_, _provided that_, _in case_, _on +condition that_, etc. + +(9) SUBSTANTIVE: _that_, _whether_, sometimes _if_, are used +frequently to introduce noun clauses used as _subject, object, in +apposition_, etc. + +Examples of the use of subordinate conjunctions:-- + +[Sidenote: _Place._] + + Where the treasure is, there will the heart be also.--_Bible._ + + To lead from eighteen to twenty millions of men _whithersoever_ + they will.--J. QUINCY. + + An artist will delight in excellence _wherever_ he meets it. + --ALLSTON. + +[Sidenote: _Time._] + + I promise to devote myself to your happiness _whenever_ you shall + ask it of me.--PAULDING. + + It is sixteen years _since_ I saw the Queen of France.--BURKE. + +[Sidenote: _Manner._] + + Let the world go _how_ it will.--CARLYLE + + Events proceed, not _as_ they were expected or intended, but _as_ + they are impelled by the irresistible laws.--AMES. + +[Sidenote: _Cause, reason._] + + I see no reason _why_ I should not have the same + thought.--EMERSON. + + Then Denmark blest our chief, + _That_ he gave her wounds repose. + --CAMPBELL. + + _Now_ he is dead, his martyrdom will reap + Late harvests of the palms he should have had in life. + --H.H. JACKSON + + Sparing neither whip nor spur, _seeing that_ he carried the + vindication of his patron's fame in his saddlebags.--IRVING. + +[Sidenote: _Comparison._] + + As a soldier, he was more solicitous to avoid mistakes _than_ to + perform exploits that are brilliant.--AMES. + + All the subsequent experience of our race had gone over him with + as little permanent effect _as_ [_as_ follows the semi-adverbs + _as_ and _so_ in expressing comparison] the passing + breeze.--HAWTHORNE. + +[Sidenote: _Purpose._] + + We wish for a thousand heads, a thousand bodies, _that_ we might + celebrate its immense beauty.--EMERSON. + +[Sidenote: _Result._] + + So many thoughts moved to and fro, + _That_ vain it were her eyes to close. + --COLERIDGE. + + I was again covered with water, but not so long _but_ I held it + out.--DEFOE. + +[Sidenote: _Condition._] + + A ridicule which is of no import _unless_ the scholar heed + it.--EMERSON. + + There flowers or weeds at will may grow, + _So_ I behold them not. + --BYRON. + +[Sidenote: _Concession_.] + + What _though_ the radiance which was once so bright + Be now forever taken from my sight.--WORDSWORTH. + +[Sidenote: _Substantive._] + + It seems a pity _that_ we can only spend it once.--EMERSON. + + We do not believe _that_ he left any worthy man his foe who had + ever been his friend.--AMES. + + Let us see _whether_ the greatest, the wisest, the purest-hearted + of all ages are agreed in any wise on this point.--RUSKIN. + + Who can tell _if_ Washington be a great man or no?--EMERSON. + +300. As will have been noticed, some words--for example, _since_, +_while_, _as_, _that_, etc.--may belong to several classes of +conjunctions, according to their meaning and connection in the +sentence. + + +Exercises. + +(_a_) Bring up sentences containing five examples of cooerdinate +conjunctions. + +(_b_) Bring up sentences containing three examples of correlatives. + +(_c_) Bring up sentences containing ten subordinate conjunctions. + +(_d_) Tell whether the italicized words in the following sentences are +conjunctions or adverbs; classify them if conjunctions:-- + +1. _Yet_ these were often exhibited throughout our city. + +2. No one had _yet_ caught his character. + +3. _After_ he was gone, the lady called her servant. + +4. And they lived happily forever _after_. + +5. They, _however_, hold a subordinate rank. + +6. _However_ ambitious a woman may be to command admiration abroad, +her real merit is known at home. + +7. _Whence_ else could arise the bruises which I had received? + +8. He was brought up for the church, _whence_ he was occasionally +called the Dominie. + +9. And _then_ recovering, she faintly pressed her hand. + +10. In what point of view, _then_, is war not to be regarded with +horror? + +11. The moth fly, _as_ he shot in air, Crept under the leaf, and hid +her there. + +12. Besides, _as_ the rulers of a nation are _as_ liable _as_ other +people to be governed by passion and prejudice, there is little +prospect of justice in permitting war. + +13. _While_ a faction is a minority, it will remain harmless. + +14. _While_ patriotism glowed in his heart, wisdom blended in his +speech her authority with her charms. + +15. _Hence_ it is highly important that the custom of war should be +abolished. + +16. The raft and the money had been thrown near her, none of the +lashings having given way; _only_ what is the use of a guinea amongst +tangle and sea gulls? + +17. _Only_ let his thoughts be of equal scope, and the frame will suit +the picture. + + +SPECIAL REMARKS. + +[Sidenote: As if.] + +301. _As if_ is often used as one conjunction of manner, but really +there is an ellipsis between the two words; thus,-- + + But thy soft murmuring + Sounds sweet _as if_ a sister's voice reproved. + --BYRON. + + +If analyzed, the expression would be, "sounds sweet _as_ [the sound +would be] _if_ a sister's voice reproved;" _as_, in this case, +expressing degree if taken separately. + +But the ellipsis seems to be lost sight of frequently in writing, as +is shown by the use of _as though_. + +[Sidenote: As though.] + +302. In Emerson's sentence, "We meet, and part _as though_ we parted +not," it cannot be said that there is an ellipsis: it cannot mean "we +part _as_ [we should part] _though_" etc. + +Consequently, _as if_ and _as though_ may be taken as double +conjunctions expressing manner. _As though_ seems to be in as wide use +as the conjunction _as if_; for example,-- + + Do you know a farmer who acts and lives _as though_ he believed + one word of this?--H GREELEY. + + His voice ... sounded _as though_ it came out of a + barrel.--IRVING. + + Blinded alike from sunshine and from rain, + _As though_ a rose should shut, and be a bud again. + --KEATS + +Examples might be quoted from almost all authors. + +[Sidenote: As _for_ as if.] + +303. In poetry, _as_ is often equivalent to _as if_. + + And their orbs grew strangely dreary, + Clouded, even _as_ they would weep. + --EMILY BRONTE. + + So silently we seemed to speak, + So slowly moved about, + _As_ we had lent her half our powers + To eke her living out. + --HOOD. + + +HOW TO PARSE CONJUNCTIONS. + +304. In parsing conjunctions, tell-- + +(1) To what class and subclass they belong. + +(2) What words, word groups, etc., they connect. + +[Sidenote: _Caution_.] + +In classifying them, particular attention must be paid to the +_meaning_ of the word. Some conjunctions, such as _nor, and, because, +when_, etc., are regularly of one particular class; others belong to +several classes. For example, compare the sentences,-- + + 1. It continued raining, _so_ that I could not stir + abroad.--DEFOE + + 2. There will be an agreement in whatever variety of actions, + _so_ they be each honest and natural in their hour.--EMERSON + + 3. It was too dark to put an arrow into the creature's eye; _so_ + they paddled on.--KINGSLEY + +In sentence 1, _so that_ expresses result, and its clause depends on +the other, hence it is a subordinate conjunction of result; in 2, _so_ +means provided,--is subordinate of condition; in 3, _so_ means +therefore, and its clause is independent, hence it is a cooerdinate +conjunction of reason. + + +Exercise. + +Parse all the conjunctions in these sentences:-- + +1. When the gods come among men, they are not known. + +2. If he could solve the riddle, the Sphinx was slain. + +3. A lady with whom I was riding in the forest said to me that the +woods always seemed to wait, as if the genii who inhabit them +suspended their deeds until the wayfarer had passed. + +4. The mountain of granite blooms into an eternal flower, with the +lightness and delicate finish as well as the aerial proportions and +perspective of vegetable scenery. + +5. At sea, or in the forest, or in the snow, he sleeps as warm, dines +with as good an appetite, and associates as happily, as beside his own +chimneys. + +6. Our admiration of the antique is not admiration of the old, but of +the natural. + +7. "Doctor," said his wife to Martin Luther, "how is it that whilst +subject to papacy we prayed so often and with such fervor, whilst now +we pray with the utmost coldness, and very seldom?" + +8. All the postulates of elfin annals,--that the fairies do not like +to be named; that their gifts are capricious and not to be trusted; +and the like,--I find them true in Concord, however they might be in +Cornwall or Bretagne. + +9. He is the compend of time; he is also the correlative of nature. + +10. He dismisses without notice his thought, because it is his. + +11. The eye was placed where one ray should fall, that it might +testify of that particular ray. + +12. It may be safely trusted, so it be faithfully imparted. + +13. He knows how to speak to his contemporaries. + +14. Goodness must have some edge to it,--else it is none. + +15. I hope it is somewhat better than whim at last. + +16. Now you have the whip in your hand, won't you lay on? + +17. I scowl as I dip my pen into the inkstand. + +18. I speak, therefore, of good novels only. + +19. Let her loose in the library as you do a fawn in a field. + +20. And whether consciously or not, you must be, in many a heart, +enthroned. + +21. It is clear, however, the whole conditions are changed. + +22. I never rested until I had a copy of the book. + +23. For, though there may be little resemblance otherwise, in this +they agree, that both were wayward. + +24. Still, she might have the family countenance; and Kate thought he +looked with a suspicious scrutiny into her face as he inquired for the +young don. + +25. He follows his genius whithersoever it may lead him. + +26. The manuscript indeed speaks of many more, whose names I omit, +seeing that it behooves me to hasten. + +27. God had marked this woman's sin with a scarlet letter, which had +such efficacy that no human sympathy could reach her, save it were +sinful like herself. + +28. I rejoice to stand here no longer, to be looked at as though I +had seven heads and ten horns. + +29. He should neither praise nor blame nor defend his equals. + +30. There was no iron to be seen, nor did they appear acquainted with +its properties; for they unguardedly took a drawn sword by the edge, +when it was presented to them. + + + + +PREPOSITIONS.. + +305. The word _preposition_ implies _place before_: hence it would +seem that a preposition is always _before_ its object. It may be so in +the majority of cases, but in a considerable proportion of instances +the preposition is _after_ its object. + +This occurs in such cases as the following:-- + +[Sidenote: Preposition not before its object.] + +(1) _After a relative pronoun_, a very common occurrence; thus,-- + + The most dismal Christmas fun _which_ these eyes ever looked + _on_.--THACKERAY. + + An ancient nation _which_ they know nothing _of_.--EMERSON. + + A foe, _whom_ a champion has fought _with_ to-day.--SCOTT. + + Some little toys _that_ girls are fond _of_.--SWIFT. + + "It's the man _that_ I spoke to you _about_" said Mr. + Pickwick.--DICKENS. + +(2) _After an interrogative adverb, adjective, or pronoun_, also +frequently found:-- + + _What_ God doth the wizard pray _to_?--HAWTHORNE. + + _What_ is the little one thinking about?--J.G. HOLLAND. + + _Where_ the Devil did it come _from_, I wonder?--DICKENS. + +(3) _With an infinitive_, in such expressions as these:-- + + A proper _quarrel_ for a Crusader to do battle _in_.--SCOTT. + + "You know, General, it was _nothing_ to joke _about_."--CABLE + + Had no harsh _treatment_ to reproach herself _with_.--BOYESEN + + A _loss of vitality_ scarcely to be accounted _for_.--HOLMES. + + Places for _horses_ to be hitched _to_.--_Id._ + +(4) _After a noun_,--the case in which the preposition is expected to +be, and regularly is, before its object; as,-- + + And unseen mermaids' pearly song + Comes bubbling up, the weeds _among_. + --BEDDOES. + + Forever panting and forever young, + All breathing human passion far _above_. + --KEATS. + +306. Since the object of a preposition is most often a noun, the +statement is made that the preposition usually precedes its object; as +in the following sentence, "Roused _by_ the shock, he started _from_ +his trance." + +Here the words _by_ and _from_ are connectives; but they do more than +connect. _By_ shows the relation in thought between _roused_ and +_shock_, expressing means or agency; _from_ shows the relation in +thought between _started_ and _trance_, and expresses separation. Both +introduce phrases. + +[Sidenote: _Definition_.] + +307. A preposition is a word joined to a noun or its equivalent to +make up a qualifying or an adverbial phrase, and to show the relation +between its object and the word modified. + +[Sidenote: _Objects, nouns and the following_.] + +308. Besides nouns, prepositions may have as objects-- + +(1) _Pronouns_: "Upon _them_ with the lance;" "With _whom_ I traverse +earth." + +(2) _Adjectives_: "On _high_ the winds lift up their voices." + +(3) _Adverbs_: "If I live wholly from _within_;" "Had it not been for +the sea from _aft_." + +(4) _Phrases_: "Everything came to her from _on high_;" "From _of old_ +they had been zealous worshipers." + +(5) _Infinitives_: "The queen now scarce spoke to him save _to convey_ +some necessary command for her service." + +(6) _Gerunds_: "They shrink from _inflicting_ what they threaten;" "He +is not content with _shining_ on great occasions." + +(7) _Clauses_: + + "Each soldier eye shall brightly turn + To _where thy sky-born glories burn_." + +[Sidenote: _Object usually objective case, if noun or pronoun_.] + +309. The object of a preposition, if a noun or pronoun, is usually +in the objective case. In pronouns, this is shown by the form of the +word, as in Sec. 308 (1). + +[Sidenote: _Often possessive_.] + +In the double-possessive idiom, however, the object is in the +possessive case after _of_; for example,-- + + There was also a book _of Defoe's_,... and another _of_ + _Mather's_.--FRANKLIN. + +See also numerous examples in Secs. 68 and 87. + +[Sidenote: _Sometimes nominative_.] + +And the prepositions _but_ and _save_ are found with the nominative +form of the pronoun following; as,-- + + Nobody knows _but_ my mate and _I_ + Where our nest and our nestlings lie. + --BRYANT. + + + +USES OF PREPOSITIONS. + + +[Sidenote: _Inseparable._] + +310. Prepositions are used in three ways:-- + +(1) _Compounded with verbs_, _adverbs_, or _conjunctions_; as, for +example, with verbs, _with_draw, _under_stand, _over_look, _over_take, +_over_flow, _under_go, _out_stay, _out_number, _over_run, _over_grow, +etc.; with adverbs, there_at_, there_in_, there_from_, there_by_, +there_with_, etc.; with conjunctions, where_at_, where_in_, where_on_, +where_through_, where_upon_, etc. + +[Sidenote: _Separable._] + +(2) _Following a verb_, and being really a part of the verb. This use +needs to be watched closely, to see whether the preposition belongs to +the verb or has a separate prepositional function. For example, in the +sentences, (_a_) "He broke a pane _from_ the window," (_b_) "He broke +_into_ the bank," in (_a_), the verb _broke_ is a predicate, modified +by the phrase introduced by _from_; in (_b_), the predicate is not +_broke_, modified by _into the bank_, but _broke into_--the object, +_bank_. + +Study carefully the following prepositions with verbs:-- + + Considering the space they _took up_.--SWIFT. + + I loved, _laughed at_, and pitied him.--GOLDSMITH. + + The sun _breaks through_ the darkest clouds.--SHAKESPEARE. + + They will _root up_ the whole ground.--SWIFT. + + A friend _prevailed upon_ one of the interpreters.--ADDISON + + My uncle _approved of_ it.--FRANKLIN. + + The robber who _broke into_ them.--LANDOR. + + This period is not obscurely _hinted at_.--LAMB. + + The judge _winked at_ the iniquity of the decision.--_Id._ + + The pupils' voices, _conning over_ their lessons.--IRVING. + + To _help out_ his maintenance.--_Id._ + + With such pomp is Merry Christmas _ushered in_.--LONGFELLOW. + +[Sidenote: _Ordinary use as connective, relation words._] + +(3) As _relation words_, introducing phrases,--the most common use, in +which the words have their own proper function. + + +[Sidenote: _Usefulness of prepositions._] + +311. Prepositions are the subtlest and most useful words in the +language for compressing a clear meaning into few words. Each +preposition has its proper and general meaning, which, by frequent and +exacting use, has expanded and divided into a variety of meanings more +or less close to the original one. + +Take, for example, the word _over_. It expresses place, with motion, +as, "The bird flew _over_ the house;" or rest, as, "Silence broods +_over_ the earth." It may also convey the meaning of _about_, +_concerning_; as, "They quarreled _over_ the booty." Or it may express +time: "Stay _over_ night." + +The language is made richer and more flexible by there being several +meanings to each of many prepositions, as well as by some of them +having the same meaning as others. + + + +CLASSES OF PREPOSITIONS. + + +312. It would be useless to attempt to classify all the +prepositions, since they are so various in meaning. + +The largest groups are those of place, time, and exclusion. + + + +PREPOSITIONS OF PLACE. + + +313. The following are the most common to indicate place:-- + +(1) PLACE WHERE: _abaft_, _about_, _above_, _across_, _amid_ +(_amidst_), _among_ (_amongst_), _at_, _athwart_, _below_, _beneath_, +_beside_, _between_ (_betwixt_), _beyond_, _in_, _on_, _over_, _under_ +(_underneath_), _upon_, _round_ or _around_, _without_. + +(2) PLACE WHITHER: _into_, _unto_, _up_, _through_, _throughout_, +_to_, _towards_. + +(3) PLACE WHENCE: _down_, _from_ (_away from_, _down from_, _from +out_, etc.), _off_, _out of_. + +Abaft is exclusively a sea term, meaning _back of_. + +Among (or amongst) and between (or betwixt) have a difference +in meaning, and usually a difference in use. _Among_ originally meant +in the crowd (_on gemong_), referring to several objects; _between_ +and _betwixt_ were originally made up of the preposition _be_ (meaning +_by_) and _tweon_ or _tweonum_ (modern _twain_), _by two_, and _be_ +with _twih_ (or _twuh_), having the same meaning, _by two_ objects. + +As to modern use, see "Syntax" (Sec. 459). + + + +PREPOSITIONS OF TIME. + + +314. They are _after_, _during_, _pending_, _till_ or _until_; also +many of the prepositions of place express time when put before words +indicating time, such as _at_, _between_, _by_, _about_, _on_, +_within_, etc. + +These are all familiar, and need no special remark. + + + +EXCLUSION OR SEPARATION. + + +315. The chief ones are _besides_, _but_, _except_, _save_, +_without_. The participle _excepting_ is also used as a preposition. + + + +MISCELLANEOUS PREPOSITIONS. + + +316. Against implies opposition, sometimes place where. In +colloquial English it is sometimes used to express time, now and then +also in literary English; for example,-- + + She contrived to fit up the baby's cradle for me _against_ + night.--SWIFT + +About, and the participial prepositions concerning, respecting, +regarding, mean _with reference to_. + + +[Sidenote: _Phrase prepositions._] + +317. Many phrases are used as single prepositions: _by means of_, +_by virtue of_, _by help of_, _by dint of_, _by force of_; _out of_, +_on account of_, _by way of_, _for the sake of_; _in consideration +of_, _in spite of_, _in defiance of_, _instead of_, _in view of_, _in +place of_; _with respect to_, _with regard to_, _according to_, +_agreeably to_; and some others. + + +318. Besides all these, there are some prepositions that have so +many meanings that they require separate and careful treatment: _on_ +(_upon_), _at_, _by_, _for_, _from_, _of_, _to_, _with_. + +No attempt will be made to give _all_ the meanings that each one in +this list has: the purpose is to stimulate observation, and to show +how useful prepositions really are. + + +At. + + +319. The general meaning of at is _near_, _close to_, after a verb +or expression implying position; and _towards_ after a verb or +expression indicating motion. It defines position approximately, while +_in_ is exact, meaning _within_. + +Its principal uses are as follows:-- + +(1) _Place where._ + + They who heard it listened with a curling horror _at_ the + heart.--J.F. COOPER. + + There had been a strike _at_ the neighboring manufacturing + village, and there was to be a public meeting, _at_ which he was + besought to be present.--T.W. HIGGINSON. + +(2) _Time_, more exact, meaning the point of time at which. + + He wished to attack _at_ daybreak.--PARKMAN. + + They buried him darkly, _at_ dead of night.--WOLFE + +(3) _Direction._ + + The mother stood looking wildly down _at_ the unseemly + object.--COOPER. + + You are next invited...to grasp _at_ the opportunity, and take + for your subject, "Health."--HIGGINSON. + +Here belong such expressions as _laugh at_, _look at_, _wink at_, +_gaze at_, _stare at_, _peep at_, _scowl at_, _sneer at_, _frown at_, +etc. + + We _laugh at_ the elixir that promises to prolong life to a + thousand years.--JOHNSON. + + "You never mean to say," pursued Dot, sitting on the floor and + _shaking_ her head _at_ him.--DICKENS. + +(4) _Source_ or _cause_, meaning _because of_, _by reason of_. + + I felt my heart chill _at_ the dismal sound.--T.W. KNOX. + + Delighted _at_ this outburst against the Spaniards.--PARKMAN. + +(5) Then the idiomatic phrases _at last_, _at length_, _at any rate_, +_at the best_, _at the worst_, _at least_, _at most_, _at first_, _at +once_, _at all_, _at one_, _at naught_, _at random_, etc.; and phrases +signifying state or condition of being, as, _at work_, _at play_, _at +peace_, _at war_, _at rest_, etc. + + +Exercise.--Find sentences with three different uses of _at_. + + +By. + + +320. Like _at_, by means _near_ or _close to_, but has several +other meanings more or less connected with this,-- + +(1) The general meaning of _place_. + + Richard was standing _by_ the window.--ALDRICH. + + Provided always the coach had not shed a wheel _by_ the + roadside.--_Id._ + +(2) _Time._ + + But _by_ this time the bell of Old Alloway began tolling.--B. + TAYLOR + + The angel came _by_ night.--R.H. STODDARD. + +(3) _Agency_ or _means_. + + Menippus knew which were the kings _by_ their howling + louder.--M.D. CONWAY. + + At St. Helena, the first port made _by_ the ship, he stopped. + --PARTON. + +(4) _Measure of excess_, expressing the degree of difference. + + At that time [the earth] was richer, _by_ many a million of + acres.--DE QUINCEY. + + He was taller _by_ almost the breadth of my nail.--SWIFT. + +(5) It is also used in _oaths and adjurations_. + + _By_ my faith, that is a very plump hand for a man of + eighty-four!--PARTON. + + They implore us _by_ the long trials of struggling humanity; _by_ + the blessed memory of the departed; _by_ the wrecks of time; _by_ + the ruins of nations.--EVERETT. + + +Exercise.--Find sentences with three different meanings of _by_. + + +For. + + +321. The chief meanings of for are as follows:-- + +(1) _Motion towards_ a place, or a tendency or action toward the +attainment of any object. + + Pioneers who were opening the way _for_ the march of the + nation.--COOPER. + + She saw the boat headed _for_ her.--WARNER. + +(2) _In favor of_, _for the benefit of_, _in behalf of_, a person or +thing. + + He and they were _for_ immediate attack.--PARKMAN + + The people were then against us; they are now _for_ us.--W.L. + GARRISON. + +(3) _Duration of time_, or _extent of space_. + + _For_ a long time the disreputable element outshone the + virtuous.--H.H. BANCROFT. + + He could overlook all the country _for_ many a mile of rich + woodland.--IRVING. + +(4) _Substitution_ or _exchange_. + + There are gains _for_ all our losses.--STODDARD. + + Thus did the Spaniards make bloody atonement _for_ the butchery + of Fort Caroline.--PARKMAN. + +(5) _Reference_, meaning _with regard to_, _as to_, _respecting_, etc. + + _For_ the rest, the Colonna motto would fit you best.--EMERSON. + + _For_ him, poor fellow, he repented of his folly.--E.E. HALE + +This is very common with _as_--_as for_ me, etc. + +(6) Like _as_, meaning _in the character of_, _as being_, etc. + + "Nay, if your worship can accomplish that," answered Master + Brackett, "I shall own you _for_ a man of skill indeed!" + --HAWTHORNE. + + Wavering whether he should put his son to death _for_ an + unnatural monster.--LAMB. + +(7) _Concession_, meaning _although_, _considering that_ etc. + + "_For_ a fool," said the Lady of Lochleven, "thou hast counseled + wisely."--SCOTT + + By my faith, that is a very plump hand _for_ a man of + eighty-four!--PARTON. + +(8) Meaning _notwithstanding_, or _in spite of_. + + But the Colonel, _for_ all his title, had a forest of poor + relations.--HOLMES. + + Still, _for_ all slips of hers, + One of Eve's family.--HOOD. + +(9) _Motive, cause, reason, incitement to action._ + + The twilight being...hardly more wholesome _for_ its glittering + mists of midge companies.--RUSKIN. + + An Arab woman, but a few sunsets since, ate her child, _for_ + famine.--_Id._ + + Here Satouriona forgot his dignity, and leaped _for_ + joy.--PARKMAN. + +(10) _For_ with its object preceding the infinitive, and having the +same meaning as a noun clause, as shown by this sentence:-- + + It is by no means necessary _that he should devote his whole + school existence to physical science_; nay, more, it is not + necessary for _him to give up more than a moderate share of his + time to such studies_.--HUXLEY. + + +Exercise.--Find sentences with five meanings of _for_. + + +From. + + +322. The general idea in from is separation or source. It may be +with regard to-- + +(1) _Place._ + + Like boys escaped _from_ school.--H.H. BANCROFT + + Thus they drifted _from_ snow-clad ranges to burning + plain.--_Id._ + +(2) _Origin._ + + Coming _from_ a race of day-dreamers, Ayrault had inherited the + faculty of dreaming also by night.--HIGGINSON. + + _From_ harmony, _from_ heavenly harmony + This universal frame began.--DRYDEN. + +(3) _Time._ + + A distrustful, if not a desperate man, did he become _from_ the + night of that fearful dream--HAWTHORNE. + +(4) _Motive_, _cause_, or _reason_. + + It was _from_ no fault of Nolan's.--HALE. + + The young cavaliers, _from_ a desire of seeming valiant, ceased + to be merciful.--BANCROFT. + + +Exercise.--Find sentences with three meanings of _from_. + + +Of. + + +323. The original meaning of of was separation or source, like +_from_. The various uses are shown in the following examples:-- + +I. The _From_ Relation. + +(1) _Origin or source._ + + The king holds his authority _of_ the people.--MILTON. + + Thomas a Becket was born _of_ reputable parents in the city of + London.--HUME. + +(2) _Separation_: (_a_) After certain verbs, such as _ease_, _demand_, +_rob_, _divest_, _free_, _clear_, _purge_, _disarm_, _deprive_, +_relieve_, _cure_, _rid_, _beg_, _ask_, etc. + + Two old Indians cleared the spot _of_ brambles, weeds, and + grass.--PARKMAN. + + Asked no odds _of_, acquitted them _of,_ etc.--ALDRICH. + +(_b_) After some adjectives,--_clear of_, _free of_, _wide of_, _bare +of_, etc.; especially adjectives and adverbs of direction, as _north +of_, _south of_, etc. + + The hills were bare _of_ trees.--BAYARD TAYLOR. + + Back _of_ that tree, he had raised a little Gothic chapel. + --GAVARRE. + +(_c_) After nouns expressing lack, deprivation, etc. + + A singular want _of_ all human relation.--HIGGINSON. + +_(d)_ With words expressing distance. + + Until he had come within a staff's length _of_ the old dame. + --HAWTHORNE + + Within a few yards _of_ the young man's hiding place.--_Id._ + +(3) _With expressions of material_, especially _out of_. + + White shirt with diamond studs, or breastpin _of_ native + gold.--BANCROFT. + + Sandals, bound with thongs _of_ boar's hide.--SCOTT + + Who formed, _out of_ the most unpromising materials, the finest + army that Europe had yet seen.--MACAULAY + +(4) _Expressing cause, reason, motive._ + + The author died _of_ a fit of apoplexy.--BOSWELL. + + More than one altar was richer _of_ his vows.--LEW WALLACE. + + "Good for him!" cried Nolan. "I am glad _of_ that."--E.E. HALE. + +(5) _Expressing agency._ + + You cannot make a boy know, _of_ his own knowledge, that Cromwell + once ruled England.--HUXLEY. + + He is away _of_ his own free will.--DICKENS + + +II. Other Relations expressed by _Of_. + +(6) _Partitive_, expressing a part of a number or quantity. + + _Of_ the Forty, there were only twenty-one members present. + --PARTON. + + He washed out some _of_ the dirt, separating thereby as much of + the dust as a ten-cent piece would hold.--BANCROFT. + +[Sidenote: _See also Sec. 309._] + +(7) _Possessive_, standing, with its object, for the possessive, or +being used with the possessive case to form the double possessive. + + Not even woman's love, and the dignity _of_ a queen, could give + shelter from his contumely.--W.E. CHANNING. + + And the mighty secret _of_ the Sierra stood revealed.--BANCROFT. + + +(8) _Appositional_, which may be in the case of-- + +(_a_) Nouns. + + Such a book as that _of_ Job.--FROUDE. + + The fair city _of_ Mexico.--PRESCOTT. + + The nation _of_ Lilliput.--SWIFT. + +(_b_) Noun and gerund, being equivalent to an infinitive. + + In the vain hope _of_ appeasing the savages.--COOPER. + + Few people take the trouble _of_ finding out what democracy + really is.--LOWELL. + +(_c_) Two nouns, when the first is descriptive of the second. + + This crampfish _of_ a Socrates has so bewitched him.--EMERSON + + A sorry antediluvian makeshift _of_ a building you may think + it.--LAMB. + + An inexhaustible bottle _of_ a shop.--ALDRICH. + +(9) _Of time._ Besides the phrases _of old_, _of late_, _of a sudden_, +etc., _of_ is used in the sense of _during_. + + I used often to linger _of_ a morning by the high gate.--ALDRICH + + I delighted to loll over the quarter railing _of_ a calm day. + --IRVING. + +(10) _Of reference_, equal to _about_, _concerning_, _with regard to_. + + The Turk lay dreaming _of_ the hour.--HALLECK. + + Boasted _of_ his prowess as a scalp hunter and + duelist.--BANCROFT. + + Sank into reverie _of_ home and boyhood scenes.--_Id._ + +[Sidenote: _Idiomatic use with verbs._] + +_Of_ is also used as an appendage of certain verbs, such as _admit_, +_accept_, _allow_, _approve_, _disapprove_, _permit_, without adding +to their meaning. It also accompanies the verbs _tire_, _complain_, +_repent_, _consist_, _avail_ (one's self), and others. + + +Exercise.--Find sentences with six uses of _of_. + + +On, Upon. + + +324. The general meaning of on is position or direction. _On_ and +_upon_ are interchangeable in almost all of their applications, as +shown by the sentences below:-- + +(1) _Place_: (_a_) Where. + + Cannon were heard close _on_ the left.--PARKMAN. + + The Earl of Huntley ranged his host + _Upon_ their native strand.--MRS. SIGOURNEY. + +(_b_) With motion. + + It was the battery at Samos firing _on_ the boats.--PARKMAN. + + Thou didst look down _upon_ the naked earth.--BRYANT. + +(2) _Time._ + + The demonstration of joy or sorrow _on_ reading their letters. + --BANCROFT. + + _On_ Monday evening he sent forward the Indians.--PARKMAN. + +Upon is seldom used to express time. + +(3) _Reference_, equal to _about_, _concerning_, etc. + + I think that one abstains from writing _on_ the immortality of + the soul.--EMERSON. + + He pronounced a very flattering opinion _upon_ my brother's + promise of excellence.--DE QUINCEY. + +(4) _In adjurations._ + + _On_ my life, you are eighteen, and not a day more.--ALDRICH. + + _Upon_ my reputation and credit.--SHAKESPEARE + +(5) _Idiomatic phrases_: _on fire_, _on board_, _on high_, _on the +wing_, _on the alert_, _on a sudden_, _on view_, _on trial_, etc. + +Exercise.--Find sentences with three uses of _on_ or _upon_. + + +To. + +325. Some uses of to are the following:-- + +(1) _Expressing motion_: (_a_) To a place. + + Come _to_ the bridal chamber, Death!--HALLECK. + + Rip had scrambled _to_ one of the highest peaks.--IRVING. + +(_b_) Referring to time. + + Full of schemes and speculations _to_ the last.--PARTON. + + Revolutions, whose influence is felt _to_ this hour.--PARKMAN. + +(2) _Expressing result._ + + He usually gave his draft to an aid...to be written over,--often + _to_ the loss of vigor.--BENTON + + _To_ our great delight, Ben Lomond was unshrouded.--B. TAYLOR + +(3) _Expressing comparison._ + + But when, unmasked, gay Comedy appears, + 'Tis ten _to_ one you find the girl in tears. + --ALDRICH + + They are arrant rogues: Cacus was nothing _to_ them.--BULWER. + + Bolingbroke and the wicked Lord Littleton were saints _to_ + him.--WEBSTER + +(4) _Expressing concern, interest._ + + _To_ the few, it may be genuine poetry.--BRYANT. + + His brother had died, had ceased to be, _to_ him.--HALE. + + Little mattered _to_ them occasional privations--BANCROFT. + +(5) _Equivalent to_ according to. + + Nor, _to_ my taste, does the mere music...of your style fall far + below the highest efforts of poetry.--LANG. + + We cook the dish _to_ our own appetite.--GOLDSMITH. + +(6) _With the infinitive_ (see Sec. 268). + +Exercise.--Find sentences containing three uses of _to_. + + +With. + + +326. With expresses the idea of accompaniment, and hardly any of +its applications vary from this general signification. + +In Old English, _mid_ meant _in company with_, while _wieth_ meant +_against_: both meanings are included in the modern _with_. + +The following meanings are expressed by _with_:-- + +(1) _Personal accompaniment._ + + The advance, _with_ Heyward at its head, had already reached the + defile.--COOPER. + + For many weeks I had walked _with_ this poor friendless girl.--DE + QUINCEY. + +(2) _Instrumentality._ + + _With_ my crossbow I shot the albatross.--COLERIDGE. + + Either _with_ the swingle-bar, or _with_ the haunch of our near + leader, we had struck the off-wheel of the little gig.--DE + QUINCEY. + +(3) _Cause, reason, motive._ + + He was wild _with_ delight about Texas.--HALE. + + She seemed pleased _with_ the accident.--HOWELLS. + +(4) _Estimation, opinion._ + + How can a writer's verses be numerous if _with_ him, as _with_ + you, "poetry is not a pursuit, but a pleasure"?--LANG. + + It seemed a supreme moment _with_ him.--HOWELLS. + +(5) _Opposition_. + + After battling _with_ terrific hurricanes and typhoons on every + known sea.--ALDRICH. + + The quarrel of the sentimentalists is not _with_ life, but _with_ + you.--LANG. + +(6) _The equivalent of_ notwithstanding, in spite of. + + _With_ all his sensibility, he gave millions to the + sword.--CHANNING. + + Messala, _with_ all his boldness, felt it unsafe to trifle + further.--WALLACE + +(7) _Time._ + + He expired _with_ these words.--SCOTT. + + _With_ each new mind a new secret of nature transpires.--EMERSON. + +Exercise.--Find sentences with four uses of _with_. + + +HOW TO PARSE PREPOSITIONS. + + +327. Since a preposition introduces a phrase and shows the relation +between two things, it is necessary, first of all, to find the object +of the preposition, and then to find what word the prepositional +phrase limits. Take this sentence:-- + + The rule adopted on board the ships on which I have met "the man + without a country" was, I think, transmitted from the + beginning.--E.E. HALE. + +The phrases are (1) _on board the ships_, (2) _on which_, (3) _without +a country_, (4) _from the beginning_. The object of _on board_ is +_ships_; of _on_, _which_; of _without_, _country_; of _from_, +_beginning_. + +In (1), the phrase answers the question _where_, and has the office of +an adverb in telling _where_ the rule is adopted; hence we say, _on +board_ shows the relation between _ships_ and the participle +_adopted_. + +In (2), _on which_ modifies the verb _have met_ by telling where: +hence _on_ shows the relation between _which_ (standing for _ships_) +and the verb _have met_. + +In (3), _without a country_ modifies _man_, telling what man, or the +verb _was_ understood: hence _without_ shows the relation between +_country_ and _man_, or _was_. And so on. + +The parsing of prepositions means merely telling between what words +or word groups they show relation. + +Exercises. + +(_a_) Parse the prepositions in these paragraphs:-- + + 1. I remember, before the dwarf left the queen, he followed us + one day into those gardens. I must needs show my wit by a silly + illusion between him and the trees, which happens to hold in + their language as it does in ours. Whereupon, the malicious + rogue, watching his opportunity when I was walking under one of + them, shook it directly over my head, by which a dozen apples, + each of them near as large as a Bristol barrel, came tumbling + about my ears; one of them hit me on the back as I chanced to + stoop, and knocked me down flat on my face; but I received no + other hurt, and the dwarf was pardoned at my desire, because I + had given the provocation.--SWIFT + + 2. Be that as it will, I found myself suddenly awakened with a + violent pull upon the ring, which was fastened at the top of my + box for the conveniency of carriage. I felt my box raised very + high in the air, and then borne forward with prodigious speed. + The first jolt had like to have shaken me out of my hammock. I + called out several times, but all to no purpose. I looked towards + my windows, and could see nothing but the clouds and the sky. I + heard a noise just over my head, like the clapping of wings, and + then began to perceive the woeful condition I was in; that some + eagle had got the ring of my box in his beak, with an intent to + let it fall on a rock: for the sagacity and smell of this bird + enabled him to discover his quarry at a great distance, though + better concealed than I could be within a two-inch board.--_Id._ + + +(_b_) Give the exact meaning of each italicized preposition in the +following sentences:-- + +1. The guns were cleared _of_ their lumber. + +2. They then left _for_ a cruise up the Indian Ocean. + +3. I speak these things _from_ a love of justice. + +4. _To_ our general surprise, we met the defaulter here. + +5. There was no one except a little sunbeam _of_ a sister. + +6. The great gathering in the main street was _on_ Sundays, when, +after a restful morning, though unbroken _by_ the peal of church +bells, the miners gathered _from_ hills and ravines _for_ miles around +_for_ marketing. + +7. The troops waited in their boats _by_ the edge of a strand. + +8. His breeches were _of_ black silk, and his hat was garnished _with_ +white and sable plumes. + +9. A suppressed but still distinct murmur of approbation ran through +the crowd _at_ this generous proposition. + +10. They were shriveled and colorless _with_ the cold. + +11. On every solemn occasion he was the striking figure, even _to_ the +eclipsing of the involuntary object of the ceremony. + +12. _On_ all subjects known to man, he favored the world with his +opinions. + +13. Our horses ran _on_ a sandy margin of the road. + +14. The hero of the poem is _of_ a strange land and a strange +parentage. + +15. He locked his door _from_ mere force of habit. + +16. The lady was remarkable _for_ energy and talent. + +17. Roland was acknowledged _for_ the successor and heir. + +18. _For_ my part, I like to see the passing, in town. + +19. A half-dollar was the smallest coin that could be tendered _for_ +any service. + +20. The mother sank and fell, grasping _at_ the child. + +21. The savage army was in war-paint, plumed _for_ battle. + +22. He had lived in Paris _for_ the last fifty years. + +23. The hill stretched _for_ an immeasurable distance. + +24. The baron of Smaylho'me rose _with_ day, + He spurred his courser on, + Without stop or stay, down the rocky way + That leads _to_ Brotherstone. + +25. _With_ all his learning, Carteret was far from being a pedant. + +26. An immense mountain covered with a shining green turf is nothing, +in this respect, _to_ one dark and gloomy. + +27. Wilt thou die _for_ very weakness? + +28. The name of Free Joe strikes humorously _upon_ the ear of memory. + +29. The shout I heard was _upon_ the arrival of this engine. + +30. He will raise the price, not merely _by_ the amount of the tax. + + + + +WORDS THAT NEED WATCHING. + + +328. If the student has now learned fully that words must be studied +in grammar according to their function or use, and not according to +form, he will be able to handle some words that are used as several +parts of speech. A few are discussed below,--a summary of their +treatment in various places as studied heretofore. + + +THAT. + + +329. That may be used as follows: + +(1) _As a demonstrative adjective._ + + _That_ night was a memorable one.--STOCKTON. + +(2) _As an adjective pronoun._ + + _That_ was a dreadful mistake.--WEBSTER. + +(3) _As a relative pronoun._ + + And now it is like an angel's song, + _That_ makes the heavens be mute.--COLERIDGE. + +(4) _As an adverb of degree._ + + _That_ far I hold that the Scriptures teach.--BEECHER. + +(5) _As a conjunction_: (_a_) Of purpose. + + Has bounteously lengthened out your lives, _that_ you might + behold this joyous day.--WEBSTER. + +(_b_) Of result. + + Gates of iron so massy _that_ no man could without the help of + engines open or shut them.--JOHNSON. + +(_c_) Substantive conjunction. + + We wish _that_ labor may look up here, and be proud in the midst + of its toil.--WEBSTER. + + +WHAT. + + +330. (1) _Relative pronoun._ + + That is _what_ I understand by scientific education.--HUXLEY. + +(_a_) Indefinite relative. + + Those shadowy recollections, + Which be they _what_ they may, + Are yet the fountain light of all our day.--WORDSWORTH. + +(2) _Interrogative pronoun_: (_a_) Direct question. + + _What_ would be an English merchant's character after a few such + transactions?--THACKERAY. + +(_b_) Indirect question. + + I have not allowed myself to look beyond the Union, to see _what_ + might be hidden.--WEBSTER. + +(3) _Indefinite pronoun:_ The saying, "I'll tell you _what_." + +(4) _Relative adjective._ + + But woe to _what_ thing or person stood in the way.--EMERSON. + +(_a_) Indefinite relative adjective. + + To say _what_ good of fashion we can, it rests on reality.--_Id._ + +(5) _Interrogative adjective_: (_a_) Direct question. + + _What_ right have you to infer that this condition was caused by + the action of heat?--AGASSIZ. + +(_b_) Indirect question. + + At _what_ rate these materials would be distributed,...it is + impossible to determine.--_Id._ + +(6) _Exclamatory adjective._ + + Saint Mary! _what_ a scene is here!--SCOTT. + +(7) _Adverb of degree._ + + If he has [been in America], he knows _what_ good people are to + be found there.--THACKERAY. + +(8) _Conjunction_, nearly equivalent to _partly_... _partly_, or _not +only...but_. + + _What_ with the Maltese goats, who go tinkling by to their + pasturage; _what_ with the vocal seller of bread in the early + morning;...these sounds are only to be heard...in Pera.--S.S. + Cox. + +(9) _As an exclamation._ + + _What_, silent still, and silent all!--BYRON. + + _What_, Adam Woodcock at court!--SCOTT. + + +BUT. + + +331. (1) _Cooerdinate conjunction_: (_a_) Adversative. + + His very attack was never the inspiration of courage, _but_ the + result of calculation.--EMERSON. + +(_b_) Copulative, after _not only_. + + Then arose not only tears, _but_ piercing cries, on all sides. + --CARLYLE. + +(2) _Subordinate conjunction_: (_a_) Result, equivalent to _that_ ... +_not_. + + Nor is Nature so hard _but_ she gives me this joy several + times.--EMERSON. + +(_b_) Substantive, meaning _otherwise_ ... _than_. + + Who knows _but_, like the dog, it will at length be no longer + traceable to its wild original--THOREAU. + +(3) _Preposition_, meaning _except_. + + Now there was nothing to be seen _but_ fires in every + direction.--LAMB. + +(4) _Relative pronoun_, after a negative, stands for _that_ ... _not_, +or _who_ ... _not_. + + There is not a man in them _but_ is impelled withal, at all + moments, towards order.--CARLYLE. + +(5) _Adverb_, meaning _only_. + + The whole twenty years had been to him _but_ as one + night.--IRVING. + + To lead _but_ one measure.--SCOTT. + + +AS. + + +332. (1) _Subordinate conjunction_: (_a_) Of time. + + Rip beheld a precise counterpart of himself _as_ he went up the + mountain.--IRVING. + +(_b_) Of manner. + + _As_ orphans yearn on to their mothers, + He yearned to our patriot bands.--MRS BROWNING. + +(_c_) Of degree. + + His wan eyes + Gaze on the empty scene _as_ vacantly + _As_ ocean's moon looks on the moon in heaven. + --SHELLEY. + +(_d_) Of reason. + + I shall see but little of it, _as_ I could neither bear walking + nor riding in a carriage.--FRANKLIN. + +(_e_) Introducing an appositive word. + + Reverenced _as_ one of the patriarchs of the village.--IRVING. + + Doing duty _as_ a guard.--HAWTHORNE. + +(2) _Relative pronoun_, after _such_, sometimes _same_. + + And was there such a resemblance _as_ the crowd had + testified?--HAWTHORNE. + + +LIKE. + + +[Sidenote: _Modifier of a noun or pronoun._] + +333. (1) _An adjective._ + + The aforesaid general had been exceedingly _like_ the majestic + image.--HAWTHORNE. + + They look, indeed, _liker_ a lion's mane than a Christian man's + locks.-SCOTT. + + No Emperor, this, _like_ him awhile ago.--ALDRICH. + + There is no statue _like_ this living man.--EMERSON. + + That face, _like_ summer ocean's.--HALLECK. + +In each case, _like_ clearly modifies a noun or pronoun, and is +followed by a dative-objective. + +[Sidenote: _Introduces a clause, but its verb is omitted._] + +(2) _A subordinate conjunction_ of manner. This follows a verb or a +verbal, but the verb of the clause introduced by _like_ is _regularly +omitted_. Note the difference between these two uses. In Old English +_gelic_ (like) was followed by the dative, and was clearly an +adjective. In this second use, _like_ introduces a shortened clause +modifying a verb or a verbal, as shown in the following sentences:-- + + Goodman Brown came into the street of Salem village, staring + _like_ a bewildered man.--HAWTHORNE. + + Give Ruskin space enough, and he grows frantic and beats the air + _like_ Carlyle.--HIGGINSON. + + They conducted themselves much _like_ the crew of a man-of-war. + --PARKMAN. + + [The sound] rang in his ears _like_ the iron hoofs of the steeds + of Time.--LONGFELLOW. + + Stirring it vigorously, _like_ a cook beating eggs.--ALDRICH. + +If the verb is expressed, _like_ drops out, and _as_ or _as if_ takes +its place. + + The sturdy English moralist may talk of a Scotch supper _as_ he + pleases.--CASS. + + Mankind for the first seventy thousand ages ate their meat raw, + just _as_ they do in Abyssinia to this day.--LAMB. + + I do with my friends _as_ I do with my books.--EMERSON. + +NOTE.--Very rarely _like_ is found with a verb following, but this is +not considered good usage: for example,-- + + A timid, nervous child, _like_ Martin _was_.--MAYHEW. + + Through which they put their heads, _like_ the Gauchos _do_ + through their cloaks.--DARWIN. + + _Like_ an arrow shot + From a well-experienced archer _hits_ the mark.--SHAKESPEARE. + + + + +INTERJECTIONS. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +334. Interjections are exclamations used to express emotion, and +are not parts of speech in the same sense as the words we have +discussed; that is, entering into the structure of a sentence. + +Some of these are imitative sounds; as, tut! buzz! etc. + +_Humph_! attempts to express a contemptuous nasal utterance that no +letters of our language can really spell. + +[Sidenote: _Not all exclamatory words are interjections._] + +Other interjections are _oh_! _ah_! _alas_! _pshaw_! _hurrah_! etc. +But it is to be remembered that almost any word may be used as an +exclamation, but it still retains its identity as noun, pronoun, +verb, etc.: for example, "Books! lighthouses built on the sea of time +[noun];" "Halt! the dust-brown ranks stood fast [verb]," "Up! for +shame! [adverb]," "Impossible! it cannot be [adjective]." + + + + +PART II. + + + + +_ANALYSIS OF SENTENCES._ + + +CLASSIFICATION ACCORDING TO FORM. + + +[Sidenote: _What analysis is._.] + +335. All discourse is made up of sentences: consequently the +sentence is the unit with which we must begin. And in order to get a +clear and practical idea of the structure of sentences, it is +necessary to become expert in analysis; that is, in separating them +into their component parts. + +A general idea of analysis was needed in our study of the parts of +speech,--in determining case, subject and predicate, clauses +introduced by conjunctions, etc. + +[Sidenote: _Value of analysis._] + +A more thorough and accurate acquaintance with the subject is +necessary for two reasons,--not only for a correct understanding of +the principles of syntax, but for the study of punctuation and other +topics treated in rhetoric. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +336. A sentence is the expression of a thought in words. + + +[Sidenote: _Kinds of sentences as to form._] + +337. According to the way in which a thought is put before a +listener or reader, sentences may be of three kinds:-- + +(1) Declarative, which puts the thought in the form of a declaration +or assertion. This is the most common one. + +(2) Interrogative, which puts the thought in a question. + +(3) Imperative, which expresses command, entreaty, or request. + +Any one of these may be put in the form of an exclamation, but the +sentence would still be declarative, interrogative, or imperative; +hence, _according to form_, there are only the three kinds of +sentences already named. + +Examples of these three kinds are, declarative, "Old year, you must +not die!" interrogative, "Hath he not always treasures, always +friends?" imperative, "Come to the bridal chamber, Death!" + + + + +CLASSIFICATION ACCORDING TO NUMBER OF STATEMENTS. + + + + +SIMPLE SENTENCES. + + +[Sidenote: _Division according to number of statements._] + +338. But the division of sentences most necessary to analysis is the +division, not according to the form in which a thought is put, but +according to how many statements there are. + +The one we shall consider first is the simple sentence. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +339. A simple sentence is one which contains a single statement, +question, or command: for example, "The quality of mercy is not +strained;" "What wouldst thou do, old man?" "Be thou familiar, but by +no means vulgar." + + +340. Every sentence must contain two parts,--a subject and a +predicate. + +[Sidenote: _Definition: Predicate._] + +The predicate of a sentence is a verb or verb phrase which says +something about the subject. + +In order to get a correct definition of the subject, let us examine +two specimen sentences:-- + +1. But now all is to be changed. + +2. A rare old plant is the ivy green. + +In the first sentence we find the subject by placing the word _what_ +before the predicate,--_What_ is to be changed? Answer, _all_. +Consequently, we say _all_ is the subject of the sentence. + +But if we try this with the second sentence, we have some +trouble,--_What_ is the ivy green? Answer, _a rare old plant_. But we +cannot help seeing that an assertion is made, not of _a rare old +plant_, but about _the ivy green_; and the real subject is the latter. +Sentences are frequently in this inverted order, especially in poetry; +and our definition must be the following, to suit all cases:-- + +[Sidenote: _Subject._] + +The subject is that which answers the question _who_ or _what_ +placed before the predicate, and which at the same time names that of +which the predicate says something. + + +[Sidenote: _The subject in interrogative and imperative simple +sentences._] + +341. In the interrogative sentence, the subject is frequently after +the verb. Either the verb is the first word of the sentence, or an +interrogative pronoun, adjective, or adverb that asks about the +subject. In analyzing such sentences, _always reduce them to the order +of a statement_. Thus,-- + +(1) "When should this scientific education be commenced?" + +(2) "This scientific education should be commenced when?" + +(3) "What wouldst thou have a good great man obtain?" + +(4) "Thou wouldst have a good great man obtain what?" + +In the imperative sentence, the subject (_you_, _thou_, or _ye_) is in +most cases omitted, and is to be supplied; as, "[You] behold her +single in the field." + + +Exercise. + +Name the subject and the predicate in each of the following +sentences:-- + + +1. The shadow of the dome of pleasure + Floated midway on the waves. + +2. Hence originated their contempt for terrestrial distinctions. + +3. Nowhere else on the Mount of Olives is there a view like this. + +4. In the sands of Africa and Arabia the camel is a sacred and +precious gift. + +5. The last of all the Bards was he. + +6. Slavery they can have anywhere. + +7. Listen, on the other hand, to an ignorant man. + +8. What must have been the emotions of the Spaniards! + +9. Such was not the effect produced on the sanguine spirit of the +general. + +10. What a contrast did these children of southern Europe present to +the Anglo-Saxon races! + + +ELEMENTS OF THE SIMPLE SENTENCE. + +342. All the elements of the simple sentence are as follows:-- + +(1) The subject. + +(2) The predicate. + +(3) The object. + +(4) The complements. + +(5) Modifiers. + +(6) Independent elements. + +The subject and predicate have been discussed. + + +343. The object may be of two kinds:-- + +[Sidenote: _Definitions. Direct Object_.] + +(1) The DIRECT OBJECT is that word or expression which answers the +question _who_ or _what_ placed after the verb; or the direct object +names that toward which the action of the predicate is directed. + +It must be remembered that any verbal may have an object; but for the +present we speak of the object of the verb, and by _object_ we mean +the _direct_ object. + +[Sidenote: _Indirect object_.] + +(2) The INDIRECT OBJECT is a noun or its equivalent used as the +modifier of a verb or verbal to name the person or thing for whose +benefit an action is performed. + +Examples of direct and indirect objects are, direct, "She seldom saw +her _course_ at a glance;" indirect, "I give _thee_ this to wear at +the collar." + +[Sidenote: _Complement_:] + +344. A complement is a word added to a verb of incomplete +predication to complete its meaning. + +Notice that a verb of incomplete predication may be of two +kinds,--transitive and intransitive. + +[Sidenote: _Of a transitive verb_.] + +The _transitive verb_ often requires, in addition to the object, a +word to define fully the action that is exerted upon the object; for +example, "Ye call me chief." Here the verb _call_ has an object _me_ +(if we leave out _chief_), and means summoned; but _chief_ belongs to +the verb, and _me_ here is not the object simply of _call_, but of +_call chief_, just as if to say, "Ye _honor me_." This word completing +a transitive verb is sometimes called a _factitive object_, or _second +object_, but it is a true complement. + +The fact that this is a complement can be more clearly seen when the +verb is in the passive. See sentence 19, in exercise following Sec. +364. + +[Sidenote: _Complement of an intransitive verb_.] + +An _intransitive verb_, especially the forms of _be_, _seem_, +_appear_, _taste_, _feel_, _become_, etc., must often have a word to +complete the meaning: as, for instance, "Brow and head were _round, +and of massive weight_;" "The good man, he was now getting _old_, +above sixty;" "Nothing could be _more copious_ than his talk;" "But in +general he seemed _deficient in laughter_." + +All these complete intransitive verbs. The following are examples of +complements of transitive verbs: "Hope deferred maketh the heart +_sick_;" "He was termed _Thomas_, or, more familiarly, _Thom of the +Gills_;" "A plentiful fortune is reckoned _necessary_, in the popular +judgment, to the completion of this man of the world." + +345. The modifiers and independent elements will be discussed in +detail in Secs. 351, 352, 355. + +[Sidenote: _Phrases_.] + +346. A phrase is a group of words, not containing a verb, but used +as a single modifier. + +As to _form_, phrases are of three kinds:-- + +[Sidenote: _Three kinds_.] + +(1) PREPOSITIONAL, introduced by a preposition: for example, "Such a +convulsion is the struggle _of gradual suffocation_, as _in drowning_; +and, _in the original Opium Confessions_, I mentioned a case _of that +nature_." + +(2) PARTICIPIAL, consisting of a participle and the words dependent on +it. The following are examples: "Then _retreating into the warm +house_, and _barring the door_, she sat down to undress the two +youngest children." + +(3) INFINITIVE, consisting of an infinitive and the words dependent +upon it; as in the sentence, "She left her home forever in order _to +present herself at the Dauphin's court_." + + +Things used as Subject. + +347. The subject of a simple sentence may be-- + +(1) _Noun_: "There seems to be no _interval_ between greatness and +meanness." Also an expression used as a noun; as, "A cheery, '_Ay, ay, +sir_!' rang out in response." + +(2) _Pronoun_: "We are fortified by every heroic anecdote." + +(3) _Infinitive phrase_: "_To enumerate and analyze these relations_ +is to teach the science of method." + +(4) _Gerund_: "There will be _sleeping_ enough in the grave;" "What +signifies _wishing_ and _hoping_ for better things?" + +(5) _Adjective used as noun_: "_The good_ are befriended even by +weakness and defect;" "_The dead_ are there." + +(6) _Adverb_: "_Then_ is the moment for the humming bird to secure the +insects." + +348. The subject is often found _after the verb_-- + +(1) _By simple inversion_: as, "Therein has been, and ever will be, my +_deficiency_,--the talent of starting the game;" "Never, from their +lips, was heard one _syllable_ to justify," etc. + +(2) _In interrogative sentences_, for which see Sec. 341. + +(3) _After_ "it _introductory_:" "It ought not to need _to print_ in +a reading room a caution not to read aloud." + +In this sentence, _it_ stands in the position of a grammatical +subject; but the real or logical subject is _to print_, etc. _It_ +merely serves to throw the subject after a verb. + +[Sidenote: _Disguised infinitive subject_.] + +There is one kind of expression that is really an infinitive, though +disguised as a prepositional phrase: "It is hard _for honest men to +separate_ their country from their party, or their religion from their +sect." + +The _for_ did not belong there originally, but obscures the real +subject,--the infinitive phrase. Compare Chaucer: "No wonder is a +lewed man to ruste" (No wonder [it] is [for] a common man to rust). + +(4) _After_ "there _introductory_," which has the same office as _it_ +in reversing the order (see Sec. 292): "There was a _description_ of +the destructive operations of time;" "There are _asking eyes_, +_asserting eyes_, _prowling eyes_." + + +Things used as Direct Object. + +349. The words used as direct object are mainly the same as those +used for subject, but they will be given in detail here, for the sake +of presenting examples:-- + +(1) _Noun_: "Each man has his own _vocation_." Also expressions used +as nouns: for example, "'_By God, and by Saint George!_' said the +King." + +(2) _Pronoun_: "Memory greets _them_ with the ghost of a smile." + +(3) _Infinitive_: "We like _to see_ everything do its office." + +(4) _Gerund_: "She heard that _sobbing_ of litanies, or the +_thundering_ of organs." + +(5) _Adjective used as a noun_: "For seventy leagues through the +mighty cathedral, I saw _the quick_ and _the dead_." + + +Things used as Complement. + +[Sidenote: _Complement: Of an intransitive verb_.] + +350. As complement of an _intransitive_ verb,-- + +(1) _Noun_: "She had been an ardent _patriot_." + +(2) _Pronoun_: "_Who_ is she in bloody coronation robes from Rheims?" +"This is _she_, the shepherd girl." + +(3) _Adjective_: "Innocence is ever _simple_ and _credulous_." + +(4) _Infinitive_: "To enumerate and analyze these relations is _to +teach_ the science of method." + +(5) _Gerund_: "Life is a _pitching_ of this penny,--heads or tails;" +"Serving others is _serving_ us." + +(6) _A prepositional phrase_: "His frame is _on a larger scale_;" "The +marks were _of a kind_ not to be mistaken." + +It will be noticed that all these complements have a double +office,--completing the predicate, and explaining or modifying the +subject. + +[Sidenote: _Of a transitive verb_.] + +As complement of a _transitive_ verb,-- + +(1) _Noun_: "I will not call you _cowards_." + +(2) _Adjective_: "Manners make beauty _superfluous_ and _ugly_;" +"Their tempers, doubtless, are rendered _pliant_ and _malleable_ in +the fiery furnace of domestic tribulation." In this last sentence, the +object is made the subject by being passive, and the words italicized +are still complements. Like all the complements in this list, they are +adjuncts of the object, and, at the same time, complements of the +predicate. + +(3) _Infinitive_, or _infinitive phrase_: "That cry which made me +_look a thousand ways_;" "I hear the echoes _throng_." + +(4) _Participle_, or _participial phrase_: "I can imagine him _pushing +firmly on, trusting the hearts of his countrymen_." + +(5) _Prepositional phrase:_ "My antagonist would render my poniard and +my speed _of no use_ to me." + + + +Modifiers. + + +I. Modifiers of Subject, Object, or Complement. + + +351. Since the subject and object are either nouns or some +equivalent of a noun, the words modifying them must be adjectives or +some equivalent of an adjective; and whenever the complement is a +noun, or the equivalent of the noun, it is modified by the same words +and word groups that modify the subject and the object. + +These modifiers are as follows:-- + +(1) _A possessive_: "_My_ memory assures me of this;" "She asked her +_father's_ permission." + +(2) _A word in apposition_: "Theodore Wieland, the _prisoner_ at the +bar, was now called upon for his defense;" "Him, this young +_idolater_, I have seasoned for thee." + +(3) _An adjective_: "_Great_ geniuses have the _shortest_ +biographies;" "Her father was a prince in Lebanon,--_proud_, +_unforgiving_, _austere_." + +(4) _Prepositional phrase_: "Are the opinions _of a man on right and +wrong on fate and causation_, at the mercy of a broken sleep or an +indigestion?" "The poet needs a ground _in popular tradition_ to work +on." + +(5) _Infinitive phrase_: "The way _to know him_ is to compare him, not +with nature, but with other men;" "She has a new and unattempted +problem _to solve_;" "The simplest utterances are worthiest _to be +written_." + +(6) _Participial phrase_: "Another reading, _given at the request of a +Dutch lady_, was the scene from King John;" "This was the hour +_already appointed for the baptism_ of the new Christian daughter." + + +Exercise.--In each sentence in Sec. 351, tell whether the subject, +object, or complement is modified. + + +II. Modifiers of the Predicate. + + +352. Since the predicate is always a verb, the word modifying it +must be an adverb or its equivalent:-- + +(1) _Adverb:_ "_Slowly_ and _sadly_ we laid him down." + +(2) _Prepositional phrase_: "The little carriage is creeping on _at +one mile an hour_;" "_In the twinkling of an eye_, our horses had +carried us _to the termination of the umbrageous isle_." + +In such a sentence as, "He died like a God," the word group _like a +God_ is often taken as a phrase; but it is really a contracted clause, +the verb being omitted. + +[Sidenote: _Tells how._] + +(3) _Participial phrase:_ "She comes down from heaven to his help, +_interpreting for him the most difficult truths_, and _leading him +from star to star_." + +(4) _Infinitive phrase:_ "No imprudent, no sociable angel, ever +dropped an early syllable _to answer his longing_." + +(For participial and infinitive phrases, see further Secs. 357-363.) + +(5) _Indirect object:_ "I gave _every man_ a trumpet;" "Give _them_ +not only noble teachings, but noble teachers." + +These are equivalent to the phrases _to every man_ and _to them_, and +modify the predicate in the same way. + +[Sidenote: _Retained with passive; or_] + +When the verb is changed from active to passive, the indirect object +is retained, as in these sentences: "It is left _you_ to find out the +reason why;" "All such knowledge should be given _her_." + +[Sidenote: _subject of passive verb and direct object retained._] + +Or sometimes the indirect object of the active voice becomes the +subject of the passive, and the direct object is retained: for +example, "She is to be taught _to extend the limits of her sympathy_;" +"I was shown an immense _sarcophagus_." + +(6) _Adverbial objective._ These answer the question _when_, or _how +long_, _how far_, etc., and are consequently equivalent to adverbs in +modifying a predicate: "We were now running _thirteen miles an hour_;" +"_One way_ lies hope;" "_Four hours_ before midnight we approached a +mighty minster." + + +Exercises. + +(_a_) Pick out subject, predicate, and (direct) object:-- + +1. This, and other measures of precaution, I took. + +2. The pursuing the inquiry under the light of an end or final cause, +gives wonderful animation, a sort of personality to the whole writing. + +3. Why does the horizon hold me fast, with my joy and grief, in this +center? + +4. His books have no melody, no emotion, no humor, no relief to the +dead prosaic level. + +5. On the voyage to Egypt, he liked, after dinner, to fix on three or +four persons to support a proposition, and as many to oppose it. + +6. Fashion does not often caress the great, but the children of the +great. + +7. No rent roll can dignify skulking and dissimulation. + +8. They do not wish to be lovely, but to be loved. + + +(_b_) Pick out the subject, predicate, and complement: + +1. Evil, according to old philosophers, is good in the making. + +2. But anger drives a man to say anything. + +3. The teachings of the High Spirit are abstemious, and, in regard to +particulars, negative. + +4. Spanish diet and youth leave the digestion undisordered and the +slumbers light. + +5. Yet they made themselves sycophantic servants of the King of Spain. + +6. A merciless oppressor hast thou been. + +7. To the men of this world, to the animal strength and spirits, the +man of ideas appears out of his reason. + +8. I felt myself, for the first time, burthened with the anxieties of +a man, and a member of the world. + + +(_c_) Pick out the direct and the indirect object in each:-- + +1. Not the less I owe thee justice. + +2. Unhorse me, then, this imperial rider. + +3. She told the first lieutenant part of the truth. + +4. I promised her protection against all ghosts. + +5. I gave him an address to my friend, the attorney. + +6. Paint me, then, a room seventeen feet by twelve. + + +(_d_) Pick out the words and phrases in apposition:-- + +1. To suffer and to do, that was thy portion in life. + +2. A river formed the boundary,--the river Meuse. + +3. In one feature, Lamb resembles Sir Walter Scott; viz., in the +dramatic character of his mind and taste. + +4. This view was luminously expounded by Archbishop Whately, the +present Archbishop of Dublin. + +5. Yes, at length the warrior lady, the blooming cornet, this nun so +martial, this dragoon so lovely, must visit again the home of her +childhood. + + +(_e_) Pick out the modifiers of the predicate:-- + +1. It moves from one flower to another like a gleam of light, upwards, +downwards, to the right and to the left. + +2. And hark! like the roar of the billows on the shore, + The cry of battle rises along their changing line. + +3. Their intention was to have a gay, happy dinner, after their long +confinement to a ship, at the chief hotel. + +4. That night, in little peaceful Easedale, six children sat by a peat +fire, expecting the return of their parents. + + +Compound Subject, Compound Predicate, etc. + + +[Sidenote: _Not compound sentences._] + +353. Frequently in a simple sentence the writer uses two or more +predicates to the same subject, two or more subjects of the same +predicate, several modifiers, complements, etc.; but it is to be +noticed that, in all such sentences as we quote below, the writers of +them purposely combined them _in single statements_, and they are not +to be expanded into compound sentences. In a compound sentence the +object is to make two or more full statements. + +Examples of compound subjects are, "By degrees Rip's _awe_ and +_apprehension_ subsided;" "The _name of the child_, _the air of the +mother_, the _tone of her voice_,--all awakened a train of +recollections in his mind." + +Sentences with compound predicates are, "The company _broke up_, and +_returned_ to the more important concerns of the election;" "He +_shook_ his head, _shouldered_ the rusty firelock, and, with a heart +full of trouble and anxiety, _turned_ his steps homeward." + +Sentences with compound objects of the same verb are, "He caught his +_daughter_ and her _child_ in his arms;" "_Voyages_ and _travels_ I +would also have." + +And so with complements, modifiers, etc. + + +Logical Subject and Logical Predicate. + + +354. The logical subject is the simple or grammatical subject, +together with all its modifiers. + +The logical predicate is the simple or grammatical predicate (that +is, the verb), together with its modifiers, and its object or +complement. + +[Sidenote: _Larger view of a sentence._] + +It is often a help to the student to find the logical subject and +predicate first, then the grammatical subject and predicate. For +example, in the sentence, "The situation here contemplated exposes a +dreadful ulcer, lurking far down in the depths of human nature," the +logical subject is _the situation here contemplated_, and the rest is +the logical predicate. Of this, the simple subject is _situation_; the +predicate, _exposes_; the object, _ulcer_, etc. + + +Independent Elements of the Sentence. + + +355. The following words and expressions are grammatically +independent of the rest of the sentence; that is, they are not a +necessary part, do not enter into its structure:-- + +(1) _Person or thing addressed_: "But you know them, _Bishop_;" "_Ye +crags and peaks_, I'm with you once again." + +(2) _Exclamatory expressions_: "But the _lady_--! Oh, _heavens_! will +that spectacle ever depart from my dreams?" + +[Sidenote: _Caution._] + +The exclamatory expression, however, may be the person or thing +addressed, same as (1), above: thus, "Ah, _young sir_! what are you +about?" Or it may be an imperative, forming a sentence: "Oh, _hurry, +hurry_, my brave young man!" + +(3) _Infinitive phrase_ thrown in loosely: "_To make a long story +short_, the company broke up;" "_Truth to say_, he was a conscientious +man." + +(4) _Prepositional phrase_ not modifying: "Within the railing sat, _to +the best of my remembrance_, six quill-driving gentlemen;" "_At all +events_, the great man of the prophecy had not yet appeared." + +(5) _Participial phrase:_ "But, _generally speaking_, he closed his +literary toils at dinner;" "_Considering the burnish of her French +tastes_, her noticing even this is creditable." + +(6) _Single words_: as, "Oh, _yes_! everybody knew them;" "_No_, let +him perish;" "_Well_, he somehow lived along;" "_Why_, grandma, how +you're winking!" "_Now_, this story runs thus." + +[Sidenote: _Another caution._] + +There are some adverbs, such as _perhaps_, _truly_, _really_, +_undoubtedly_, _besides_, etc., and some conjunctions, such as +_however_, _then_, _moreover_, _therefore_, _nevertheless_, etc., that +have an office in the sentence, and should not be confused with the +words spoken of above. The words _well_, _now_, _why_, and so on, are +independent when they merely arrest the attention without being +necessary. + + +PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES. + + +356. In their use, prepositional phrases may be, + +(1) _Adjectival_, modifying a noun, pronoun, or word used as a noun: +for example, "He took the road _to King Richard's pavilion_;" "I bring +reports _on that subject_ from Ascalon." + +(2) _Adverbial_, limiting in the same way an adverb limits: as, "All +nature around him slept _in calm moonshine_ or _in deep shadow_;" "Far +_from the madding crowd's ignoble strife_." + +(3) _Independent_, not dependent on any word in the sentence (for +examples, see Sec. 355, 4). + + +PARTICIPLES AND PARTICIPIAL PHRASES. + + +357. It will be helpful to sum up here the results of our study of +participles and participial phrases, and to set down all the uses +which are of importance in analysis:-- + +(1) _The adjectival use_, already noticed, as follows:-- + +(_a_) As a complement of a transitive verb, and at the same time a +modifier of the object (for an example, see Sec. 350, 4). + +(_b_) As a modifier of subject, object, or complement (see Sec. 351, +6). + +(2) _The adverbial use_, modifying the predicate, instances of which +were seen in Sec. 352, 3. In these the participial phrases connect +closely with the verb, and there is no difficulty in seeing that they +modify. + +[Sidenote: _These need close watching._] + +There are other participial phrases which are used adverbially, but +require somewhat closer attention; thus, "The letter of +introduction_, containing no matters of business_, was speedily run +through." + +In this sentence, the expression _containing no matters of business_ +does not describe _letter_, but it is equivalent to _because it +contained no matters of business_, and hence is adverbial, modifying +_was speedily run through_. + +Notice these additional examples:-- + +_Being a great collector of everything relating to Milton_ [reason, +"Because I was," etc.], I had naturally possessed myself of Richardson +the painter's thick octavo volumes. + +Neither the one nor the other writer was valued by the public, _both +having_ [since they had] _a long warfare to accomplish of contumely +and ridicule_. + +Wilt thou, therefore, _being now wiser_ [as thou art] _in thy +thoughts_, suffer God to give by seeming to refuse? + +(3) _Wholly independent_ in meaning and grammar. See Sec. 355, (5), +and these additional examples:-- + +_Assuming the specific heat to be the same as that of water_, the +entire mass of the sun would cool down to 15,000 deg. Fahrenheit in five +thousand years. + +_This case excepted_, the French have the keenest possible sense of +everything odious and ludicrous in posing. + + +INFINITIVES AND INFINITIVE PHRASES. + + +358. The various uses of the infinitive give considerable trouble, +and they will be presented here in full, or as nearly so as the +student will require. + +I. The verbal use. (1) Completing an incomplete verb, but having no +other office than a verbal one. + +(_a_) With _may (might)_, _can (could)_, _should_, _would_, _seem_, +_ought_, etc.: "My weekly bill used invariably _to be_ about fifty +shillings;" "There, my dear, he should not _have known_ them at all;" +"He would _instruct_ her in the white man's religion, and _teach_ her +how to be happy and good." + +(_b_) With the forms of _be_, being equivalent to a future with +obligation, necessity, etc.: as in the sentences, "Ingenuity and +cleverness are _to be rewarded_ by State prizes;" "'The Fair Penitent' +was _to be acted_ that evening." + +(_c_) With the definite forms of _go_, equivalent to a future: "I was +going _to repeat_ my remonstrances;" "I am not going _to dissert_ on +Hood's humor." + +(2) Completing an incomplete transitive verb, but also belonging to a +subject or an object (see Sec. 344 for explanation of the complements +of transitive verbs): "I am constrained every moment _to acknowledge_ +a higher origin for events" (retained with passive); "Do they not +cause the heart _to beat_, and the eyes _to fill_?" + + +359. II. The substantive use, already examined; but see the +following examples for further illustration:-- + +(1) _As the subject: "To have_ the wall there, was to have the foe's +life at their mercy;" "_To teach_ is to learn." + +(2) _As the object_: "I like _to hear_ them tell their old stories;" +"I don't wish _to detract_ from any gentleman's reputation." + +(3) _As complement:_ See examples under (1), above. + +(4) _In apposition_, explanatory of a noun preceding: as, "She +forwarded to the English leaders a touching invitation _to unite_ with +the French;" "He insisted on his right _to forget_ her." + + +360. III. The adjectival use, modifying a noun that may be a +subject, object, complement, etc.: for example, "But there was no time +_to be lost_;" "And now Amyas had time _to ask_ Ayacanora the meaning +of this;" "I have such a desire _to be_ well with my public" (see also +Sec. 351, 5). + + +361. IV. The adverbial use, which may be to express-- + +(1) _Purpose:_ "The governor, Don Guzman, sailed to the eastward only +yesterday _to look_ for you;" "Isn't it enough to bring us to death, +_to please_ that poor young gentleman's fancy?" + +(2) _Result:_ "Don Guzman returns to the river mouth _to find_ the +ship a blackened wreck;" "What heart could be so hard as _not to take_ +pity on the poor wild thing?" + +(3) _Reason:_ "I am quite sorry _to part_ with them;" "Are you mad, +_to betray_ yourself by your own cries?" "Marry, hang the idiot, _to +bring me_ such stuff!" + +(4) _Degree:_ "We have won gold enough _to serve_ us the rest of our +lives;" "But the poor lady was too sad _to talk_ except to the boys +now and again." + +(5) _Condition:_ "You would fancy, _to hear_ McOrator after dinner, +the Scotch fighting all the battles;" "_To say_ what good of fashion +we can, it rests on reality" (the last is not a simple sentence, but +it furnishes a good example of this use of the infinitive). + + +362. The fact that the infinitives in Sec. 361 are used adverbially, +is evident from the meaning of the sentences. + +Whether each sentence containing an adverbial infinitive has the +meaning of purpose, result, etc., may be found out by turning the +infinitive into an equivalent clause, such as those studied under +subordinate conjunctions. + +To test this, notice the following:-- + +In (1), _to look_ means _that he might look_; _to please_ is +equivalent to _that he may please_,--both purpose clauses. + +In (2), _to find_ shows the result of the return; _not to take pity_ +is equivalent to _that it would not take pity_. + +In (3), _to part_ means _because I part_, etc.; and _to betray_ and +_to bring_ express the reason, equivalent to _that you betray_, etc. + +In (4), _to serve_ and _to talk_ are equivalent to [_as much gold_] +_as will serve us_; and "too sad _to talk_" also shows degree. + +In (5), _to hear_ means _if you should hear_, and _to say_ is +equivalent to _if we say_,--both expressing condition. + + +363. V. The independent use, which is of two kinds,-- + +(1) Thrown loosely into the sentence; as in Sec. 355, (3). + +(2) _Exclamatory:_ "I a philosopher! I _advance_ pretensions;" "'He +_to die_!' resumed the bishop." (See also Sec. 268, 4.) + + +OUTLINE OF ANALYSIS. + + +364. In analyzing simple sentences, give-- + +(1) The predicate. If it is an incomplete verb, give the complement +(Secs. 344 and 350) and its modifiers (Sec. 351). + +(2) The object of the verb (Sec. 349). + +(3) Modifiers of the object (Sec. 351). + +(4) Modifiers of the predicate (Sec. 352). + +(5) The subject (Sec. 347). + +(6) Modifiers of the subject (Sec. 351). + +(7) Independent elements (Sec. 355). + +This is not the same order that the parts of the sentence usually +have; but it is believed that the student will proceed more easily by +finding the predicate with its modifiers, object, etc., and then +finding the subject by placing the question _who_ or _what_ before it. + + +Exercise in Analyzing Simple Sentences. + +Analyze the following according to the directions given:-- + +1. Our life is March weather, savage and serene in one hour. + +2. I will try to keep the balance true. + +3. The questions of Whence? What? and Whither? and the solution of +these, must be in a life, not in a book. + +4. The ward meetings on election days are not softened by any +misgiving of the value of these ballotings. + +5. Our English Bible is a wonderful specimen of the strength and music +of the English language. + +6. Through the years and the centuries, through evil agents, through +toys and atoms, a great and beneficent tendency irresistibly streams. + +7. To be hurried away by every event, is to have no political system +at all. + +8. This mysticism the ancients called ecstasy,--a getting-out of their +bodies to think. + +9. He risked everything, and spared nothing, neither ammunition, nor +money, nor troops, nor generals, nor himself. + +10. We are always in peril, always in a bad plight, just on the edge +of destruction, and only to be saved by invention and courage. + +11. His opinion is always original, and to the purpose. + +12. To these gifts of nature, Napoleon added the advantage of having +been born to a private and humble fortune. + +13. The water, like a witch's oils, + Burnt green and blue and white. + +14. We one day descried some shapeless object floating at a distance. + +15. Old Adam, the carrion crow, + The old crow of Cairo; + He sat in the shower, and let it flow + Under his tail and over his crest. + +16. It costs no more for a wise soul to convey his quality to other +men. + +17. It is easy to sugar to be sweet. + +18. At times the black volume of clouds overhead seemed rent asunder +by flashes of lightning. + +19. The whole figure and air, good and amiable otherwise, might be +called flabby and irresolute. + +20. I have heard Coleridge talk, with eager energy, two stricken +hours, and communicate no meaning whatsoever to any individual. + +21. The word _conscience_ has become almost confined, in popular use, +to the moral sphere. + +22. You may ramble a whole day together, and every moment discover +something new. + +23. She had grown up amidst the liberal culture of Henry's court a +bold horsewoman, a good shot, a graceful dancer, a skilled musician, +an accomplished scholar. + +24. Her aims were simple and obvious,--to preserve her throne, to keep +England out of war, to restore civil and religious order. + +25. Fair name might he have handed down, + Effacing many a stain of former crime. + +26. Of the same grandeur, in less heroic and poetic form, was the +patriotism of Peel in recent history. + +27. Oxford, ancient mother! hoary with ancestral honors, time-honored, +and, haply, time-shattered power--I owe thee nothing! + +28. The villain, I hate him and myself, to be a reproach to such +goodness. + +29. I dare this, upon my own ground, and in my own garden, to bid you +leave the place now and forever. + +30. Upon this shore stood, ready to receive her, in front of all this +mighty crowd, the prime minister of Spain, the same Conde Olivarez. + +31. Great was their surprise to see a young officer in uniform +stretched within the bushes upon the ground. + +32. She had made a two days' march, baggage far in the rear, and no +provisions but wild berries. + +33. This amiable relative, an elderly man, had but one foible, or +perhaps one virtue, in this world. + +34. Now, it would not have been filial or ladylike. + +35. Supposing this computation to be correct, it must have been in the +latitude of Boston, the present capital of New England. + +36. The cry, "A strange vessel close aboard the frigate!" having +already flown down the hatches, the ship was in an uproar. + +37. But yield, proud foe, thy fleet + With the crews at England's feet. + +38. Few in number, and that number rapidly perishing away through +sickness and hardships; surrounded by a howling wilderness and savage +tribes; exposed to the rigors of an almost arctic winter,--their minds +were filled with doleful forebodings. + +39. List to the mournful tradition still sung by the pines of the +forest. + +40. In the Acadian land, on the shores of the Basin of Minas, + Distant, secluded, still, the little village of Grand-Pre + Lay in the fruitful valley. + +41. Must we in all things look for the how, and the why, and the +wherefore? + + + + +CONTRACTED SENTENCES. + + +[Sidenote: _Words left out after_ than _or_ as.] + +365. Some sentences look like simple ones in form, but have an +essential part omitted that is so readily supplied by the mind as not +to need expressing. Such are the following:-- + + "There is no country more worthy of our study than England [is + worthy of our study]." + + "The distinctions between them do not seem to be so marked as + [they are marked] in the cities." + +To show that these words are really omitted, compare with them the two +following:-- + + "The nobility and gentry are more popular among the inferior + orders than _they are_ in any other country." + + "This is not so universally the case at present as _it was_ + formerly." + + +[Sidenote: _Sentences with_ like.] + +366. As shown in Part I. (Sec. 333). the expressions _of manner_ +introduced by _like_, though often treated as phrases, are really +contracted clauses; but, if they were expanded, _as_ would be the +connective instead of _like_; thus,-- + + "They'll shine o'er her sleep, like [as] a smile from the west + [would shine]. + From her own loved island of sorrow." + +This must, however, be carefully discriminated from cases where _like_ +is an adjective complement; as,-- + + "She is _like_ some tender tree, the pride and beauty of the + grove;" "The ruby seemed _like_ a spark of fire burning upon her + white bosom." + +Such contracted sentences form a connecting link between our study of +simple and complex sentences. + + + + +COMPLEX SENTENCES. + + +[Sidenote: _The simple sentence the basis._] + +367. Our investigations have now included all the machinery of the +simple sentence, which is the _unit of speech_. + +Our further study will be in sentences which are combinations of +simple sentences, made merely for convenience and smoothness, to avoid +the tiresome repetition of short ones of monotonous similarity. + +Next to the simple sentence stands the complex sentence. The basis of +it is two or more simple sentences, which are so united that one +member is the main one,--the backbone,--the other members subordinate +to it, or dependent on it; as in this sentence,-- + + "When such a spirit breaks forth into complaint, we are aware how + great must be the suffering that extorts the murmur." + +The relation of the parts is as follows:-- + + we are aware + _______ _____ + | | + __| _when such a spirit breaks_ + | _forth into complaint_, + | + _how great must be the suffering_ + | + that extorts the murmur. + +This arrangement shows to the eye the picture that the sentence forms +in the mind,--how the first clause is held in suspense by the mind +till the second, we are aware, is taken in; then we recognize this +as the main statement; and the next one, _how great ... suffering_, +drops into its place as subordinate to _we are aware_; and the last, +_that ... murmur_, logically depends on _suffering_. + +Hence the following definition:-- + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +368. A complex sentence is one containing one main or independent +clause (also called the principal proposition or clause), and _one or +more_ subordinate or dependent clauses. + +369. The elements of a complex sentence are the same as those of +the simple sentence; that is, each clause has its subject, predicate, +object, complements, modifiers, etc. + +But there is this difference: whereas the simple sentence always has a +word or a phrase for subject, object, complement, and modifier, the +complex sentence has _statements_ or _clauses_ for these places. + + +CLAUSES. + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +370. A clause is a division of a sentence, containing a verb with +its subject. + +Hence the term _clause_ may refer to the main division of the complex +sentence, or it may be applied to the others,--the dependent or +subordinate clauses. + + +[Sidenote: _Independent clause._] + +371. A principal, main, or independent clause is one making a +statement without the help of any other clause. + +[Sidenote: _Dependent clause._] + +A subordinate or dependent clause is one which makes a statement +depending upon or modifying some word in the principal clause. + + +[Sidenote: _Kinds._] + +372. As to their office in the sentence, clauses are divided into +NOUN, ADJECTIVE, and ADVERB clauses, according as they are equivalent +in use to nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. + + +Noun Clauses. + +373. Noun clauses have the following uses:-- + +(1) _Subject_: "_That such men should give prejudiced views of +America_ is not a matter of surprise." + +(2) _Object of a verb_, _verbal_, _or the equivalent of a verb_: (_a_) +"I confess _these stories, for a time, put an end to my fancies_;" +(_b_) "I am aware [I know] _that a skillful illustrator of the +immortal bard would have swelled the materials_." + +Just as the object noun, pronoun, infinitive, etc., is retained after +a passive verb (Sec. 352, 5), so the object clause is retained, and +should not be called an adjunct of the subject; for example, "We are +persuaded _that a thread runs through all things_;" "I was told _that +the house had not been shut, night or day, for a hundred years_." + +(3) _Complement_: "The terms of admission to this spectacle are, _that +he have a certain solid and intelligible way of living_." + +(4) _Apposition_. (_a_) Ordinary apposition, explanatory of some noun +or its equivalent: "Cecil's saying of Sir Walter Raleigh, '_I know +that he can toil terribly_,' is an electric touch." + +(_b_) After "it _introductory_" (logically this is a subject clause, +but it is often treated as in apposition with _it_): "_It_ was the +opinion of some, _that this might be the wild huntsman famous in +German legend_." + +(5) _Object of a preposition_: "At length he reached to _where the +ravine had opened through the cliffs_." + +Notice that frequently only the introductory word is the object of +the preposition, and the whole clause is not; thus, "The rocks +presented a high impenetrable wall, _over which_ the torrent came +tumbling." + +374. Here are to be noticed certain sentences seemingly complex, +with a noun clause in apposition with _it_; but logically they are +nothing but simple sentences. But since they are _complex in form_, +attention is called to them here; for example,-- + + "Alas! it is we ourselves that are getting buried alive under + this avalanche of earthly impertinences." + +To divide this into two clauses--(_a_) _It is we ourselves_, (_b_) +_that are ... impertinences_--would be grammatical; but logically the +sentence is, _We ourselves are getting ... impertinences_, and _it is +... that_ is merely a framework used to effect emphasis. The sentence +shows how _it_ may lose its pronominal force. + +Other examples of this construction are,-- + + "It is on the understanding, and not on the sentiment, of a + nation, that all safe legislation must be based." + + "Then it is that deliberative Eloquence lays aside the plain + attire of her daily occupation." + + +Exercise. + +Tell how each noun clause is used in these sentences:-- + +1. I felt that I breathed an atmosphere of sorrow. + +2. But the fact is, I was napping. + +3. Shaking off from my spirit what must have been a dream, I scanned +more narrowly the aspect of the building. + +4. Except by what he could see for himself, he could know nothing. + +5. Whatever he looks upon discloses a second sense. + +6. It will not be pretended that a success in either of these kinds is +quite coincident with what is best and inmost in his mind. + +7. The reply of Socrates, to him who asked whether he should choose a +wife, still remains reasonable, that, whether he should choose one or +not, he would repent it. + +8. What history it had, how it changed from shape to shape, no man +will ever know. + +9. Such a man is what we call an original man. + +10. Our current hypothesis about Mohammed, that he was a scheming +impostor, a falsehood incarnate, that his religion is a mere mass of +quackery and fatuity, begins really to be no longer tenable to any +one. + + +Adjective Clauses. + +375. As the office of an adjective is to modify, the only use of an +adjective clause is to limit or describe some noun, or equivalent of a +noun: consequently the adjective may modify _any_ noun, or equivalent +of a noun, in the sentence. + +The adjective clause may be introduced by the relative pronouns _who_, +_which_, _that_, _but_, _as_; sometimes by the conjunctions _when_, +_where_, _whither_, _whence_, _wherein_, _whereby_, etc. + +Frequently there is no connecting word, a relative pronoun being +understood. + +[Sidenote: _Examples of adjective clauses_.] + +376. Adjective clauses may modify-- + +(1) _The subject_: "The themes _it offers for contemplation_ are too +vast for their capacities;" "Those _who see the Englishman only in +town_, are apt to form an unfavorable opinion of his social +character." + +(2) _The object_: "From this piazza Ichabod entered the hall, _which +formed the center of the mansion_." + +(3) _The complement_: "The animal he bestrode was a broken-down +plow-horse, _that had outlived almost everything but his usefulness_;" +"It was such an apparition _as is seldom to be met with in broad +daylight_." + +(4) _Other words_: "He rode with short stirrups, _which brought his +knees nearly up to the pommel of the saddle_;" "No whit anticipating +the oblivion _which awaited their names and feats_, the champions +advanced through the lists;" "Charity covereth a multitude of sins, in +another sense than that _in which it is said to do so in Scripture_." + + +Exercise. + +Pick out the adjective clauses, and tell what each one modifies; i.e., +whether subject, object, etc. + +1. There were passages that reminded me perhaps too much of Massillon. + +2. I walked home with Calhoun, who said that the principles which I +had avowed were just and noble. + +3. Other men are lenses through which we read our own minds. + +4. In one of those celestial days when heaven and earth meet and adorn +each other, it seems a pity that we can only spend it once. + +5. One of the maidens presented a silver cup, containing a rich +mixture of wine and spice, which Rowena tasted. + +6. No man is reason or illumination, or that essence we were looking +for. + +7. In the moment when he ceases to help us as a cause, he begins to +help us more as an effect. + +8. Socrates took away all ignominy from the place, which could not be +a prison whilst he was there. + +9. This is perhaps the reason why we so seldom hear ghosts except in +our long-established Dutch settlements. + +10. From the moment you lose sight of the land you have left, all is +vacancy. + +11. Nature waited tranquilly for the hour to be struck when man should +arrive. + + +Adverbial Clauses. + +377. The adverb clause takes the place of an adverb in modifying a +verb, a verbal, an adjective, or an adverb. The student has met with +many adverb clauses in his study of the subjunctive mood and of +subordinate conjunctions; but they require careful study, and will be +given in detail, with examples. + +378. Adverb clauses are of the following kinds: + +(1) TIME: "_As we go_, the milestones are grave-stones;" "He had gone +but a little way _before he espied a foul fiend coming_;" "_When he +was come up to Christian_, he beheld him with a disdainful +countenance." + +(2) PLACE: "_Wherever the sentiment of right comes in_, it takes +precedence of everything else;" "He went several times to England, +_where he does not seem to have attracted any attention_." + +(3) REASON, or CAUSE: "His English editor lays no stress on his +discoveries, _since he was too great to care to be original_;" "I give +you joy _that truth is altogether wholesome_." + +(4) MANNER: "The knowledge of the past is valuable only _as it leads +us to form just calculations with respect to the future_;" "After +leaving the whole party under the table, he goes away _as if nothing +had happened_." + +(5) DEGREE, or COMPARISON: "They all become wiser _than they were_;" +"The right conclusion is, that we should try, so far _as we can_, to +make up our shortcomings;" "Master Simon was in as chirping a humor +_as a grasshopper filled with dew_ [is];" "_The broader their +education is_, the wider is the horizon of their thought." The first +clause in the last sentence is dependent, expressing the degree in +which the horizon, etc., is wider. + +(6) PURPOSE: "Nature took us in hand, shaping our actions, _so that we +might not be ended untimely by too gross disobedience_." + +(7) RESULT, or CONSEQUENCE: "He wrote on the scale of the mind itself, +_so that all things have symmetry in his tablet_;" "The window was so +far superior to every other in the church, _that the vanquished artist +killed himself from mortification_." + +(8) CONDITION: "_If we tire of the saints_, Shakespeare is our city of +refuge;" "Who cares for that, _so thou gain aught wider and nobler_?" +"You can die grandly, and as goddesses would die _were goddesses +mortal_." + +(9) CONCESSION, introduced by indefinite relatives, adverbs, and +adverbial conjunctions,--_whoever_, _whatever_, _however_, etc.: "But +still, _however good she may be as a witness_, Joanna is better;" +"_Whatever there may remain of illiberal in discussion_, there is +always something illiberal in the severer aspects of study." + +These mean _no matter how good, no matter what remains_, etc. + +Exercise. + +Pick out the adverbial clauses in the following sentences; tell what +kind each is, and what it modifies:-- + +1. As I was clearing away the weeds from this epitaph, the little +sexton drew me on one side with a mysterious air, and informed me in a +low voice that once upon a time, on a dark wintry night, when the wind +was unruly, howling and whistling, banging about doors and windows, +and twirling weathercocks, so that the living were frightened out of +their beds, and even the dead could not sleep quietly in their graves, +the ghost of honest Preston was attracted by the well-known call of +"waiter," and made its sudden appearance just as the parish clerk was +singing a stave from the "mirrie garland of Captain Death." + +2. If the children gathered about her, as they sometimes did, Pearl +would grow positively terrible in her puny wrath, snatching up stones +to fling at them, with shrill, incoherent exclamations, that made her +mother tremble because they had so much the sound of a witch's +anathemas. + +3. The spell of life went forth from her ever-creative spirit, and +communicated itself to a thousand objects, as a torch kindles a flame +wherever it may be applied. + + +ANALYZING COMPLEX SENTENCES. + + +379. These suggestions will be found helpful:-- + +(1) See that the sentence and all its parts are placed in the natural +order of subject, predicate, object, and modifiers. + +(2) First take the sentence _as a whole_; find the principal subject +and principal predicate; then treat noun clauses as nouns, adjective +clauses as adjectives modifying certain words, and adverb clauses as +single modifying adverbs. + +(3) Analyze each clause as a simple sentence. For example, in the +sentence, "Cannot we conceive that Odin was a reality?" _we_ is the +principal subject; _cannot conceive_ is the principal predicate; its +object is _that Odin was a reality_, of which clause _Odin_ is the +subject, etc. + + +380. It is sometimes of great advantage to map out a sentence after +analyzing it, so as to picture the parts and their relations. To take +a sentence:-- + + "I cannot help thinking that the fault is in themselves, and that + if the church and the cataract were in the habit of giving away + their thoughts with that rash generosity which characterizes + tourists, they might perhaps say of their visitors, 'Well, if you + are those men of whom we have heard so much, we are a little + disappointed, to tell the truth.'" + +This may be represented as follows:-- + + I cannot help thinking + ____________________ + | + _______________________| + | + | (_a_) THAT THE FAULT IS IN THEMSELVES, AND + | + | (_b_) [THAT] THEY MIGHT (PERHAPS) SAY OF THEIR VISITORS + | ___________________ + | | + | _____________________________|_________________________________ + | | | + | | (_a_) We are (a little) disappointed | + | O| ___________________________ | + O| b| ________________________| | + b| j| M| | + j| e| o| (_b_) If you are those men | + e| c| d| ___ | + c| t| i| _________________________| | + t| | f| M| | + | | i| o| Of whom we have heard so much. | + | | e| d. | + | \ r\ \ | + | _____________________________________________________| + | M| + | o| (_a_) If the church and ... that rash generosity + | d| __________ + | i| | + | f| _______________________________________________| + | i| | + | e| | (_b_) Which characterizes tourists. + | r| | + \ \ \ + + +OUTLINE + + +381. (1) Find the principal clause. + +(2) Analyze it according to Sec. 364. + +(3) Analyze the dependent clauses according to Sec. 364. This of +course includes dependent clauses that depend on other dependent +clauses, as seen in the "map" (Sec. 380). +107 | + +Exercises. + +(_a_) Analyze the following complex sentences:-- + +1. Take the place and attitude which belong to you. + +2. That mood into which a friend brings us is his dominion over us. + +3. True art is only possible on the condition that every talent has +its apotheosis somewhere. + +4. The deep eyes, of a light hazel, were as full of sorrow as of +inspiration. + +5. She is the only church that has been loyal to the heart and soul of +man, that has clung to her faith in the imagination. + +6. She has never lost sight of the truth that the product human nature +is composed of the sum of flesh and spirit. + +7. But now that she has become an establishment, she begins to +perceive that she made a blunder in trusting herself to the intellect +alone. + +8. Before long his talk would wander into all the universe, where it +was uncertain what game you would catch, or whether any. + +9. The night proved unusually dark, so that the two principals had to +tie white handkerchiefs round their elbows in order to descry each +other. + +10. Whether she would ever awake seemed to depend upon an accident. + +11. Here lay two great roads, not so much for travelers that were few, +as for armies that were too many by half. + +12. It was haunted to that degree by fairies, that the parish priest +was obliged to read mass there once a year. + +13. More than one military plan was entered upon which she did not +approve. + +14. As surely as the wolf retires before cities, does the fairy +sequester herself from the haunts of the licensed victualer. + +15. M. Michelet is anxious to keep us in mind that this bishop was but +an agent of the English. + +16. Next came a wretched Dominican, that pressed her with an +objection, which, if applied to the Bible, would tax every miracle +with unsoundness. + +17. The reader ought to be reminded that Joanna D'Arc was subject to +an unusually unfair trial. + +18. Now, had she really testified this willingness on the scaffold, it +would have argued nothing at all but the weakness of a genial nature. + +19. And those will often pity that weakness most, who would yield to +it least. + +20. Whether she said the word is uncertain. + +21. This is she, the shepherd girl, counselor that had none for +herself, whom I choose, bishop, for yours. + +22. Had _they_ been better chemists, had _we_ been worse, the mixed +result, namely, that, dying for _them_, th107 |e flower should revive for +_us_, could not have been effected. + +23. I like that representation they have of the tree. + +24. He was what our country people call _an old one_. + +25. He thought not any evil happened to men of such magnitude as false +opinion. +107 | +26. These things we are forced to say, if we must consider the effort +of Plato to dispose of Nature,--which will not be disposed of. + +27. He showed one who was afraid to go on foot to Olympia, that it was +no more than his daily walk, if continuously extended, would easily +reach. + +28. What can we see or acquire but what we are? + +29. Our eyes are holden that we cannot see things that stare us in the +face, until the hour arrives when the mind is ripened. + +30. There is good reason why we should prize this liberation. + + +_(b)_ First analyze, then map out as in Sec. 380, the following +complex sentences:-- + +1. The way to speak and write what shall not go out of fashion, is to +speak and write sincerely. + +2. The writer who takes his subject from his ear, and not from his +heart, should know that he has lost as much as he has gained. + +3. "No book," said Bentley, "was ever written down by any but itself." + +4. That which we do not believe, we cannot adequately say, though we +may repeat the words never so often. + +5. We say so because we feel that what we love is not in your will, +but above it. + +6. It makes no difference how many friends I have, and what content I +can find in conversing with each, if there be one to whom I am not +equal. + +7. In every troop of boys that whoop and run in each yard and square, +a new-comer is as well and accurately weighed in the course of a few +days, and stamped with his right number, as if he had undergone a +formal trial of his strength, speed, and temper. + + + + +COMPOUND SENTENCES. + + +[Sidenote: _How formed._] + +382. The compound sentence is a combination of two or more simple +or complex sentences. While the complex sentence has only _one_ main +clause, the compound has _two or more_ independent clauses making +statements, questions, or commands. Hence the definition,-- + + +[Sidenote: _Definition._] + +383. A compound sentence is one which contains two or more +independent clauses. + +This leaves room for any number of subordinate clauses in a compound +sentence: the requirement is simply that it have at least two +independent clauses. + +Examples of compound sentences:-- + +[Sidenote: _Examples._] + +(1) _Simple sentences united:_ "He is a palace of sweet sounds and +sights; he dilates; he is twice a man; he walks with arms akimbo; he +soliloquizes." + +(2) _Simple with complex:_ "The trees of the forest, the waving grass, +and the peeping flowers have grown intelligent; and he almost fears to +trust them with the secret which they seem to invite." + +(3) _Complex with complex:_ "The power which resides in him is new in +nature, and none but he knows what that is which he can do, nor does +he know until he has tried." + + +384. From this it is evident that nothing new is added to the work +of analysis already done. + +The same analysis of simple sentences is repeated in (1) and (2) +above, and what was done in complex sentences is repeated in (2) and +(3). + +The division into members will be easier, for the cooerdinate +independent statements are readily taken apart with the subordinate +clauses attached, if there are any. + +Thus in (1), the semicolons cut apart the independent members, which +are simple statements; in (2), the semicolon separates the first, a +simple member, from the second, a complex member; in (3), _and_ +connects the first and second complex members, and _nor_ the second +and third complex members. + + +[Sidenote: _Connectives._] + +385. The cooerdinate conjunctions _and_, _nor_, _or_ _but_, etc., +introduce independent clauses (see Sec. 297). + +But the conjunction is often omitted in copulative and adversative +clauses, as in Sec. 383 (1). Another example is, "Only the star +dazzles; the planet has a faint, moon-like ray" (adversative). + + +[Sidenote: _Study the thought._] + +386. The one point that will give trouble is the variable use of +some connectives; as _but_, _for_, _yet_, _while_ (_whilst_), +_however_, _whereas_, etc. Some of these are now conjunctions, now +adverbs or prepositions; others sometimes cooerdinate, sometimes +subordinate conjunctions. + +The student must watch _the logical connection_ of the members of the +sentence, and not the form of the connective. + + +Exercise. + +Of the following illustrative sentences, tell which are compound, and +which complex:-- + +1. Speak your latent conviction, and it shall be the universal sense; +for the inmost in due time becomes the outmost. + +2. I no longer wish to meet a good I do not earn, for example, to find +a pot of buried gold. + +3. Your goodness must have some edge to it--else it is none. + +4. Man does not stand in awe of man, nor is his genius admonished to +stay at home, but it goes abroad to beg a cup of water of the urns of +other men. + +5. A man cannot speak but he judges himself. + +6. In your metaphysics you have denied personality to the Deity, yet +when the devout motions of the soul come, yield to them heart and +life. + +7. I thought that it was a Sunday morning in May; that it was Easter +Sunday, and as yet very early in the morning. + +8. We denote the primary wisdom as intuition, whilst all later +teachings are tuitions. + +9. Whilst the world is thus dual, so is every one of its parts. + +10. They measure the esteem of each other by what each has, and not by +what each is. + +11. For everything you have missed, you have gained something else; +and for everything you gain, you lose something. + +12. I sometimes seemed to have lived for seventy or one hundred years +in one night; nay, I sometimes had feelings representative of a +millennium, passed in that time, or, however, of a duration far beyond +the limits of experience. + +13. However some may think him wanting in zeal, the most fanatical +can find no taint of apostasy in any measure of his. + +14. In this manner, from a happy yet often pensive child, he grew up +to be a mild, quiet, unobtrusive boy, and sun-browned with labor in +the fields, but with more intelligence than is seen in many lads from +the schools. + + + +OUTLINE FOR ANALYZING COMPOUND SENTENCES. + +387. (i) Separate it into its main members. (2) Analyze each complex +member as in Sec. 381. (3) Analyze each simple member as in Sec. 364. + + +Exercise. + +Analyze the following compound sentences:-- + +1. The gain is apparent; the tax is certain. + +2. If I feel overshadowed and outdone by great neighbors, I can yet +love; I can still receive; and he that loveth maketh his own the +grandeur that he loves. + +3. Love, and thou shalt be loved. + +4. All loss, all pain, is particular; the universe remains to the +heart unhurt. + +5. Place yourself in the middle of the stream of power and wisdom +which animates all whom it floats, and you are without effort impelled +to truth. + +6. He teaches who gives, and he learns who receives. + +7. Whatever he knows and thinks, whatever in his apprehension is worth +doing, that let him communicate, or men will never know and honor him +aright. + +8. Stand aside; give those merits room; let them mount and expand. + +9. We see the noble afar off, and they repel us; why should we +intrude? + +10. We go to Europe, or we pursue persons, or we read books, in the +instinctive faith that these will call it out and reveal us to +ourselves. + +11. A gay and pleasant sound is the whetting of the scythe in the +mornings of June, yet what is more lonesome and sad than the sound of +a whetstone or mower's rifle when it is too late in the season to make +hay? + +12. "Strike," says the smith, "the iron is white;" "keep the rake," +says the haymaker, "as nigh the scythe as you can, and the cart as +nigh the rake." + +13. Trust men, and they will be true to you; treat them greatly, and +they will show themselves great, though they make an exception in your +favor to all their rules of trade. + +14. On the most profitable lie the course of events presently lays a +destructive tax; whilst frankness invites frankness, puts the parties +on a convenient footing, and makes their business a friendship. + +15. The sturdiest offender of your peace and of the neighborhood, if +you rip up his claims, is as thin and timid as any; and the peace of +society is often kept, because, as children, one is afraid, and the +other dares not. + +16. They will shuffle and crow, crook and hide, feign to confess here, +only that they may brag and conquer there, and not a thought has +enriched either party, and not an emotion of bravery, modesty, or +hope. + +17. The magic they used was the ideal tendencies, which always make +the Actual ridiculous; but the tough world had its revenge the moment +they put their horses of the sun to plow in its furrow. + +18. Come into port greatly, or sail with God the seas. + +19. When you have chosen your part, abide by it, and do not weakly try +to reconcile yourself with the world. + +20. Times of heroism are generally times of terror, but the day never +shines in which this element may not work. + +21. Life is a train of moods like a string of beads, and as we pass +through them they prove to be many-colored lenses which paint the +world their own hue, and each shows only what lies at its focus. + +22. We see young men who owe us a new world, so readily and lavishly +they promise, but they never acquit the debt; they die young, and +dodge the account; or, if they live, they lose themselves in the +crowd. + +23. So does culture with us; it ends in headache. + +24. Do not craze yourself with thinking, but go about your business +anywhere. + +25. Thus journeys the mighty Ideal before us; it never was known to +fall into the rear. + + + + +PART III. + +_SYNTAX_. + + + + +INTRODUCTORY. + + +[Sidenote: _By way of introduction._] + +388. Syntax is from a Greek word meaning _order_ or _arrangement_. + +Syntax deals with the relation of words to each other as component +parts of a sentence, and with their proper arrangement to express +clearly the intended meaning. + + +[Sidenote: _Ground covered by syntax._] + +380. Following the Latin method, writers on English grammar usually +divide syntax into the two general heads,--agreement and +government. + +Agreement is concerned with the following relations of words: words +in apposition, verb and subject, pronoun and antecedent, adjective and +noun. + +Government has to do with verbs and prepositions, both of which are +said to govern words by having them in the objective case. + + +390. Considering the scarcity of inflections in English, it is clear +that if we merely follow the Latin treatment, the department of syntax +will be a small affair. But there is a good deal else to watch in +addition to the few forms; for there is an important and marked +difference between Latin and English syntax. It is this:-- + +Latin syntax depends upon fixed rules governing the use of inflected +forms: hence the _position_ of words in a sentence is of little +grammatical importance. + +[Sidenote: _Essential point in English syntax._] + +English syntax follows the Latin to a limited extent; but its leading +characteristic is, that English syntax is founded upon _the meaning_ +and _the logical connection_ of words rather than upon their form: +consequently it is quite as necessary to place words properly, and to +think clearly of the meaning of words, as to study inflected forms. + +For example, the sentence, "The savage here the settler slew," is +ambiguous. _Savage_ may be the subject, following the regular order of +subject; or _settler_ may be the subject, the order being inverted. In +Latin, distinct forms would be used, and it would not matter which one +stood first. + + +[Sidenote: _Why study syntax?_] + +391. There is, then, a double reason for not omitting syntax as a +department of grammar,-- + +_First_, To study the rules regarding the use of inflected forms, some +of which conform to classical grammar, while some are idiomatic +(peculiar to our own language). + +_Second_, To find out the _logical methods_ which control us in the +arrangement of words; and particularly when the grammatical and the +logical conception of a sentence do not agree, or when they exist side +by side in good usage. + +As an illustration of the last remark, take the sentence, "Besides +these famous books of Scott's and Johnson's, there is a copious 'Life' +by Sheridan." In this there is a possessive form, and added to it the +preposition _of_, also expressing a possessive relation. This is not +logical; it is not consistent with the general rules of grammar: but +none the less it is good English. + +Also in the sentence, "None remained but he," grammatical rules would +require _him_ instead of _he_ after the preposition; yet the +expression is sustained by good authority. + + +[Sidenote: _Some rules not rigid._] + +392. In some cases, authorities--that is, standard writers--differ +as to which of two constructions should be used, or the same writer +will use both indifferently. Instances will be found in treating of +the pronoun or noun with a gerund, pronoun and antecedent, sometimes +verb and subject, etc. + +When usage varies as to a given construction, both forms will be given +in the following pages. + + +[Sidenote: _The basis of syntax._] + +393. Our treatment of syntax will be an endeavor to record the best +usage of the present time on important points; and nothing but +important points will be considered, for it is easy to confuse a +student with too many obtrusive _don'ts_. + +The constructions presented as general will be justified by quotations +from _modern writers of English_ who are regarded as "standard;" that +is, writers whose style is generally acknowledged as superior, and +whose judgment, therefore, will be accepted by those in quest of +authoritative opinion. + +Reference will also be made to spoken English when its constructions +differ from those of the literary language, and to vulgar English when +it preserves forms which were once, but are not now, good English. + +It may be suggested to the student that the only way to acquire +correctness is to watch good usage _everywhere_, and imitate it. + + + + +NOUNS. + + +394. Nouns have no distinct forms for the nominative and objective +cases: hence no mistake can be made in using them. But some remarks +are required concerning the use of the possessive case. + + +[Sidenote: _Use of the possessive. Joint possession._] + +395. When two or more possessives modify the same noun, or indicate +joint ownership or possession, the possessive sign is added to the +last noun only; for example,-- + + Live your _king and country's_ best support.--ROWE. + + Woman, _sense and nature's_ easy fool.--BYRON. + + _Oliver and Boyd's_ printing office.--MCCULLOCH. + + _Adam and Eve's_ morning hymn.--MILTON. + + In _Beaumont and Fletcher's_ "Sea Voyage," Juletta tells, + etc.--EMERSON. + + +[Sidenote: _Separate possession._] + +396. When two or more possessives stand before the same noun, but +imply separate possession or ownership, the possessive sign is used +with each noun; as,-- + + He lands us on a grassy stage, Safe from the _storm's_ and + _prelate's_ rage.--MARVELL + + Where were the sons of Peers and Members of Parliament in + _Anne's_ and _George's_ time?--THACKERAY. + + _Levi's_ station in life was the receipt of custom; and + _Peter's_, the shore of Galilee; and _Paul's_, the antechamber of + the High Priest.--RUSKIN. + + Swift did not keep _Stella's_ letters. He kept _Bolingbroke's,_ + and _Pope's_, and _Harley's_, and _Peterborough's_.--THACKERAY. + + An actor in one of _Morton's_ or _Kotzebue's_ plays.--MACAULAY. + + Putting _Mr. Mill's_ and _Mr. Bentham's_ principles together. + --_Id._ + + +397. The possessive preceding the gerund will be considered under +the possessive of pronouns (Sec. 408). + + + + +PRONOUNS. + + +PERSONAL PRONOUNS. + + +I. NOMINATIVE AND OBJECTIVE FORMS. + + +398. Since most of the personal pronouns, together with the relative +_who_, have separate forms for nominative and objective use, there are +two general rules that require attention. + +[Sidenote: _General rules._] + +(1) The _nominative use_ is usually marked by the nominative form of +the pronoun. + +(2) The _objective use_ is usually marked by the objective form of the +pronoun. + +These simple rules are sometimes violated in spoken and in literary +English. Some of the violations are universally condemned; others are +generally, if not universally, sanctioned. + + +[Sidenote: _Objective for the nominative._] + + + +399. The objective is sometimes found instead of the nominative in +the following instances:-- + +(1) By a common vulgarism of ignorance or carelessness, no notice is +taken of the proper form to be used as subject; as,-- + + He and _me_ once went in the dead of winter in a one-hoss shay + out to Boonville.--WHITCHER, _Bedott Papers._ + + It seems strange to me that _them_ that preach up the doctrine + don't admire one who carrys it out.--_Josiah Allens Wife._ + +(2) By faulty analysis of the sentence, the true relation of the words +is misunderstood; for example, "_Whom_ think ye that I am?" (In this, +_whom_ is the complement after the verb _am_, and should be the +nominative form, _who_.) "The young Harper, _whom_ they agree was +rather nice-looking" (_whom_ is the subject of the verb _was_). + +Especially is this fault to be noticed after an ellipsis with _than_ +or _as_, the real thought being forgotten; thus,-- + + But the consolation coming from devotion did not go far with such + a one as _her_.--TROLLOPE. + +This should be "as _she_," because the full expression would be "such +a one as _she is_." + + +400. Still, the last expression has the support of many good +writers, as shown in the following examples:-- + + She was neither better bred nor wiser than you or + _me_.--THACKERAY. + + No mightier than thyself or _me_.--SHAKESPEARE. + + Lin'd with Giants deadlier than _'em_ all.--POPE. + + But he must be a stronger than _thee_.--SOUTHEY. + + Not to render up my soul to such as _thee_.--BYRON. + + I shall not learn my duty from such as _thee_.--FIELDING. + +[Sidenote: _A safe rule._] + +It will be safer for the student to follow the general rule, as +illustrated in the following sentences:-- + + If so, they are yet holier than _we_.--RUSKIN. + + Who would suppose it is the game of such as _he_?--DICKENS. + + Do we see + The robber and the murd'rer weak as _we_? + --MILTON. + + I have no other saint than _thou_ to pray to.--LONGFELLOW. + +[Sidenote: "_Than_ whom."] + +401. One exception is to be noted. The expression than whom seems +to be used universally instead of "than _who_." There is no special +reason for this, but such is the fact; for example,-- + + One I remember especially,--one _than whom_ I never met a bandit + more gallant.--THACKERAY. + + The camp of Richard of England, _than whom_ none knows better how + to do honor to a noble foe.--SCOTT. + + She had a companion who had been ever agreeable, and her estate a + steward _than whom_ no one living was supposed to be more + competent.--PARTON. + + +[Sidenote: "_It was_ he" _or_ "_It was_ him"?] + +402. And there is one question about which grammarians are not +agreed, namely, whether the nominative or the objective form should be +used in the predicate after _was_, _is_, _are_, and the other forms of +the verb _be_. + +It may be stated with assurance that the literary language _prefers +the nominative_ in this instance, as,-- + + For there was little doubt that it was _he_.--KINGSLEY. + + But still it is not _she_.--MACAULAY. + + And it was _he_ + That made the ship to go. + --COLERIDGE. + +In spoken English, on the other hand, both in England and America, the +objective form is regularly found, unless a special, careful effort is +made to adopt the standard usage. The following are examples of spoken +English from conversations:-- + + "Rose Satterne, the mayor's daughter?"--"That's + _her_."--KINGSLEY. + + "Who's there?"--"_Me_, Patrick the Porter."--WINTHROP. + + "If there is any one embarrassed, it will not be _me_."--WM. + BLACK. + +The usage is too common to need further examples. + + +Exercise. + +Correct the italicized pronouns in the following sentences, giving +reasons from the analysis of the sentence:-- + +1. _Whom_ they were I really cannot specify. + +2. Truth is mightier than _us_ all. + +3. If there ever was a rogue in the world, it is _me_. + +4. They were the very two individuals _whom_ we thought were far away. + +5. "Seems to me as if _them_ as writes must hev a kinder gift fur it, +now." + +6. The sign of the Good Samaritan is written on the face of +_whomsoever_ opens to the stranger. + +7. It is not _me_ you are in love with. + +8. You know _whom_ it is that you thus charge. + +9. The same affinity will exert its influence on _whomsoever_ is as +noble as these men and women. + +10. It was _him_ that Horace Walpole called a man who never made a bad +figure but as an author. + +11. We shall soon see which is the fittest object of scorn, you or +_me_. + + +[Sidenote: Me _in exclamations_.] + +403. It is to be remembered that the objective form is used in +exclamations which turn the attention upon a person; as,-- + + Unhappy _me!_ That I cannot risk my own worthless life.--KINGSLEY + + Alas! miserable _me_! Alas! unhappy Senors!--_Id._ + + Ay _me_! I fondly dream--had ye been there.--MILTON. + + +[Sidenote: Nominative for the objective.] + +404. The rule for the objective form is wrongly departed from-- + +(1) When the object is far removed from the verb, verbal, or +preposition which governs it; as, "_He_ that can doubt whether he be +anything or no, I speak not to" (_he_ should be _him_, the object of +_to_); "I saw men very like him at each of the places mentioned, but +not _he_" (_he_ should be _him_, object of _saw_). + +(2) In the case of certain pairs of pronouns, used after verbs, +verbals, and prepositions, as this from Shakespeare, "All debts are +cleared between you and I" (for _you_ and _me_); or this, "Let _thou_ +and _I_ the battle try" (for _thee_ and _me_, or _us_). + +(3) By forgetting the construction, in the case of words used in +apposition with the object; as, "Ask the murderer, _he_ who has +steeped his hands in the blood of another" (instead of "_him_ who," +the word being in apposition with _murderer_). + + +[Sidenote: _Exception 1_, who _interrogative_.] + +405. The interrogative pronoun who may be said to have no +objective form in spoken English. We regularly say, "_Who_ did you +see?" or, "_Who_ were they talking to?" etc. The more formal "To +_whom_ were they talking?" sounds stilted in conversation, and is +usually avoided. + +In literary English the objective form _whom_ is _preferred_ for +objective use; as,-- + + Knows he now to _whom_ he lies under obligation?--SCOTT. + + What doth she look on? _Whom_ doth she behold?--WORDSWORTH. + +Yet the nominative form is found quite frequently to divide the work +of the objective use; for example,-- + + My son is going to be married to I don't know _who_.--GOLDSMITH. + + _Who_ have we here?--_Id._ + + _Who_ should I meet the other day but my old friend.--STEELE. + + He hath given away half his fortune to the Lord knows + _who_.--KINGSLEY. + + _Who_ have we got here?--SMOLLETT. + + _Who_ should we find there but Eustache?--MARRVAT. + + _Who_ the devil is he talking to?--SHERIDAN. + + +[Sidenote: _Exception 2, but_ he, _etc._] + +406. It is a well-established usage to put the nominative form, as +well as the objective, after the preposition _but_ (sometimes _save_); +as,-- + + All were knocked down but _us_ two.--KINGSLEY. + + Thy shores are empires, changed in all save _thee._--BYRON. + + Rich are the sea gods:--who gives gifts but _they?_--EMERSON. + + The Chieftains then + Returned rejoicing, all but _he_. + --SOUTHEY + + No man strikes him but _I_.--KINGSLEY. + + None, save _thou_ and thine, I've sworn, + Shall be left upon the morn. + +BYRON. + + +Exercise. + +Correct the italicized pronouns in the following, giving reasons from +the analysis of the quotation:-- + +1. _Thou_, Nature, partial Nature, I arraign. + +2. Let you and _I_ look at these, for they say there are none such in +the world. + +3. "Nonsense!" said Amyas, "we could kill every soul of them in half +an hour, and they know that as well as _me_." + +4. Markland, _who_, with Jortin and Thirlby, Johnson calls three +contemporaries of great eminence. + +5. They are coming for a visit to _she_ and _I_. + +6. They crowned him long ago; + But _who_ they got to put it on + Nobody seems to know. + +7. I experienced little difficulty in distinguishing among the +pedestrians _they_ who had business with St. Bartholomew. + +8. The great difference lies between the laborer who moves to +Yorkshire and _he_ who moves to Canada. + +9. Besides my father and Uncle Haddock--_he_ of the silver plates. + +10. _Ye_ against whose familiar names not yet + The fatal asterisk of death is set, + _Ye_ I salute. + +11. It can't be worth much to _they_ that hasn't larning. + +12. To send me away for a whole year--_I_ who had never crept from +under the parental wing--was a startling idea. + + + +II. POSSESSIVE FORMS. + + +[Sidenote: _As antecedent of a relative._] + +407. The possessive forms of personal pronouns and also of nouns are +sometimes found as antecedents of relatives. This usage is not +frequent. The antecedent is usually nominative or objective, as the +use of the possessive is less likely to be clear. + + We should augur ill of any _gentleman's_ property to whom this + happened every other day in his drawing room.--RUSKIN. + + For _their_ sakes whose distance disabled them from knowing + me.--C.B. BROWN. + + Now by _His_ name that I most reverence in Heaven, and by _hers_ + whom I most worship on earth.--SCOTT. + + He saw her smile and slip money into the _man's_ hand who was + ordered to ride behind the coach.--THACKERAY. + + He doubted whether _his_ signature whose expectations were so + much more bounded would avail.--DE QUINCEY. + + For boys with hearts as bold + As _his_ who kept the bridge so well. + --MACAULAY. + + +[Sidenote: _Preceding a gerund,--possessive, or objective?_] + +408. Another point on which there is some variance in usage is such +a construction as this: "We heard of _Brown_ studying law," or "We +heard of _Brown's_ studying law." + +That is, should the possessive case of a noun or pronoun always be +used with the gerund to indicate the active agent? Closely +scrutinizing these two sentences quoted, we might find a difference +between them: saying that in the first one _studying_ is a participle, +and the meaning is, _We heard of Brown_, [who was] _studying law_; and +that in the second, _studying_ is a gerund, object of _heard of_, and +modified by the possessive case as any other substantive would be. + +[Sidenote: _Why both are found._] + +But in common use there is no such distinction. Both types of +sentences are found; both are gerunds; sometimes the gerund has the +possessive form before it, sometimes it has the objective. The use of +the objective is older, and in keeping with the old way of regarding +the _person_ as the chief object before the mind: the possessive use +is more modern, in keeping with the disposition to proceed from the +material thing to the _abstract idea_, and to make the action +substantive the chief idea before the mind. + +In the examples quoted, it will be noticed that the possessive of the +pronoun is more common than that of the noun. + +[Sidenote: _Objective_.] + + The last incident which I recollect, was my learned and worthy + _patron_ falling from a chair.--SCOTT. + + He spoke of _some one_ coming to drink tea with him, and asked + why it was not made.--THACKERAY. + + The old sexton even expressed a doubt as to _Shakespeare_ having + been born in her house.--IRVING. + + The fact of the _Romans_ not burying their dead within the city + walls proper is a strong reason, etc.--BREWER. + + I remember _Wordsworth_ once laughingly reporting to me a little + personal anecdote.--DE QUINCEY. + + Here I state them only in brief, to prevent the _reader_ casting + about in alarm for my ultimate meaning.--RUSKIN. + + We think with far less pleasure of _Cato_ tearing out his + entrails than of _Russell_ saying, as he turned away from his + wife, that the bitterness of death was past.--MACAULAY. + + There is actually a kind of sacredness in the fact of such a + _man_ being sent into this earth.--CARLYLE. + +[Sidenote: _Possessive_.] + + There is no use for any _man's_ taking up his abode in a house + built of glass.--CARLYLE. + + As to _his_ having good grounds on which to rest an action for + life.--DICKENS. + + The case was made known to me by a _man's_ holding out the + little creature dead.--DE QUINCEY. + + There may be reason for a _savage's_ preferring many kinds of + food which the civilized man rejects.--THOREAU. + + It informs me of the previous circumstances of _my_ laying aside + my clothes.--C. BROCKDEN BROWN. + + The two strangers gave me an account of _their_ once having been + themselves in a somewhat similar condition.--AUDUBON. + + There was a chance of _their_ being sent to a new school, where + there were examinations.--RUSKIN + + This can only be by _his_ preferring truth to his past + apprehension of truth.--EMERSON + + + +III. PERSONAL PRONOUNS AND THEIR ANTECEDENTS. + +409. The pronouns of the third person usually refer back to some +preceding noun or pronoun, and ought to agree with them in person, +number, and gender. + +[Sidenote: _Watch for the real antecedent._] + +There are two constructions in which the student will need to watch +the pronoun,--when the antecedent, in one person, is followed by a +phrase containing a pronoun of a different person; and when the +antecedent is of such a form that the pronoun following cannot +indicate exactly the gender. Examples of these constructions are,-- + + _Those_ of us who can only maintain _themselves_ by continuing in + some business or salaried office.--RUSKIN. + + Suppose the life and fortune of _every one_ of us would depend on + _his_ winning or losing a game of chess.--HUXLEY. + + If _any one_ did not know it, it was _his_ own fault.--CABLE. + + _Everybody_ had _his_ own life to think of.--DEFOE. + +410. In such a case as the last three sentences,--when the +antecedent includes both masculine and feminine, or is a distributive +word, taking in each of many persons,--the preferred method is to put +the pronoun following in the masculine singular; if the antecedent is +neuter, preceded by a distributive, the pronoun will be neuter +singular. + +The following are additional examples:-- + + The next _correspondent_ wants you to mark out a whole course of + life for _him_.--HOLMES. + + Every _city_ threw open _its_ gates.--DE QUINCEY. + + Every _person_ who turns this page has _his_ own little + diary.--THACKERAY. + + The pale realms of shade, where _each_ shall take + _His_ chamber in the silent halls of death. + --BRYANT. + +[Sidenote: _Avoided: By using both pronouns._] + +Sometimes this is avoided by using both the masculine and the feminine +pronoun; for example,-- + + Not the feeblest _grandame_, not a mowing _idiot_, but uses what + spark of perception and faculty is left, to chuckle and triumph + in _his or her_ opinion.--EMERSON. + + It is a game which has been played for untold ages, every _man_ + and _woman_ of us being one of the two players in a game of _his + or her_ own.--HUXLEY. + +_By using the plural pronoun._ + +411. Another way of referring to an antecedent which is a +distributive pronoun or a noun modified by a distributive adjective, +is to use the plural of the pronoun following. This is not considered +the best usage, the logical analysis requiring the singular pronoun in +each case; but the construction is frequently found _when the +antecedent includes or implies both genders_. The masculine does not +really represent a feminine antecedent, and the expression _his or +her_ is avoided as being cumbrous. + +Notice the following examples of the plural:-- + + _Neither_ of the sisters _were_ very much deceived.--THACKERAY. + + _Every one_ must judge of _their_ own feelings.--BYRON. + + Had the doctor been contented to take my dining tables, as + _anybody_ in _their_ senses would have done.--AUSTEN. + + If the part deserve any comment, every considering _Christian_ + will make it _themselves_ as they go.--DEFOE. + + _Every person's_ happiness depends in part upon the respect + _they_ meet in the world.--PALEY. + + _Every nation_ have _their_ refinements--STERNE. + + _Neither_ gave vent to _their_ feelings in words.--SCOTT. + + _Each_ of the nations acted according to _their_ national + custom.--PALGRAVE. + + The sun, which pleases _everybody_ with it and with + _themselves_.--RUSKIN. + + Urging _every one_ within reach of your influence to be neat, and + giving _them_ means of being so.--_Id._ + + _Everybody_ will become of use in _their_ own fittest way.--_Id._ + + _Everybody_ said _they_ thought it was the newest thing + there.--WENDELL PHILLIPS. + + Struggling for life, _each_ almost bursting _their_ sinews to + force the other off.--PAULDING. + + _Whosoever_ hath any gold, let _them_ break it off.--_Bible._ + + _Nobody_ knows what it is to lose a friend, till _they_ have lost + him.--FIELDING. + + Where she was gone, or what was become of her, _no one_ could + take upon _them_ to say.--SHERIDAN. + + I do not mean that I think _any one_ to blame for taking due care + of _their_ health.--ADDISON. + + +Exercise.--In the above sentences, _unless both genders are +implied_, change the pronoun to agree with its antecedent. + + +RELATIVE PRONOUNS. + +I. RESTRICTIVE AND UNRESTRICTIVE RELATIVES. + + +[Sidenote: _What these terms mean._] + +412. As to their conjunctive use, the definite relatives who, +which, and that may be cooerdinating or restrictive. + +A relative, when cooerdinating, or unrestrictive, is equivalent to a +conjunction (_and_, _but_, _because_, etc.) and a personal pronoun. +It adds a new statement to what precedes, that being considered +already clear; as, "I gave it to the beggar, _who_ went away." This +means, "I gave it to the beggar [we know which one], _and he_ went +away." + +A relative, when restrictive, introduces a clause to limit and make +clear some preceding word. The clause is restricted to the antecedent, +and does not add a new statement; it merely couples a thought +necessary to define the antecedent: as, "I gave it to a beggar _who_ +stood at the gate." It defines _beggar_. + + +413. It is sometimes contended that who and which should always +be cooerdinating, and that always restrictive; but, according to the +practice of every modern writer, the usage must be stated as +follows:-- + +[Sidenote: _A loose rule the only one to be formulated._] + +Who and which are either cooerdinating or restrictive, the taste of +the writer and regard for euphony being the guide. + +That is in most cases restrictive, the cooerdinating use not being +often found among careful writers. + + +Exercise. + +In the following examples, tell whether _who_, _which_, and _that_ are +restrictive or not, in each instance:-- + +[Sidenote: Who.] + + 1. "Here he is now!" cried those who stood near + Ernest.--HAWTHORNE. + + 2. He could overhear the remarks of various individuals, who were + comparing the features with the face on the mountain side.--_Id._ + + 3. The particular recording angel who heard it pretended not to + understand, or it might have gone hard with the tutor.--HOLMES. + + 4. Yet how many are there who up, down, and over England are + saying, etc.--H.W. BEECHER + + 5. A grizzly-looking man appeared, whom we took to be sixty or + seventy years old.--THOREAU. + +[Sidenote: Which.] + + 6. The volume which I am just about terminating is almost as much + English history as Dutch.--MOTLEY. + + 7. On hearing their plan, which was to go over the Cordilleras, + she agreed to join the party.--DE QUINCEY. + + 8. Even the wild story of the incident which had immediately + occasioned the explosion of this madness fell in with the + universal prostration of mind.--_Id._ + + 9. Their colloquies are all gone to the fire except this first, + which Mr. Hare has printed.--CARLYLE. + + 10. There is a particular science which takes these matters in + hand, and it is called logic.--NEWMAN. + +[Sidenote: That.] + + 11. So different from the wild, hard-mouthed horses at Westport, + that were often vicious.--DE QUINCEY. + + 12. He was often tempted to pluck the flowers that rose + everywhere about him in the greatest variety.--ADDISON. + + 13. He felt a gale of perfumes breathing upon him, that grew + stronger and sweeter in proportion as he advanced.--_Id._ + + 14. With narrow shoulders, long arms and legs, hands that dangled + a mile out of his sleeves.--IRVING. + + + +II. RELATIVE AND ANTECEDENT. + + +[Sidenote: _The rule._] + +414. The general rule is, that the relative pronoun agrees with its +antecedent in person and number. + +[Sidenote: _In what sense true._] + +This cannot be true as to the form of the pronoun, as that does not +vary for person or number. We say _I_, _you_, _he_, _they_, etc., +_who_; _these_ or _that_ _which_, etc. However, the relative _carries +over_ the agreement from the antecedent before to the verb following, +so far as the verb has forms to show its agreement with a substantive. +For example, in the sentence, "He that writes to himself writes to an +eternal public," _that_ is invariable as to person and number, but, +because of its antecedent, it makes the verb third person singular. + +Notice the agreement in the following sentences:-- + + There is not _one_ of the company, but _myself_, who rarely + _speak_ at all, but _speaks_ of him as that sort, etc.--ADDISON. + + O _Time!_ who _know'st_ a lenient hand to lay Softest on sorrow's + wound.--BOWLES. + + Let us be of good cheer, remembering that the misfortunes hardest + to bear are _those_ which never _come._--LOWELL. + + +[Sidenote: _A disputed point._] + +415. This prepares the way for the consideration of one of the vexed +questions,--whether we should say, "one of the finest books that _has_ +been published," or, "one of the finest books that _have_ been +published." + +[Sidenote: One of ... [_plural_] that who, _or_ which ... [_singular +or plural_.]] + + The pale realms of shade, where _each_ shall take + _His_ chamber in the silent halls of death. + --BRYANT. + +Both constructions are frequently found, the reason being a difference +of opinion as to the antecedent. Some consider it to be _one_ [book] +_of the finest books_, with _one_ as the principal word, the true +antecedent; others regard _books_ as the antecedent, and write the +verb in the plural. The latter is rather more frequent, but the former +has good authority. + +The following quotations show both sides:-- + +[Sidenote: _Plural._] + + He was one of the very few commanders who _appear_ to have shown + equal skill in directing a campaign, in winning a battle, and in + improving a victory.--LECKY. + + He was one of the most distinguished scientists who _have_ ever + lived.--J.T.MORSE, Jr., _Franklin._ + + It is one of those periods which _shine_ with an unnatural and + delusive splendor.--MACAULAY. + + A very little encouragement brought back one of those overflows + which _make_ one more ashamed, etc.--HOLMES. + + I am one of those who _believe_ that the real will never find an + irremovable basis till it rests on the ideal.--LOWELL. + + French literature of the eighteenth century, one of the most + powerful agencies that _have_ ever existed.--M. ARNOLD. + + What man's life is not overtaken by one or more of those + tornadoes that _send_ us out of our course?--THACKERAY. + + He is one of those that _deserve_ very well.--ADDISON. + +[Sidenote: _Singular._] + + The fiery youth ... struck down one of those who _was_ pressing + hardest.--SCOTT. + + He appeared to me one of the noblest creatures that ever _was_, + when he derided the shams of society.--HOWELLS. + + A rare Roundabout performance,--one of the very best that _has_ + ever appeared in this series.--THACKERAY. + + Valancourt was the hero of one of the most famous romances which + ever _was_ published in this country.--_Id._ + + It is one of the errors which _has_ been diligently propagated by + designing writers.--IRVING. + + "I am going to breakfast with one of these fellows who _is_ at + the Piazza Hotel."--DICKENS. + + The "Economy of the Animal Kingdom" is one of those books which + _is_ an honor to the human race.--EMERSON. + + Tom Puzzle is one of the most eminent immethodical disputants of + any that _has_ fallen under my observation.--ADDISON. + + The richly canopied monument of one of the most earnest souls + that ever gave _itself_ to the arts.--RUSKIN. + + +III. OMISSION OF THE RELATIVE. + +416. Although the omission of the relative is common when it would +be the object of the verb or preposition _expressed_, there is an +omission which is not frequently found in careful writers; that is, +when the relative word is a pronoun, object of a preposition +_understood_, or is equivalent to the conjunction _when_, _where_, +_whence_, and such like: as, "He returned by the same route [by which] +he came;" "India is the place [in which, or where] he died." Notice +these sentences:-- + + In the posture I lay, I could see nothing except the sky.--SWIFT. + + This is he that should marshal us the way we were + going.--EMERSON. + + But I by backward steps would move; + And, when this dust falls to the urn, + In that same state I came, return.--VAUGHAN. + + Welcome the hour my aged limbs + Are laid with thee to rest.--BURNS. + + The night was concluded in the manner we began the + morning.--GOLDSMITH. + + The same day I went aboard we set sail.--DEFOE. + + The vulgar historian of a Cromwell fancies that he had determined + on being Protector of England, at the time he was plowing the + marsh lands of Cambridgeshire.--CARLYLE. + + To pass under the canvas in the manner he had entered required + time and attention.--SCOTT. + + +Exercise.--In the above sentences, insert the omitted conjunction or +phrase, and see if the sentence is made clearer. + + + +IV. THE RELATIVE _AS_ AFTER _SAME_. + +417. It is very rarely that we find such sentences as,-- + + He considered...me as his apprentice, and accordingly expected + the same service from me _as_ he would from another.--FRANKLIN. + + This has the same effect in natural faults _as_ maiming and + mutilation produce from accidents.--BURKE. + +[Sidenote: _The regular construction_.] + +[Sidenote: _Caution_.] + +The usual way is to use the relative _as_ after _same_ if no verb +follows _as;_ but, if _same_ is followed by a complete clause, _as_ is +not used, but we find the relative _who, which,_ or _that_. Remember +this applies only to _as_ when used as a relative. + +Examples of the use of _as_ in a contracted clause:-- + + Looking to the same end _as_ Turner, and working in the same + spirit, he, with Turner, was a discoverer, etc.--R.W. CHURCH. + + They believe the same of all the works of art, _as_ of knives, + boats, looking-glasses.--ADDISON. + +Examples of relatives following _same_ in full clauses:-- + +[Sidenote: Who.] + + This is the very same rogue _who_ sold us the spectacles. + --GOLDSMITH. + + The same person _who_ had clapped his thrilling hands at the + first representation of the Tempest.--MACAULAY. + +[Sidenote: That.] + + I rubbed on some of the same ointment _that_ was given me at my + first arrival.--SWIFT. + +[Sidenote: Which.] + + For the same sound is in my ears + _Which_ in those days I heard.--WORDSWORTH. + + With the same minuteness _which_ her predecessor had exhibited, + she passed the lamp over her face and person.--SCOTT. + + + +V. MISUSE OF RELATIVE PRONOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: _Anacoluthic use of_ which.] + +418. There is now and then found in the pages of literature a +construction which imitates the Latin, but which is usually carefully +avoided. It is a use of the relative _which_ so as to make an +anacoluthon, or lack of proper connection between the clauses; for +example,-- + + _Which_, if I had resolved to go on with, I might as well have + staid at home.--DEFOE + + _Which_ if he attempted to do, Mr. Billings vowed that he would + follow him to Jerusalem.--THACKERAY. + + We know not the incantation of the heart that would wake + them;--_which_ if they once heard, they would start up to meet us + in the power of long ago.--RUSKIN. + + He delivered the letter, _which_ when Mr. Thornhill had read, he + said that all submission was now too late.--GOLDSMITH. + + But still the house affairs would draw her thence; + _Which_ ever as she could with haste dispatch, + She'd come again.--SHAKESPEARE. + +As the sentences stand, _which_ really has no office in the sentence: +it should be changed to a demonstrative or a personal pronoun, and +this be placed in the proper clause. + +Exercise.--Rewrite the above five sentences so as to make the proper +grammatical connection in each. + + +[Sidenote: And who, and which, _etc._] + +419. There is another kind of expression which slips into the lines +of even standard authors, but which is always regarded as an oversight +and a blemish. + +The following sentence affords an example: "The rich are now engaged +in distributing what remains among the poorer sort, _and who_ are now +thrown upon their compassion." The trouble is that such conjunctions +as _and_, _but_, _or_, etc., should connect expressions of the same +kind: _and who_ makes us look for a preceding _who_, but none is +expressed. There are three ways to remedy the sentence quoted: thus, +(1) "Among those _who_ are poor, _and who_ are now," etc.; (2) "Among +the poorer sort, _who_ are now thrown," etc.; (3) "Among the poorer +sort, now thrown upon their," etc. That is,-- + +[Sidenote: _Direction for rewriting._] + +Express both relatives, or omit the conjunction, or leave out both +connective and relative. + +Exercise. + +Rewrite the following examples according to the direction just +given:-- + +[Sidenote: And who.] + + 1. Hester bestowed all her means on wretches less miserable than + herself, and who not unfrequently insulted the hand that fed + them.--HAWTHORNE. + + 2. With an albatross perched on his shoulder, and who might be + introduced to the congregation as the immediate organ of his + conversion.--DE QUINCEY. + + 3. After this came Elizabeth herself, then in the full glow of + what in a sovereign was called beauty, and who would in the + lowest walk of life have been truly judged to possess a noble + figure.--SCOTT. + + 4. This was a gentleman, once a great favorite of M. le Conte, + and in whom I myself was not a little interested.--THACKERAY. + +[Sidenote: But who.] + + 5. Yonder woman was the wife of a certain learned man, English by + name, but who had long dwelt in Amsterdam.--HAWTHORNE. + + 6. Dr. Ferguson considered him as a man of a powerful capacity, + but whose mind was thrown off its just bias.--SCOTT. + +[Sidenote: Or who.] + + 7. "What knight so craven, then," exclaims the chivalrous + Venetian, "that he would not have been more than a match for the + stoutest adversary; or who would not have lost his life a + thousand times sooner than return dishonored by the lady of his + love?"--PRESCOTT. + +[Sidenote: And which.] + + 8. There are peculiar quavers still to be heard in that church, + and which may even be heard a mile off.--IRVING. + + 9. The old British tongue was replaced by a debased Latin, like + that spoken in the towns, and in which inscriptions are found in + the western counties.--PEARSON. + + 10. I shall have complete copies, one of signal interest, and + which has never been described.--MOTLEY. + +[Sidenote: But which.] + + 11. "A mockery, indeed, but in which the soul trifled with + itself!"--HAWTHORNE. + + 12. I saw upon the left a scene far different, but which yet the + power of dreams had reconciled into harmony.--DE QUINCEY. + +[Sidenote: Or which.] + + 13. He accounted the fair-spoken courtesy, which the Scotch had + learned, either from imitation of their frequent allies, the + French, or which might have arisen from their own proud and + reserved character, as a false and astucious mark, etc.--SCOTT. + + +[Sidenote: That ... and which, _etc._] + +420. Akin to the above is another fault, which is likewise a +variation from the best usage. Two different relatives are sometimes +found referring back to the same antecedent in one sentence; whereas +the better practice is to choose one relative, and repeat this for any +further reference. + + +Exercise. + +Rewrite the following quotations by repeating one relative instead of +using two for the same antecedent:-- + +[Sidenote: That ... who.] + + 1. Still in the confidence of children that tread without fear + every chamber in their father's house, and to whom no door is + closed.--DE QUINCEY. + + 2. Those renowned men that were our ancestors as much as yours, + and whose examples and principles we inherit.--BEECHER. + + 3. The Tree Igdrasil, that has its roots down in the kingdoms + of Hela and Death, and whose boughs overspread the highest + heaven!--CARLYLE. + +[Sidenote: That ... which.] + + 4. Christianity is a religion that reveals men as the object of + God's infinite love, and which commends him to the unbounded love + of his brethren.--W.E. CHANNING. + + 5. He flung into literature, in his Mephistopheles, the first + organic figure that has been added for some ages, and which will + remain as long as the Prometheus.--EMERSON. + + 6. Gutenburg might also have struck out an idea that surely did + not require any extraordinary ingenuity, and which left the most + important difficulties to be surmounted.--HALLAM. + + 7. Do me the justice to tell me what I have a title to be + acquainted with, and which I am certain to know more truly from + you than from others.--SCOTT. + + 8. He will do this amiable little service out of what one may + say old civilization has established in place of goodness of + heart, but which is perhaps not so different from it.--HOWELLS. + + 9. In my native town of Salem, at the head of what, half a + century ago, was a bustling wharf,--but which is now burdened + with decayed wooden warehouses.--HAWTHORNE. + + 10. His recollection of what he considered as extreme + presumption in the Knight of the Leopard, even when he stood high + in the roles of chivalry, but which, in his present condition, + appeared an insult sufficient to drive the fiery monarch into a + frenzy of passion.--SCOTT + +[Sidenote: That which ... what.] + + 11. He, now without any effort but that which he derived from the + sill, and what little his feet could secure the irregular + crevices, was hung in air.--W.G. SIMMS. + +[Sidenote: Such as ... which.] + + 12. It rose into a thrilling passion, such as my heart had always + dimly craved and hungered after, but which now first interpreted + itself to my ear.--DE QUINCEY. + + 13. I recommend some honest manual calling, such as they have + very probably been bred to, and which will at least give them a + chance of becoming President.--HOLMES. + +[Sidenote: Such as ... whom.] + + 14. I grudge the dollar, the dime, the cent, I give to such men + as do not belong to me, and to whom I do not belong.--EMERSON. + +[Sidenote: Which ... that ... that.] + + 15. That evil influence which carried me first away from my + father's house, that hurried me into the wild and undigested + notion of making my fortune, and that impressed these conceits so + forcibly upon me.--DEFOE. + + + +ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS. + +[Sidenote: Each other, one another.] + +421. The student is sometimes troubled whether to use each other +or one another in expressing reciprocal relation or action. Whether +either one refers to a certain number of persons or objects, whether +or not the two are equivalent, may be gathered from a study of the +following sentences:-- + + They [Ernest and the poet] led _one another_, as it were, into + the high pavilion of their thoughts.--HAWTHORNE. + + Men take _each other's_ measure when they meet for the first + time.--EMERSON. + + You ruffian! do you fancy I forget that we were fond of _each + other_?--THACKERAY. + + England was then divided between kings and Druids, always at war + with _one another_, carrying off _each other's_ cattle and + wives.--BREWER + + The topics follow _each other_ in the happiest order.--MACAULAY. + + The Peers at a conference begin to pommel _each other_.--_Id._ + + We call ourselves a rich nation, and we are filthy and foolish + enough to thumb _each other's_ books out of circulating + libraries.--RUSKIN. + + The real hardships of life are now coming fast upon us; let us + not increase them by dissension among _each other_.--GOLDSMITH. + + In a moment we were all shaking hands with _one + another_.--DICKENS. + + The unjust purchaser forces the two to bid against _each + other._--RUSKIN. + + +[Sidenote: _Distributives_ either _and_ neither.] + +422. By their original meaning, either and neither refer to only +two persons or objects; as, for example,-- + + Some one must be poor, and in want of his gold--or his corn. + Assume that no one is in want of _either_.--RUSKIN + + Their [Ernest's and the poet's] minds accorded into one strain, + and made delightful music which _neither_ could have claimed as + all his own.--HAWTHORNE. + +[Sidenote: _Use of_ any.] + +Sometimes these are made to refer to several objects, in which case +any should be used instead; as,-- + + Was it the winter's storm? was it hard labor and spare meals? was + it disease? was it the tomahawk? Is it possible that _neither_ of + these causes, that not all combined, were able to blast this bud + of hope?--EVERETT. + + Once I took such delight in Montaigne ...; before that, in + Shakespeare; then in Plutarch; then in Plotinus; at one time in + Bacon; afterwards in Goethe; even in Bettine; but now I turn the + pages of _either_ of them languidly, whilst I still cherish their + genius.--EMERSON. + + +[Sidenote: Any _usually plural_.] + +423. The adjective pronoun any is nearly always regarded as +plural, as shown in the following sentences:-- + + If _any_ of you _have_ been accustomed to look upon these hours + as mere visionary hours, I beseech you, etc.--BEECHER + + Whenever, during his stay at Yuste, _any_ of his friends had + died, he had been punctual in doing honor to _their_ + memory.--STIRLING. + + But I enjoy the company and conversation of its inhabitants, when + _any_ of them _are_ so good as to visit me.--FRANKLIN. + + Do you think, when I spoke anon of the ghosts of Pryor's + children, I mean that _any_ of them _are_ dead?--THACKERAY. + +In earlier Modern English, _any_ was often singular; as,-- + + If _any_, speak; for _him_ have I offended.--SHAKESPEARE. + + If _any_ of you lack wisdom, let _him_ ask of God.--_Bible_. + +Very rarely the singular is met with in later times; as,-- + + Here is a poet doubtless as much affected by his own descriptions + as _any_ that _reads_ them can be.--BURKE. + +[Sidenote: _Caution_.] + +The above instances are to be distinguished from the adjective _any_, +which is plural as often as singular. + + +[Sidenote: None _usually plural_.] + +424. The adjective pronoun none is, in the prose of the present +day, usually plural, although it is historically a contraction of _ne +an_ (not one). Examples of its use are,-- + + In earnest, if ever man was; as _none_ of the French philosophers + _were_.--CARLYLE. + + _None_ of Nature's powers _do_ better service.--PROF. DANA + + One man answers some question which _none_ of his contemporaries + _put_, and is isolated.--EMERSON. + + _None obey_ the command of duty so well as those who are free + from the observance of slavish bondage.--SCOTT. + + Do you think, when I spoke anon of the ghosts of Pryor's + children, I mean that any of them are dead? _None are_, that I + know of.--THACKERAY. + + Early apples begin to be ripe about the first of August; but I + think _none_ of them _are_ so good to eat as some to + smell.--THOREAU. + +The singular use of _none_ is often found in the Bible; as,-- + + _None_ of them _was_ cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.--LUKE iv + 27 + +Also the singular is sometimes found in present-day English in prose, +and less rarely in poetry; for example,-- + + Perhaps _none_ of our Presidents since Washington _has_ stood so + firm in the confidence of the people.--LOWELL + + In signal _none his_ steed should spare.--SCOTT + +Like the use of _any_, the pronoun _none_ should be distinguished from +the adjective _none_, which is used absolutely, and hence is more +likely to confuse the student. + +Compare with the above the following sentences having the adjective +_none_:-- + + Reflecting a summer evening sky in its bosom, though _none_ [no + sky] was visible overhead.--THOREAU + + The holy fires were suffered to go out in the temples, and _none_ + [no fires] were lighted in their own dwellings.--PRESCOTT + + +[Sidenote: All _singular and plural_.] + +425. The pronoun all has the singular construction when it means +_everything_; the plural, when it means _all persons_: for example,-- + +[Sidenote: _Singular_.] + + The light troops thought ... that _all was_ lost.--PALGRAVE + + _All was_ won on the one side, and _all was_ lost on the + other.--BAYNE + + Having done _all_ that _was_ just toward others.--NAPIER + +[Sidenote: _Plural_.] + + But the King's treatment of the great lords will be judged + leniently by _all_ who _remember_, etc.--PEARSON. + + When _all were_ gone, fixing his eyes on the mace, etc.--LINGARD + + _All_ who did not understand French _were_ compelled, + etc.--McMASTER. + + +[Sidenote: Somebody's else, _or_ somebody else's?] + +426. The compounds somebody else, any one else, nobody else, etc., +are treated as units, and the apostrophe is regularly added to the +final word _else_ instead of the first. Thackeray has the expression +_somebody's else_, and Ford has _nobody's else_, but the regular usage +is shown in the following selections:-- + + A boy who is fond of _somebody else's_ pencil case.--G. ELIOT. + + A suit of clothes like _somebody else's_.--THACKERAY. + + Drawing off his gloves and warming his hands before the fire as + benevolently as if they were _somebody else's_.--DICKENS. + + Certainly not! nor _any one else's_ ropes.--RUSKIN. + + Again, my pronunciation--like _everyone else's_--is in some cases + more archaic.--SWEET. + + Then everybody wanted some of _somebody else's_.--RUSKIN. + + His hair...curled once all over it in long tendrils, unlike + _anybody else's_ in the world.--N.P. WILLIS. + + "Ye see, there ain't nothin' wakes folks up like _somebody + else's_ wantin' what you've got."--MRS. STOWE. + + + + +ADJECTIVES. + + +AGREEMENT OF ADJECTIVES WITH NOUNS. + + +[Sidenote: These sort, all manner of, _etc._] + +427. The statement that adjectives agree with their nouns in number +is restricted to the words this and that (with these and +those), as these are the only adjectives that have separate forms +for singular and plural; and it is only in one set of expressions that +the concord seems to be violated,--in such as "_these sort_ of books," +"_those kind_ of trees," "_all manner_ of men;" the nouns being +singular, the adjectives plural. These expressions are all but +universal in spoken English, and may be found not infrequently in +literary English; for example,-- + + _These kind_ of knaves I know, which in this plainness + Harbor more craft, etc.--SHAKESPEARE + + All _these sort_ of things.--SHERIDAN. + + I hoped we had done with _those sort_ of things.--MULOCH. + + You have been so used to _those sort_ of impertinences.--SYDNEY + SMITH. + + Whitefield or Wesley, or some other such great man as a bishop, + or _those sort_ of people.--FIELDING. + + I always delight in overthrowing _those kind_ of + schemes.--AUSTEN. + + There are women as well as men who can thoroughly enjoy _those + sort_ of romantic spots.--_Saturday Review_, London. + + The library was open, with _all manner_ of amusing + books.--RUSKIN. + +According to the approved usage of Modern English, each one of the +above adjectives would have to be changed to the singular, or the +nouns to the plural. + +[Sidenote: _History of this construction._] + +The reason for the prevalence of these expressions must be sought in +the history of the language: it cannot be found in the statement that +the adjective is made plural by the attraction of a noun following. + +[Sidenote: _At the source._] + +In Old and Middle English, in keeping with the custom of looking at +things concretely rather than in the abstract, they said, not "all +_kinds_ of wild animals," but "alles cunnes wilde deor" (wild animals +of-every-kind). This the modern expression reverses. + +[Sidenote: _Later form._] + +But in early Middle English the modern way of regarding such +expressions also appeared, gradually displacing the old. + +[Sidenote: _The result._] + +Consequently we have a confused expression. We keep the form of +logical agreement in standard English, such as, "_This sort_ of trees +should be planted;" but at the same time the noun following _kind of_ +is felt to be the real subject, and the adjective is, in spoken +English, made to agree with it, which accounts for the construction, +"_These kind of_ trees are best." + +[Sidenote: _A question._] + +The inconvenience of the logical construction is seen when we wish to +use a predicate with number forms. Should we say, "This kind of rules +_are_ the best," or "This kind of rules _is_ the best?" _Kind_ or +_sort_ may be treated as a collective noun, and in this way may take a +plural verb; for example, Burke's sentence, "A _sort_ of uncertain +sounds _are_, when the necessary dispositions concur, more alarming +than a total silence." + + + +COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE FORMS. + + +[Sidenote: _Use of the comparative degree._] + +428. The comparative degree of the adjective (or adverb) is used +when we wish to compare two objects or sets of objects, or one object +with a class of objects, to express a higher degree of quality; as,-- + + Which is _the better_ able to defend himself,--a strong man with + nothing but his fists, or a paralytic cripple encumbered with a + sword which he cannot lift?--MACAULAY. + + Of two such lessons, why forget + The _nobler_ and the _manlier_ one? + --BYRON. + + We may well doubt which has the _stronger_ claim to civilization, + the victor or the vanquished.--PRESCOTT. + + A _braver_ ne'er to battle rode.--SCOTT. + + He is _taller,_ by almost the breadth of my nail, than any of his + court.--SWIFT. + + +[Sidenote: Other _after the comparative form._] + +429. When an object is compared with the class to which it belongs, +it is regularly excluded from that class by the word _other_; if not, +the object would really be compared with itself: thus,-- + + The character of Lady Castlewood has required more delicacy in + its manipulation than perhaps any _other_ which Thackeray has + drawn.--TROLLOPE. + + I used to watch this patriarchal personage with livelier + curiosity than any _other_ form of humanity.--HAWTHORNE. + + +Exercise. + +See if the word _other_ should be inserted in the following +sentences:-- + + 1. There was no man who could make a more graceful bow than Mr. + Henry.--WIRT. + + 2. I am concerned to see that Mr. Gary, to whom Dante owes more + than ever poet owed to translator, has sanctioned, + etc.--MACAULAY. + + 3. There is no country in which wealth is so sensible of its + obligations as our own.--LOWELL. + + 4. This is more sincerely done in the Scandinavian than in any + mythology I know.--CARLYLE. + + 5. In "Thaddeus of Warsaw" there is more crying than in any novel + I remember to have read.--THACKERAY. + + 6. The heroes of another writer [Cooper] are quite the equals of + Scott's men; perhaps Leather-stocking is better than any one in + "Scott's lot."--_Id._ + + +[Sidenote: _Use of the superlative degree._] + +430. The superlative degree of the adjective (or adverb) is used +regularly in comparing more than two things, but is also frequently +used in comparing only two things. + +Examples of superlative with several objects:-- + + It is a case of which the _simplest_ statement is the + _strongest_.--MACAULAY. + + Even Dodd himself, who was one of the _greatest_ humbugs who ever + lived, would not have had the face.--THACKERAY. + + To the man who plays well, the _highest_ stakes are + paid.--HUXLEY. + +[Sidenote: _Superlative with two objects._] + +Compare the first three sentences in Sec. 428 with the following:-- + + Which do you love _best_ to behold, the lamb or the lion? + --THACKERAY. + + Which of these methods has the _best_ effect? Both of them are + the same to the sense, and differ only in form.--DR BLAIR. + + Rip was one of those ... who eat white bread or brown, whichever + can be got _easiest_.--IRVING. + + It is hard to say whether the man of wisdom or the man of folly + contributed _most_ to the amusement of the party.--SCOTT. + + There was an interval of three years between Mary and Anne. The + _eldest_, Mary, was like the Stuarts--the _younger_ was a fair + English child.--MRS. OLIPHANT. + + Of the two great parties which at this hour almost share the + nation between them, I should say that one has the _best_ cause, + and the other contains the _best_ men.--EMERSON. + + In all disputes between States, though the _strongest_ is nearly + always mainly in the wrong, the _weaker_ is often so in a minor + degree.--RUSKIN. + + She thought him and Olivia extremely of a size, and would bid + both to stand up to see which was the _tallest_.--GOLDSMITH. + + These two properties seem essential to wit, more particularly the + _last_ of them.--ADDISON. + + "Ha, ha, ha!" roared Goodman Brown when the wind laughed at him. + "Let us see which will laugh _loudest_."--HAWTHORNE. + + +[Sidenote: _Double comparative and superlative._] + +431. In Shakespeare's time it was quite common to use a double +comparative and superlative by using _more_ or _most_ before the word +already having _-er_ or _-est_. Examples from Shakespeare are,-- + + How much _more elder_ art thou than thy looks!--_Merchant of + Venice._ + + Nor that I am _more better_ than Prospero.--_Tempest._ + + Come you _more nearer_.--_Hamlet._ + + With the _most boldest_ and best hearts of Rome.--_J. Caesar._ + +Also from the same period,-- + + Imitating the manner of the _most ancientest_ and _finest_ + Grecians.--BEN JONSON. + + After the _most straitest_ sect of our religion.--_Bible_, 1611. + +Such expressions are now heard only in vulgar English. The following +examples are used purposely, to represent the characters as ignorant +persons:-- + + The artful saddler persuaded the young traveler to look at "the + _most convenientest_ and _handsomest_ saddle that ever was + seen."--BULWER. + + "There's nothing comes out but the _most lowest_ stuff in nature; + not a bit of high life among them."--GOLDSMITH. + + +_THREE FIRST_ OR _FIRST THREE_? + +432. As to these two expressions, over which a little war has so +long been buzzing, we think it not necessary to say more than that +both are in good use; not only so in popular speech, but in literary +English. Instances of both are given below. + +The meaning intended is the same, and the reader gets the same idea +from both: hence there is properly a perfect liberty in the use of +either or both. + +[Sidenote: First three, _etc._] + + For Carlyle, and Secretary Walsingham also, have been helping + them heart and soul for the _last two_ years.--KINGSLEY. + + The delay in the _first three_ lines, and conceit in the last, + jar upon us constantly.--RUSKIN. + + The _last dozen_ miles before you reach the suburbs.--DE QUINCEY. + + Mankind for the _first seventy thousand_ ages ate their meat + raw.--LAMB. + + The _first twenty_ numbers were expressed by a corresponding + number of dots. The _first five_ had specific names.--PRESCOTT. + +[Sidenote: Three first, _etc._] + + These are the _three first_ needs of civilized life.--RUSKIN. + + He has already finished the _three first_ sticks of it.--ADDISON. + + In my _two last_ you had so much of Lismahago that I suppose you + are glad he is gone.--SMOLLETT. + + I have not numbered the lines except of the _four first_ books. + --COWPER. + + The _seven first_ centuries were filled with a succession of + triumphs.--GIBBON. + + + + +ARTICLES. + +[Sidenote: _Definite article_.] + +433. The definite article is repeated before each of two modifiers +of the same noun, when the purpose is to call attention to the noun +expressed and the one understood. In such a case two or more separate +objects are usually indicated by the separation of the modifiers. +Examples of this construction are,-- + +[Sidenote: _With a singular noun_.] + + The merit of _the Barb_, _the Spanish_, and _the English_ breed + is derived from a mixture of Arabian blood.--GIBBON. + + _The righteous_ man is distinguished from _the unrighteous_ by + his desire and hope of justice.--RUSKIN. + + He seemed deficient in sympathy for concrete human things either + on _the sunny_ or _the stormy_ side.--CARLYLE. + + It is difficult to imagine a greater contrast than that between + _the first_ and _the second_ part of the volume.--_The Nation_, + No. 1508. + +[Sidenote: _With a plural noun_.] + + There was also a fundamental difference of opinion as to whether + the earliest cleavage was between _the Northern_ and _the + Southern_ languages.--TAYLOR, _Origin of the Aryans_. + +434. The same repetition of the article is sometimes found before +nouns alone, to distinguish clearly, or to emphasize the meaning; +as,-- + + In every line of _the Philip_ and _the Saul_, the greatest poems, + I think, of the eighteenth century.--MACAULAY. + + He is master of the two-fold Logos, _the thought_ and _the word_, + distinct, but inseparable from each other.--NEWMAN. + + _The flowers_, and _the presents_, and _the trunks and bonnet + boxes_ ... having been arranged, the hour of parting + came.--THACKERAY. + +[Sidenote: The _not repeated. One object and several modifiers, with a +singular noun_.] + +435. Frequently, however, the article is not repeated before each of +two or more adjectives, as in Sec. 433, but is used with one only; +as,-- + + Or fanciest thou _the red and yellow_ Clothes-screen yonder is + but of To-day, without a Yesterday or a To-morrow?--CARLYLE. + + _The lofty_, _melodious_, _and flexible_ language.--SCOTT. + + _The fairest and most loving_ wife in Greece.--TENNYSON. + +[Sidenote: _Meaning same as in Sec. 433, with a plural noun_.] + + Neither can there be a much greater resemblance between _the + ancient and modern_ general views of the + town.--HALLIWELL-PHILLIPPS. + + At Talavera _the English and French_ troops for a moment + suspended their conflict.--MACAULAY. + + The Crusades brought to the rising commonwealths of _the Adriatic + and Tyrrhene_ seas a large increase of wealth.--_Id._ + + Here the youth of both sexes, of _the higher and middling_ + orders, were placed at a very tender age.--PRESCOTT. + +[Sidenote: _Indefinite article_.] + +436. The indefinite article is used, like the definite article, to +limit two or more modified nouns, only one of which is expressed. The +article is repeated for the purpose of separating or emphasizing the +modified nouns. Examples of this use are,-- + + We shall live _a better_ and _a higher_ and _a nobler_ + life.--BEECHER. + + The difference between the products of _a well-disciplined_ and + those of _an uncultivated_ understanding is often and admirably + exhibited by our great dramatist.--S.T. COLERIDGE. + + Let us suppose that the pillars succeed each other, _a round_ and + _a square_ one alternately.--BURKE. + + As if the difference between _an accurate_ and _an inaccurate_ + statement was not worth the trouble of looking into the most + common book of reference.--MACAULAY. + + To every room there was _an open_ and _a secret_ + passage.--JOHNSON. + +Notice that in the above sentences (except the first) the noun +expressed is in contrast with the modified noun omitted. + + +[Sidenote: _One article with several adjectives._] + +437. Usually the article is not repeated when the several adjectives +unite in describing one and the same noun. In the sentences of Secs. +433 and 436, one noun is expressed; yet the same word understood with +the other adjectives has a different meaning (except in the first +sentence of Sec. 436). But in the following sentences, as in the first +three of Sec. 435, the adjectives assist each other in describing the +same noun. It is easy to see the difference between the expressions +"_a red-and-white_ geranium," and "_a red and a white_ geranium." + +Examples of several adjectives describing the same object:-- + + To inspire us with _a free and quiet_ mind.--B. JONSON. + + Here and there _a desolate and uninhabited_ house.--DICKENS. + + James was declared _a mortal and bloody_ enemy.--MACAULAY. + + So wert thou born into a tuneful strain, + _An early, rich, and inexhausted_ vein. + --DRYDEN. + +[Sidenote: _For rhetorical effect._] + +438. The indefinite article (compare Sec. 434) is used to lend +special emphasis, interest, or clearness to each of several nouns; +as,-- + + James was declared _a_ mortal and bloody _enemy, a tyrant, a + murderer_, and _a usurper_.--MACAULAY. + + Thou hast spoken as _a patriot_ and _a Christian_.--BULWER. + + He saw him in his mind's eye, _a collegian, a parliament man--a + Baronet_ perhaps.--THACKERAY. + + + +VERBS. + + +CONCORD OF VERB AND SUBJECT IN NUMBER. + + +[Sidenote: _A broad and loose rule._] + +439. In English, the number of the verb follows the meaning rather +than the form of its subject. + +It will not do to state as a general rule that the verb agrees with +its subject in person and number. This was spoken of in Part I., Sec. +276, and the following illustrations prove it. + +The statements and illustrations of course refer to such verbs as have +separate forms for singular and plural number. + + +[Sidenote: _Singular verb._] + +440. The singular form of the verb is used-- + +[Sidenote: _Subject of singular form._] + +(1) When the subject has a singular form and a singular meaning. + + Such, then, _was_ the earliest American _land_.--AGASSIZ. + + _He was_ certainly a happy fellow at this time.--G. ELIOT. + + _He sees_ that it is better to live in peace.--COOPER. + +[Sidenote: _Collective noun of singular meaning._] + +(2) When the subject is a _collective noun_ which represents a number +of persons or things _taken as one unit_; as,-- + + The larger _breed_ [of camels] _is_ capable of transporting a + weight of a thousand pounds.--GIBBON. + + Another _school professes_ entirely opposite principles.--_The + Nation._ + + In this work there _was_ grouped around him _a score_ of men.--W. + PHILLIPS + + A _number_ of jeweled paternosters _was_ attached to her + girdle.--FROUDE. + + _Something like a horse load_ of books _has_ been written to + prove that it was the beauty who blew up the booby.--CARLYLE + +This usage, like some others in this series, depends mostly on the +writer's own judgment. Another writer might, for example, prefer a +plural verb after _number_ in Froude's sentence above. + +[Sidenote: _Singulars connected by_ or _or_ nor.] + +(3) When the subject consists of two or more singular nouns connected +by _or_ or _nor_; as,-- + + It is by no means sure that either our _literature_, or the great + intellectual _life_ of our nation, _has_ got already, without + academies, all that academies can give.--M. ARNOLD. + + _Jesus is_ not dead, nor _John_, nor _Paul_, nor _Mahomet_. + --EMERSON. + +[Sidenote: _Plural form and singular meaning._] + +(4) When the subject is _plural in form_, but represents a number of +things to be taken together as _forming one unit_; for example,-- + + Thirty-four years _affects_ one's remembrance of some + circumstances.--DE QUINCEY. + + Between ourselves, three pounds five shillings and two pence _is_ + no bad day's work.--GOLDSMITH. + + Every twenty paces _gives_ you the prospect of some villa; and + every four hours, that of a large town.--MONTAGUE + + Two thirds of this _is_ mine by right.--SHERIDAN + + The singular form is also used with book titles, other names, and + other singulars of plural form; as,-- + + Politics _is_ the only field now open for me.--WHITTIER. + + "Sesame and Lilies" _is_ Ruskin's creed for young + girls.--_Critic_, No. 674 + + The Three Pigeons _expects_ me down every moment.--GOLDSMITH. + +[Sidenote: _Several singular subjects to one singular verb._] + +(5) With _several singular subjects not_ disjoined by _or_ or _nor_, +in the following cases:-- + +(_a_) Joined by _and_, but considered as meaning about the same thing, +or as making up one general idea; as,-- + + In a word, all his conversation and knowledge _has been_ in the + female world--ADDISON. + + The strength and glare of each [color] _is_ considerably + abated.--BURKE + + To imagine that debating and logic _is_ the triumph.--CARLYLE + + In a world where even to fold and seal a letter adroitly _is_ not + the least of accomplishments.--DE QUINCEY + + The genius and merit of a rising poet _was_ celebrated.--GIBBON. + + When the cause of ages and the fate of nations _hangs_ upon the + thread of a debate.--J.Q. ADAMS. + +(_b_) Not joined by a conjunction, but each one emphatic, or +considered as appositional; for example,-- + + The unbought grace of life, the cheap defense of nations, the + nurse of manly sentiment and heroic enterprise, _is_ + gone.--BURKE. + + A fever, a mutilation, a cruel disappointment, a loss of wealth, + a loss of friends, _seems_ at the moment unpaid loss.--EMERSON + + The author, the wit, the partisan, the fine gentleman, _does_ not + take the place of the man.--_Id._ + + To receive presents or a bribe, to be guilty of collusion in any + way with a suitor, _was_ punished, in a judge, with + death.--PRESCOTT. + +[Sidenote: _Subjects after the verb._] + +This use of several subjects with a singular verb is especially +frequent when the subjects are after the verb; as,-- + + There _is_ a right and a wrong in them.--M ARNOLD. + + There _is_ a moving tone of voice, an impassioned countenance, an + agitated gesture.--BURKE + + There _was_ a steel headpiece, a cuirass, a gorget, and greaves, + with a pair of gauntlets and a sword hanging beneath.--HAWTHORNE. + + Then _comes_ the "Why, sir!" and the "What then, sir?" and the + "No, sir!"--MACAULAY. + + For wide _is_ heard the thundering fray, + The rout, the ruin, the dismay. + --SCOTT. + +(_c_) Joined by _as well as_ (in this case the verb agrees with the +first of the two, no matter if the second is plural); thus,-- + + Asia, as well as Europe, _was_ dazzled.--MACAULAY. + + The oldest, as well as the newest, wine + _Begins_ to stir itself. + --LONGFELLOW. + + Her back, as well as sides, _was_ like to crack.--BUTLER. + + The Epic, as well as the Drama, _is_ divided into tragedy and + Comedy.--FIELDING + +(_d_) When each of two or more singular subjects is preceded by +_every_, _each_, _no_, _many a_, and such like adjectives. + + Every fop, every boor, every valet, _is_ a man of wit.--MACAULAY. + + Every sound, every echo, _was_ listened to for five hours.--DE + QUINCEY + + Every dome and hollow _has_ the figure of Christ.--RUSKIN. + + Each particular hue and tint _stands_ by itself.--NEWMAN. + + Every law and usage _was_ a man's expedient.--EMERSON. + + Here _is_ no ruin, no discontinuity, no spent ball.--_Id._ + + Every week, nay, almost every day, _was_ set down in their + calendar for some appropriate celebration.--PRESCOTT. + + +[Sidenote: _Plural verb._] + +441. The plural form of the verb is used-- + +(1) When the subject is plural _in form and in meaning_; as,-- + + These _bits_ of wood _were_ covered on every square.--SWIFT. + + Far, far away thy children _leave_ the land.--GOLDSMITH. + + The Arabian poets _were_ the historians and moralists.--GIBBON. + +(2) When the subject is a _collective noun_ in which _the individuals_ +of the collection are thought of; as,-- + + A multitude _go_ mad about it.--EMERSON. + + A great number of people _were_ collected at a vendue.--FRANKLIN. + + All our household _are_ at rest.--COLERIDGE. + + A party of workmen _were_ removing the horses.--LEW WALLACE + + The fraternity _were_ inclined to claim for him the honors of + canonization.--SCOTT. + + The travelers, of whom there _were_ a number.--B. TAYLOR. + + (3) When the subject consists of _several singulars connected by + and_, making up a plural subject, for example,-- + + Only Vice and Misery _are_ abroad.--CARLYLE + + But its authorship, its date, and its history _are_ alike a + mystery to us.--FROUDE. + + His clothes, shirt, and skin _were_ all of the same color--SWIFT. + + Aristotle and Longinus _are_ better understood by him than + Littleton or Coke.--ADDISON. + +[Sidenote: _Conjunction omitted._] + +The conjunction may be omitted, as in Sec. 440 (5, _b_), but the verb +is plural, as with a subject of plural form. + + A shady grove, a green pasture, a stream of fresh water, _are_ + sufficient to attract a colony.--GIBBON. + + The Dauphin, the Duke of Berri, Philip of Anjou, _were_ men of + insignificant characters.--MACAULAY + + (4) When a singular is joined with a plural by a disjunctive + word, the verb agrees with the one nearest it; as,-- + + One or two of these perhaps _survive_.--THOREAU. + + One or two persons in the crowd _were_ insolent.--FROUDE. + + One or two of the ladies _were_ going to leave.--ADDISON + + One or two of these old Cromwellian soldiers _were_ still alive + in the village.--THACKERAY + + One or two of whom _were_ more entertaining.--DE QUINCEY. + + But notice the construction of this,-- + + A ray or two _wanders_ into the darkness.--RUSKIN. + + +AGREEMENT OF VERB AND SUBJECT IN PERSON. + + +[Sidenote: _General usage_.] + +442. If there is only one person in the subject, the ending of the +verb indicates the person of its subject; that is, in those few cases +where there are forms for different persons: as,-- + + Never once _didst_ thou revel in the vision.--DE QUINCEY. + + Romanism wisely _provides_ for the childish in men.--LOWELL. + + It _hath_ been said my Lord would never take the + oath.--THACKERAY. + +[Sidenote: _Second or third and first person in the subject_.] + + +443. If the subject is made up of the first person joined with the +second or third by _and_, the verb takes the construction of the first +person, the subject being really equivalent to _we_; as,-- + + I flatter myself you and I _shall_ meet again.--SMOLLETT. + + You and I _are_ farmers; we never talk politics.--D WEBSTER. + + Ah, brother! only I and thou + _Are_ left of all that circle now. + --WHITTIER. + + You and I _are_ tolerably modest people.--THACKERAY. + + Cocke and I _have_ felt it in our bones--_Gammer Gurton's Needle_ + + +[Sidenote: _With adversative or disjunctive connectives_.] + +444. When the subjects, of different persons, are connected by +adversative or disjunctive conjunctions, the verb usually agrees with +the pronoun nearest to it; for example,-- + + Neither you nor I _should_ be a bit the better or wiser.--RUSKIN. + + If she or you _are_ resolved to be miserable.--GOLDSMITH. + + Nothing which Mr. Pattison or I _have_ said.--M. ARNOLD. + + Not Altamont, but thou, _hadst_ been my lord.--ROWE. + + Not I, but thou, his blood _dost_ shed.--BYRON. + +This construction is at the best a little awkward. It is avoided +either by using a verb which has no forms for person (as, "He or I +_can_ go," "She or you _may_ be sure," etc.), or by rearranging the +sentence so as to throw each subject before its proper person form +(as, "You _would_ not be wiser, nor _should_ I;" or, "I _have_ never +said so, nor _has_ she"). + +[Sidenote: _Exceptional examples_.] + +445. The following illustrate exceptional usage, which it is proper +to mention; but the student is cautioned to follow the regular usage +rather than the unusual and irregular. + + +Exercise. + +Change each of the following sentences to accord with standard usage, +as illustrated above (Secs. 440-444):-- + + + 1. And sharp Adversity will teach at last + Man,--and, as we would hope,--perhaps the devil, + That neither of their intellects are vast. + --BYRON. + + 2. Neither of them, in my opinion, give so accurate an idea of + the man as a statuette in bronze.--TROLLOPE. + + 3. How each of these professions are crowded.--ADDISON. + + 4. Neither of their counselors were to be present.--_Id._ + + 5. Either of them are equally good to the person to whom they are + significant.--EMERSON. + + 6. Neither the red nor the white are strong and glaring.--BURKE. + + 7. A lampoon or a satire do not carry in them robbery or + murder.--ADDISON. + + 8. Neither of the sisters were very much deceived.--THACKERAY. + + 9. Nor wood, nor tree, nor bush are there, + Her course to intercept.--SCOTT. + + 10. Both death and I am found eternal.--MILTON. + + 11. In ascending the Mississippi the party was often obliged to + wade through morasses; at last they came upon the district of + Little Prairie.--G. BANCROFT. + + 12. In a word, the whole nation seems to be running out of their + wits.--SMOLLETT. + + +SEQUENCE OF TENSES (VERBS AND VERBALS). + + +[Sidenote: _Lack of logical sequence in verbs_.] + +446. If one or more verbs depend on some leading verb, each should +be in the tense that will convey the meaning intended by the writer. + +In this sentence from Defoe, "I expected every wave would have +swallowed us up," the verb _expected_ looks forward to something in +the future, while _would have swallowed_ represents something +completed in past time: hence the meaning intended was, "I expected +every wave _would swallow_" etc. + +[Sidenote: _Also in verbals_.] + +In the following sentence, the infinitive also fails to express the +exact thought:-- + + I had hoped never to have seen the statues again.--MACAULAY. + +The trouble is the same as in the previous sentence; _to have seen_ +should be changed to _to see_, for exact connection. Of course, if the +purpose were to represent a prior fact or completed action, the +perfect infinitive would be the very thing. + +It should be remarked, however, that such sentences as those just +quoted are in keeping with the older idea of the unity of the +sentence. The present rule is recent. + + +Exercise. + +Explain whether the verbs and infinitives in the following sentences +convey the right meaning; if not, change them to a better form:-- + + 1. I gave one quarter to Ann, meaning, on my return, to have + divided with her whatever might remain.--DE QUINCEY + + 2. I can't sketch "The Five Drapers," ... but can look and be + thankful to have seen such a masterpiece.--THACKERAY. + + 3. He would have done more wisely to have left them to find their + own apology than to have given reasons which seemed + paradoxes.--R.W. CHURCH. + + 4. The propositions of William are stated to have contained a + proposition for a compromise.--PALGRAVE + + 5. But I found I wanted a stock of words, which I thought I + should have acquired before that time.--FRANKLIN + + 6. I could even have suffered them to have broken Everet + Ducking's head.--IRVING. + + + + +INDIRECT DISCOURSE. + + +[Sidenote: _Definitions_.] + +_447_. Direct discourse--that is, a direct quotation or a direct +question--means the identical words the writer or speaker used; as,-- + + "I hope you have not killed him?" said Amyas.--KINGSLEY. + +Indirect discourse means reported speech,--the thoughts of a writer +or speaker put in the words of the one reporting them. + + +[Sidenote: _Two samples of indirect discourse_.] + +448. Indirect discourse may be of two kinds:-- + +(1) Following the thoughts and also the exact words as far as +consistent with the rules of logical sequence of verbs. + +(2) Merely a concise representation of the original words, not +attempting to follow the entire quotation. + +The following examples of both are from De Quincey:-- + +[Sidenote: _Indirect_.] + +1. Reyes remarked that it was not in his power to oblige the clerk as +to that, but that he could oblige him by cutting his throat. + +[Sidenote: _Direct_.] + +His exact words were, "I _cannot_ oblige _you_ ..., but I _can_ oblige +_you_ by cutting _your_ throat." + +[Sidenote: _Indirect_.] + +Her prudence whispered eternally, that safety there was none for her +until she had laid the Atlantic between herself and St. Sebastian's. + +[Sidenote: _Direct_.] + +She thought to herself, "Safety there _is_ none for _me_ until _I_ +have laid," etc. + +[Sidenote: _Summary of the expressions_.] + +2. Then he laid bare the unparalleled ingratitude of such a step. Oh, +the unseen treasure that had been spent upon that girl! Oh, the untold +sums of money that he had sunk in that unhappy speculation! + +[Sidenote: _Direct synopsis_.] + +The substance of his lamentation was, "Oh, unseen treasure _has_ been +spent upon that girl! Untold sums of money _have I_ sunk," etc. + + + +449. From these illustrations will be readily seen the grammatical +changes made in transferring from direct to indirect discourse. +Remember the following facts:-- + +(1) Usually the main, introductory verb is in the past tense. + +(2) The indirect quotation is usually introduced by _that_, and the +indirect question by _whether_ or _if_, or regular interrogatives. + +(3) Verbs in the present-tense form are changed to the past-tense +form. This includes the auxiliaries _be_, _have_, _will_, etc. The +past tense is sometimes changed to the past perfect. + +(4) The pronouns of the first and second persons are all changed to +the third person. Sometimes it is clearer to introduce the antecedent +of the pronoun instead. + +Other examples of indirect discourse have been given in Part I., +under interrogative pronouns, interrogative adverbs, and the +subjunctive mood of verbs. + + +Exercise. + +Rewrite the following extract from Irving's "Sketch Book," and change +it to a direct quotation:-- + +He assured the company that it was a fact, handed down from his +ancestor the historian, that the Catskill Mountains had always been +haunted by strange beings; that it was affirmed that the great +Hendrick Hudson, the first discoverer of the river and country, kept a +kind of vigil there every twenty years, with his crew of the +Half-moon, being permitted in this way to revisit the scenes of his +enterprise, and keep a guardian eye upon the river and the great city +called by his name; that his father had once seen them in their old +Dutch dresses playing at ninepins in a hollow of the mountain; and +that he himself had heard, one summer afternoon, the sound of their +balls, like distant peals of thunder. + + + + +VERBALS. + +PARTICIPLES. + + +[Sidenote: _Careless use of the participial phrase._] + +450. The following sentences illustrate a misuse of the participial +phrase:-- + + Pleased with the "Pilgrim's Progress," my first collection was of + John Bunyan's works.--B. FRANKLIN. + + My farm consisted of about twenty acres of excellent land, having + given a hundred pounds for my predecessor's goodwill.--GOLDSMITH. + + Upon asking how he had been taught the art of a cognoscente so + suddenly, he assured me that nothing was more easy.--_Id._ + + Having thus run through the causes of the sublime, my first + observation will be found nearly true.--BURKE + + He therefore remained silent till he had repeated a paternoster, + being the course which his confessor had enjoined.--SCOTT + +Compare with these the following:-- + +[Sidenote: _A correct example._] + + Going yesterday to dine with an old acquaintance, I had the + misfortune to find his whole family very much dejected.--ADDISON. + +[Sidenote: _Notice this._] + +The trouble is, in the sentences first quoted, that the main subject +of the sentence is not the same word that would be the subject of the +participle, if this were expanded into a verb. + +[Sidenote: _Correction._] + +Consequently one of two courses must be taken,--either change the +participle to a verb with its appropriate subject, leaving the +principal statement as it is; or change the principal proposition so +it shall make logical connection with the participial phrase. + +For example, the first sentence would be, either "_As I was_ pleased, +... my first collection was," etc., or "Pleased with the 'Pilgrim's +Progress,' I made my first collection John Bunyan's works." + +Exercise.--Rewrite the other four sentences so as to correct the +careless use of the participial phrase. + + + + +INFINITIVES. + + +[Sidenote: _Adverb between_ to _and the infinitive._] + +451. There is a construction which is becoming more and more common +among good writers,--the placing an adverb between _to_ of the +infinitive and the infinitive itself. The practice is condemned by +many grammarians, while defended or excused by others. Standard +writers often use it, and often, purposely or not, avoid it. + +The following two examples show the adverb before the infinitive:-- + +[Sidenote: _The more common usage._] + + He handled it with such nicety of address as sufficiently _to + show_ that he fully understood the business.--SCOTT. + + It is a solemn, universal assertion, deeply _to be kept_ in mind + by all sects.--RUSKIN. + +This is the more common arrangement; yet frequently the desire seems +to be to get the adverb snugly against the infinitive, to modify it as +closely and clearly as possible. + + +Exercise. + +In the following citations, see if the adverbs can be placed before or +after the infinitive and still modify it as clearly as they now do:-- + + 1. There are, then, many things _to be_ carefully _considered_, + if a strike is to succeed.--LAUGHLIN. + + 2. That the mind may not have to go backwards and forwards in + order _to_ rightly _connect_ them.--HERBERT SPENCER. + + 3. It may be easier to bear along all the qualifications of an + idea ... than _to_ first imperfectly _conceive_ such idea.--_id._ + + 4. In works of art, this kind of grandeur, which consists in + multitude, is _to be_ very cautiously _admitted_.--BURKE. + + 5. That virtue which requires _to be_ ever _guarded_ is + scarcely worth the sentinel.--GOLDSMITH. + + 6. Burke said that such "little arts and devices" were not _to + be_ wholly _condemned_.--_The Nation_, No. 1533. + + 7. I wish the reader _to_ clearly _understand_.--RUSKIN. + + 8. Transactions which seem _to be_ most widely _separated_ from + one another.--DR. BLAIR. + + 9. Would earnestly advise them for their good to order this + paper _to be_ punctually _served up_.--ADDISON. + + 10. A little sketch of his, in which a cannon ball is supposed + _to have_ just _carried off_ the head of an + aide-de-camp.--TROLLOPE. + + 11. The ladies seem _to have been_ expressly _created_ to form + helps meet for such gentlemen.--MACAULAY. + + 12. Sufficient to disgust a people whose manners were beginning + _to be_ strongly _tinctured_ with austerity.--_Id._ + + 13. The spirits, therefore, of those opposed to them seemed _to + be_ considerably _damped_ by their continued success.--SCOTT. + + + + +ADVERBS. + + +[Sidenote: _Position of_ only, even, _etc._] + +A very careful writer will so place the modifiers of a verb that the +reader will not mistake the meaning. + +The rigid rule in such a case would be, to put the modifier in such a +position that the reader not only can understand the meaning intended, +but _cannot misunderstand_ the thought. Now, when such adverbs as +_only_, _even_, etc., are used, they are usually placed in a strictly +correct position, if they modify single words; but they are often +removed from the exact position, if they modify phrases or clauses: +for example, from Irving, "The site is _only_ to be traced by +fragments of bricks, china, and earthenware." Here _only_ modifies the +phrase _by fragments of bricks_, etc., but it is placed before the +infinitive. This misplacement of the adverb can be detected only by +analysis of the sentence. + + +Exercise. + +Tell what the adverb modifies in each quotation, and see if it is +placed in the proper position:-- + + 1. Only the name of one obscure epigrammatist has been embalmed + for us in the verses of his rival.--PALGRAVE. + + 2. Do you remember pea shooters? I think we only had them on + going home for holidays.--THACKERAY. + + 3. Irving could only live very modestly. He could only afford + to keep one old horse.--_Id._ + + 4. The arrangement of this machinery could only be accounted + for by supposing the motive power to have been steam.--WENDELL + PHILLIPS. + + 5. Such disputes can only be settled by arms.--_Id._ + + 6. I have only noted one or two topics which I thought most + likely to interest an American reader.--N.P. WILLIS. + + 7. The silence of the first night at the farmhouse,--stillness + broken only by two whippoorwills.--HIGGINSON. + + 8. My master, to avoid a crowd, would suffer only thirty people + at a time to see me.--SWIFT. + + 9. In relating these and the following laws, I would only be + understood to mean the original institutions.--_Id._ + + 10. The perfect loveliness of a woman's countenance can only + consist in that majestic peace which is founded in the memory of + happy and useful years.--RUSKIN. + + 11. In one of those celestial days it seems a poverty that we can + only spend it once.--EMERSON. + + 12. My lord was only anxious as long as his wife's anxious face + or behavior seemed to upbraid him.--THACKERAY. + + 13. He shouted in those clear, piercing tones that could be even + heard among the roaring of the cannon.--COOPER. + + 14. His suspicions were not even excited by the ominous face of + Gerard.--MOTLEY. + + 15. During the whole course of his administration, he scarcely + befriended a single man of genius.--MACAULAY. + + 16. I never remember to have felt an event more deeply than his + death.--SYDNEY SMITH. + + 17. His last journey to Cannes, whence he was never destined to + return.--MRS. GROTE. + + + +USE OF DOUBLE NEGATIVES. + + +[Sidenote: _The old usage._] + +453. In Old and Middle English, two negatives strengthened a +negative idea; for example,-- + + He _nevere_ yet _no_ vileineye _ne_ sayde, + In al his lyf unto _no_ maner wight.--CHAUCER. + + _No_ sonne, were he never so old of yeares, might _not_ marry. + --ASCHAM. + +The first of these is equivalent to "He didn't never say no villainy +in all his life to no manner of man,"--four negatives. + +This idiom was common in the older stages of the language, and is +still kept in vulgar English; as,-- + + I tell you she _ain'_ been _nowhar_ ef she don' know we all. + --PAGE, in _Ole Virginia_. + + There _weren't no_ pies to equal hers.--MRS. STOWE. + + +[Sidenote: _Exceptional use._] + +There are sometimes found two negatives in modern English with a +negative effect, when one of the negatives is a connective. This, +however, is not common. + + I never did see him again, _nor never_ shall.--DE QUINCEY. + + However, I did _not_ act so hastily, _neither_.--DEFOE. + + The prosperity of no empire, _nor_ the grandeur of _no_ king, can + so agreeably affect, etc.--BURKE. + + +[Sidenote: _Regular law of negative in modern English._] + +But, under the influence of Latin syntax, the usual way of regarding +the question now is, that _two negatives are equivalent to an +affirmative_, denying each other. + +Therefore, if two negatives are found together, it is a sign of +ignorance or carelessness, or else a purpose to make an affirmative +effect. In the latter case, one of the negatives is often a prefix; as +_in_frequent, _un_common. + + +Exercise. + +Tell whether the two or more negatives are properly used in each of +the following sentences, and why:-- + + 1. The red men were not so infrequent visitors of the English + settlements.--HAWTHORNE. + + 2. "Huldy was so up to everything about the house, that the + doctor didn't miss nothin' in a temporal way."--MRS. STOWE. + + 3. Her younger sister was a wide-awake girl, who hadn't been to + school for nothing.--HOLMES. + + 4. You will find no battle which does not exhibit the most + cautious circumspection.--BAYNE. + + 5. Not only could man not acquire such information, but ought not + to labor after it.--GROTE. + + 6. There is no thoughtful man in America who would not consider a + war with England the greatest of calamities.--LOWELL. + + 7. In the execution of this task, there is no man who would not + find it an arduous effort.--HAMILTON. + + 8. "A weapon," said the King, "well worthy to confer honor, nor + has it been laid on an undeserving shoulder."--SCOTT. + + + + +CONJUNCTIONS. + + +[Sidenote: And who, and which.] + +454. The sentences given in Secs. 419 and 420 on the connecting of +pronouns with different expressions may again be referred to here, as +the use of the conjunction, as well as of the pronoun, should be +scrutinized. + +[Sidenote: _Choice and proper position of correlatives._] + +455. The most frequent mistakes in using conjunctions are in +handling correlatives, especially _both_ ... _and, neither_ ... _nor, +either_ ... _or, not_ _only_ ... _but, not merely_ ... _but_ (_also_). + +The following examples illustrate the correct use of correlatives as +to both choice of words and position:-- + + _Whether_ at war _or_ at peace, there we were, a standing menace + to all earthly paradises of that kind.--LOWELL. + + These idols of wood can _neither_ hear _nor_ feel.--PRESCOTT. + + _Both_ the common soldiery _and_ their leaders and commanders + lowered on each other as if their union had not been more + essential than ever, _not only_ to the success of their common + cause, _but_ to their own safety.--SCOTT. + + +[Sidenote: _Things to be watched._] + +In these examples it will be noticed that _nor_, not _or_ is the +proper correlative of _neither_; and that all correlatives in a +sentence ought to have corresponding positions: that is, if the last +precedes a verb, the first ought to be placed before a verb; if the +second precedes a phrase, the first should also. This is necessary to +make the sentence clear and symmetrical. + +[Sidenote: _Correction._] + +In the sentence, "I am _neither_ in spirits to enjoy it, _or_ to reply +to it," both of the above requirements are violated. The word +_neither_ in such a case had better be changed to _not_ ... +_either_,--"I am not in spirits _either_ to enjoy it, _or_ to reply to +it." + +Besides _neither ... or_, even _neither ... nor_ is often changed to +_not_--_either ... or_ with advantage, as the negation is sometimes +too far from the verb to which it belongs. + +A noun may be preceded by one of the correlatives, and an equivalent +pronoun by the other. The sentence, "This loose and inaccurate manner +of speaking has misled us _both_ in the theory of taste _and_ of +morals," may be changed to "This loose ... misled us _both_ in the +theory of taste _and_ in _that_ of morals." + + +Exercise. + +Correct the following sentences:-- + + 1. An ordinary man would neither have incurred the danger of + succoring Essex, nor the disgrace of assailing him.--MACAULAY. + + 2. Those ogres will stab about and kill not only strangers, but + they will outrage, murder, and chop up their own kin.--THACKERAY. + + 3. In the course of his reading (which was neither pursued with + that seriousness or that devout mind which such a study requires) + the youth found himself, etc.--_Id._ + + 4. I could neither bear walking nor riding in a carriage over its + pebbled streets.--FRANKLIN. + + 5. Some exceptions, that can neither be dissembled nor eluded, + render this mode of reasoning as indiscreet as it is + superfluous.--GIBBON. + + 6. They will, too, not merely interest children, but grown-up + persons.--_Westminster Review._ + + 7. I had even the satisfaction to see her lavish some kind looks + upon my unfortunate son, which the other could neither extort by + his fortune nor assiduity.--GOLDSMITH. + + 8. This was done probably to show that he was neither ashamed of + his name or family.--ADDISON. + + +[Sidenote: Try and _for_ try to.] + +456. Occasionally there is found the expression _try and_ instead of +the better authorized _try to_; as,-- + + We will try _and_ avoid personalities altogether.--THACKERAY. + + Did any of you ever try _and_ read "Blackmore's Poems"?--_Id._ + + Try _and_ avoid the pronoun.--BAIN. + + We will try _and_ get a clearer notion of them.--RUSKIN. + + +[Sidenote: But what.] + +457. Instead of the subordinate conjunction _that_, _but_, or _but +that_, or the negative relative _but_, we sometimes find the bulky and +needless _but what_. Now, it is possible to use _but what_ when _what_ +is a relative pronoun, as, "He never had any money _but what_ he +absolutely needed;" but in the following sentences _what_ usurps the +place of a conjunction. + + +Exercise. + +In the following sentences, substitute _that_, _but_, or _but that_ +for the words _but what_:-- + + 1. The doctor used to say 'twas her young heart, and I don't know + _but what_ he was right.--S.O. JEWETT. + + 2. At the first stroke of the pickax it is ten to one _but what_ + you are taken up for a trespass.--BULWER. + + 3. There are few persons of distinction _but what_ can hold + conversation in both languages.--SWIFT. + + 4. Who knows _but what_ there might be English among those + sun-browned half-naked masses of panting wretches?--KINGSLEY. + + 5. No little wound of the kind ever came to him _but what_ he + disclosed it at once.--TROLLOPE. + + 6. They are not so distant from the camp of Saladin _but what_ + they might be in a moment surprised.--SCOTT. + + + +PREPOSITIONS. + + +458. As to the placing of a preposition after its object in certain +cases, see Sec. 305. + + +[Sidenote: Between _and_ among.] + +459. In the primary meaning of between and among there is a +sharp distinction, as already seen in Sec. 313; but in Modern English +the difference is not so marked. + +Between is used most often with two things only, but still it is +frequently used in speaking of several objects, some relation or +connection between two at a time being implied. + +Among is used in the same way as _amid_ (though not with exactly the +same meaning), several objects being spoken of in the aggregate, no +separation or division by twos being implied. + +Examples of the distinctive use of the two words:-- + +[Sidenote: _Two things._] + + The contentions that arise _between_ the parson and the + squire.--ADDISON. + + We reckoned the improvements of the art of war _among_ the + triumphs of science.--EMERSON. + +Examples of the looser use of _between_:-- + +[Sidenote: _A number of things._] + + Natural objects affect us by the laws of that connection which + Providence has established _between_ certain motions of + bodies.--BURKE. + + Hence the differences _between_ men in natural endowment are + insignificant in comparison with their common wealth.--EMERSON. + + They maintain a good correspondence _between_ those wealthy + societies of men that are divided from one another by seas and + oceans.--ADDISON. + + Looking up at its deep-pointed porches and the dark places + _between_ their pillars where there were statues once.--RUSKIN + + What have I, a soldier of the Cross, to do with recollections of + war _betwixt_ Christian nations?--SCOTT. + +[Sidenote: _Two groups or one and a group._] + +Also _between_ may express relation or connection in speaking of two +groups of objects, or one object and a group; as,-- + + A council of war is going on beside the watch fire, _between_ the + three adventurers and the faithful Yeo.--KINGSLEY. + + The great distinction _between_ teachers sacred or + literary,--_between_ poets like Herbert and poets like + Pope,--_between_ philosophers like Spinoza, Kant, and Coleridge, + and philosophers like Locke, Paley, Mackintosh, and Stewart, etc. + --EMERSON. + +460. Certain words are followed by particular prepositions. + +Some of these words show by their composition what preposition should +follow. Such are _absolve_, _involve_, _different_. + +Some of them have, by custom, come to take prepositions not in keeping +with the original meaning of the words. Such are _derogatory_, +_averse_. + +Many words take one preposition to express one meaning, and another to +convey a different meaning; as, _correspond_, _confer_. + +And yet others may take several prepositions indifferently to express +the same meaning. + + +[Sidenote: _List I_.: _Words with particular prepositions_.] + +461. LIST I. + + Absolve _from_. Conversant _with_. + Abhorrent _to_. Dependent _on_ (_upon_). + Accord _with_. Different _from_. + Acquit _of_. Dissent _from_. + Affinity _between_. Derogatory _to_. + Averse _to_. Deprive _of_. + Bestow _on_ (_upon_). Independent _of_. + Conform _to_. Involve _in_. + Comply _with_. + +"Different _to_" is frequently heard in spoken English in England, +and sometimes creeps into standard books, but it is not good usage. + + +[Sidenote: _List II_.: _Words taking different prepositions for +different meanings._] + +462. LIST II. + + Agree _with_ (a person). Differ _from_ (note below). + Agree _to_ (a proposal). Differ _with_ (note below). + Change_ for_ (a thing). Disappointed _in_ (a thing + Change _with_ (a person). obtained). + Change _to_ (become). Disappointed _of_ (a thing not + Confer _with_ (talk with). obtained). + Confer _on_ (_upon_) (give to). Reconcile _to_ (note below). + Confide _in_ (trust in). Reconcile _with_ (note below). + Confide _to_ (intrust to). A taste _of_ (food). + Correspond _with_ (write to). A taste _for_ (art, etc.). + Correspond _to_ (a thing). + +"Correspond _with_" is sometimes used of things, as meaning _to be in +keeping with_. + +"Differ _from_" is used in speaking of unlikeness between things or +persons; "differ _from_" and "differ _with_" are both used in speaking +of persons disagreeing as to opinions. + +"Reconcile _to_" is used with the meaning of _resigned to_, as, "The +exile became reconciled _to_ his fate;" also of persons, in the sense +of making friends with, as, "The king is reconciled _to_ his +minister." "Reconcile _with_" is used with the meaning of _make to +agree with_, as, "The statement must be reconciled _with_ his previous +conduct." + + +[Sidenote: _List III_.: _Words taking anyone of several prepositions +for the same meaning_.] + +463. LIST III. + + Die _by_, die _for_, die _from_, die _of_, die _with_. + Expect _of_, expect _from_. + Part _from_, part _with_. + +Illustrations of "die _of_," "die _from_," etc.:-- + +[Sidenote: "_Die_ of."] + + The author died _of_ a fit of apoplexy.--BOSWELL. + + People do not die _of_ trifling little colds.--AUSTEN + + Fifteen officers died _of_ fever in a day.--MACAULAY. + + It would take me long to die _of_ hunger.--G. ELIOT. + + She died _of_ hard work, privation, and ill treatment.--BURNETT. + +[Sidenote: "_Die_ from."] + + She saw her husband at last literally die _from_ hunger.--BULWER. + + He died at last without disease, simply _from_ old age. + --_Athenaeum._ + + No one _died from_ want at Longfeld.--_Chambers' Journal._ + +[Sidenote: "_Die_ with."] + + She would have been ready to die _with_ shame.--G. ELIOT. + + I am positively dying _with_ hunger.--SCOTT. + + I thought the two Miss Flamboroughs would have died _with_ + laughing.--GOLDSMITH. + + I wish that the happiest here may not die _with_ envy.--POPE. + +[Sidenote: "_Die_ for." (_in behalf of_).] + + Take thought and die _for_ Caesar.--SHAKESPEARE. + + One of them said he would die _for_ her.--GOLDSMITH. + + It is a man of quality who dies _for_ her.--ADDISON. + +[Sidenote: "_Die_ for." (_because of_).] + + Who, as Cervantes informs us, died _for_ love of the fair + Marcella.--FIELDING. + + Some officers had died _for_ want of a morsel of + bread.--MACAULAY. + +[Sidenote: "_Die_ by." (_material cause, instrument_).] + + If I meet with any of 'em, they shall die _by_ this hand. + --THACKERAY. + + He must purge himself to the satisfaction of a vigilant tribunal + or die _by_ fire.--MACAULAY. + + He died _by_ suicide before he completed his eighteenth + year.--SHAW. + + +464. Illustrations of "expect _of_," "expect _from:_"-- + +[Sidenote: "_Expect_ of."] + + What do I expect _of_ Dublin?--_Punch._ + + That is more than I expected _of_ you.--SCOTT. + + _Of_ Doctor P. nothing better was to be expected.--POE. + + Not knowing what might be expected _of_ men in general.--G. + ELIOT. + +[Sidenote: "_Expect_ from."] + + She will expect more attention _from_ you, as my + friend.--WALPOLE. + + + + There was a certain grace and decorum hardly to be expected + _from_ a man.--MACAULAY. + + I have long expected something remarkable _from_ you.--G. ELIOT. + + +465. "Part _with_" is used with both persons and things, but "part +_from_" is less often found in speaking of things. + +Illustrations of "part _with_," "part _from_:"-- + +[Sidenote: "_Part_ with."] + + He was fond of everybody that he was used to, and hated to part + _with_ them.--AUSTEN. + + Cleveland was sorry to part _with_ him.--BULWER. + + I can part _with_ my children for their good.--DICKENS. + + I part _with_ all that grew so near my heart.--WALLER. + +[Sidenote: "_Part_ from."] + + To part _from_ you would be misery.--MARRYAT. + + I have just seen her, just parted _from_ her.--BULWER. + + Burke parted _from_ him with deep emotion.--MACAULAY. + + His precious bag, which he would by no means part _from_.--G. + ELIOT. + + +[Sidenote: _Kind_ in _you_, _kind_ of _you_.] + +466. With words implying behavior or disposition, either _of_ or +_in_ is used indifferently, as shown in the following quotations:-- + +[Sidenote: Of.] + + It was a little bad _of_ you.--TROLLOPE. + + How cruel _of_ me!--COLLINS. + + He did not think it handsome _of_ you.--BULWER. + + But this is idle _of_ you.--TENNYSON. + +[Sidenote: In.] + + Very natural _in_ Mr. Hampden.--CARLYLE. + + It will be anything but shrewd _in_ you.--DICKENS. + + That is very unreasonable _in_ a person so young.--BEACONSFIELD. + + I am wasting your whole morning--too bad _in_ me.--BULWER. + + +Miscellaneous Examples for Correction. + +1. Can you imagine Indians or a semi-civilized people engaged on a +work like the canal connecting the Mediterranean and the Red seas? + +2. In the friction between an employer and workman, it is commonly +said that his profits are high. + +3. None of them are in any wise willing to give his life for the life +of his chief. + +4. That which can be done with perfect convenience and without loss, +is not always the thing that most needs to be done, or which we are +most imperatively required to do. + +5. Art is neither to be achieved by effort of thinking, nor explained +by accuracy of speaking. + +6. To such as thee the fathers owe their fame. + +7. We tread upon the ancient granite that first divided the waters +into a northern and southern ocean. + +8. Thou tread'st, with seraphims, the vast abyss. + +9. Eustace had slipped off his long cloak, thrown it over Amyas's +head, and ran up the alley. + +10. This narrative, tedious perhaps, but which the story renders +necessary, may serve to explain the state of intelligence betwixt the +lovers. + +11. To the shame and eternal infamy of whomsoever shall turn back from +the plow on which he hath laid his hand! + +12. The noise of vast cataracts, raging storms, thunder, or artillery, +awake a great and awful sensation in the mind. + +13. The materials and ornaments ought neither to be white, nor green, +nor yellow, nor blue, nor of a pale red. + +14. This does not prove that an idea of use and beauty are the same +thing, or that they are any way dependent on each other. + + +15. And were I anything but what I am, + I would wish me only he. + +16. But every man may know, and most of us do know, what is a just and +unjust act. + +17. You have seen Cassio and she together. + +18. We shall shortly see which is the fittest object of scorn, you or +me. + +19. Richard glared round him with an eye that seemed to seek an enemy, +and from which the angry nobles shrunk appalled. + +20. It comes to whomsoever will put off what is foreign and proud. + +21. The difference between the just and unjust procedure does not lie +in the number of men hired, but in the price paid to them. + +22. The effect of proportion and fitness, so far at least as they +proceed from a mere consideration of the work itself, produce +approbation, the acquiescence of the understanding. + +23. When the glass or liquor are transparent, the light is sometimes +softened in the passage. + +24. For there nor yew nor cypress spread their gloom. + +25. Every one of these letters are in my name. + +26. Neither of them are remarkable for precision. + +27. Squares, triangles, and other angular figures, are neither +beautiful to the sight nor feeling. + +28. There is not one in a thousand of these human souls that cares to +think where this estate is, or how beautiful it is, or what kind of +life they are to lead in it. + +29. Dryden and Rowe's manner are quite out of fashion. + +30. We were only permitted to stop for refreshment once. + +31. The sight of the manner in which the meals were served were enough +to turn our stomach. + +32. The moody and savage state of mind of the sullen and ambitious man +are admirably drawn. + +33. Surely none of our readers are so unfortunate as not to know some +man or woman who carry this atmosphere of peace and good-will about +with them. (Sec. 411.) + +34. Friday, whom he thinks would be better than a dog, and almost as +good as a pony. + +35. That night every man of the boat's crew, save Amyas, were down +with raging fever. + +36. These kind of books fill up the long tapestry of history with +little bits of detail which give human interest to it. + +37. I never remember the heather so rich and abundant. + +38. These are scattered along the coast for several hundred miles, in +conditions of life that seem forbidding enough, but which are accepted +without complaint by the inhabitants themselves. + +39. Between each was an interval where lay a musket. + +40. He had four children, and it was confidently expected that they +would receive a fortune of at least $200,000 between them. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[Footnote 1: More for convenience than for absolute accuracy, the +stages of our language have been roughly divided into three:-- + +(1) Old English (with Anglo-Saxon) down to the twelfth century. + +(2) Middle English, from about the twelfth century to the sixteenth +century. + +(3) Modern English, from about 1500 to the present time.] + + + + +INDEX. + +THE NUMBERS REFER TO PAGES. + + + A, origin of, 119. + syntax of, 310. + uses of, 124. + + Absolute, nominative, 47. + + Abstract nouns, 20. + with article, 25, 124. + + Active voice, 133. + + Address, nominative of, 47. + + Adjective clauses, 260. + + Adjective pronouns, demonstrative, 90. + distinguished from adjectives, 89. + distributive, 91. + numeral, 92. + + Adjectives, adverbs used as, 116. + as complements, 239. + comparison of, 107. + definition of, 98. + demonstrative, 102. + from nouns, used as nouns, 27. + function of, 97. + how to parse, 115, 116. + in predicate, 239. + not compared, 109. + of quality, 99. + of quantity, 101. + ordinal, 103. + plural of, 106. + pronominal, 104. + syntax of, 303. + + Adverbial clauses, 262. + + Adverbial objective, 48, 242. + + Adverbs, between _to_ and infinitive, 323. + classes of, 185, 187. + definition of, 184. + distinguished from adjectives, 190. + how to parse, 191. + position of, in sentence, 325. + same form as adjectives, 190. + syntax of, 325. + used as adjectives, 116. + used as nouns, 27. + what they modify, 183. + + Adversative conjunction, 194. + + _After_, uses of, 114, 195, 207. + + _Against_, uses of, 207. + + Agreement, kinds of, 275. + of adjective with noun, 303. + of personal pronoun with antecedent, 287. + of relative pronoun with antecedent, 291. + of verb with subject, 148, 316. + + _All_, syntax of, 302. + + _Alms_, 42. + + Alternative conjunctions, 194, 328. + + _Among, between_, 207, 331. + + _An_. See _A_. + + Anacoluthon with _which_, 295. + + Analysis, definition of, 231. + of complex sentences, 264. + of compound sentences, 271. + of simple sentences, 252. + + _And who_, _and which_, 296. + + Antecedent, agreement of pronoun and. See _Agreement_. + definition of, 74. + of _it_, 67. + of personal pronouns, 74, 287. + of _which_, 79. + + _Any_, as adjective, 101. + as pronoun, 90. + syntax of, 300. + + Apostrophe in possessive, 51. + + Apposition, words in, 47, 49, 67, 240. + + _Are_, derivation of, 150. + + Arrangement in syntax, 275. + + Articles, definite, 120. + definition of, 120. + how to parse, 127. + indefinite, 124. + syntax of, 309. + + _As_, after _same_, 294. + uses of, 84, 225. + + _As if_, _as though_, 198. + + _At_, uses of, 208. + + Auxiliary verbs, 148. + + + _Bad_, comparison of, 110. + + _Be_, conjugation of, 149. + uses of, 150. + + _Better_, _best_, 110, 111. + + _Between._ See _Among_. + + _Brethren_, 39. + + _Bridegroom_, 37. + + _But_, uses of, 84, 224. + with nominative of pronoun, 283. + + _But what_, 330. + + _By_, uses of, 210. + + + _Can_, _could_, 161. + + Case, definition of, 46. + + Case, double possessive, of nouns, 54. + of pronouns, 64. + forms, number of, in Old and Modern English, 46. + nominative, of nouns, 47. + of pronouns, 62, 279. + objective, of nouns, 48. + of pronouns, 66, 279. + possessive, of nouns, 49, 278. + of pronouns, 63. + syntax of, 278. + + Cause, clauses of, 262. + conjunctions of, 194, 195. + + _Cherub_, plurals of, 45. + + _Children_, 39. + + Clause, adjective, 260. + adverb, 262. + definition of, 257. + kinds of, 257. + noun, 258. + + _Cleave_, forms of, 158. + + _Clomb_, 157. + + _Cloths_, _clothes_, 43. + + Collective nouns, 18. + syntax of, and verb, 312, 315. + + Colloquial English, 12. + + Common nouns, 18. + derived from material, 24. + derived from proper, 23. + + Comparative and superlative, double, 113, 307. + syntax of, 307. + + Comparison, defective, 111. + definition of, 108. + degrees of, 108. + irregular, 110. + of adjectives, 107. + of adverbs, 189. + syntax of, 305. + + Complement of predicate, 239. + + Complementary infinitive, 248. + + Complex sentence, analysis of, 264. + definition of, 257. + + Compound nouns, plural of, 43. + possessive of, 53. + + Compound predicate and subject, 244. + + Compound sentence, 268. + analysis of, 271. + + Concessive clause, in analysis, 263. + with subjunctive, 143. + + Concord. See _Agreement_. + + Conditional clause, in analysis, 263. + with subjunctive, 138. + + Conditional conjunctions, 196. + + Conditional sentences, 139. + + Conjugation, definition of, 149. + of _be_, 149. + of other verbs, 151. + + Conjunctions, and other parts of speech, same words, 195, 207. + cooerdinate, 194. + correlative, 194. + definition of, 193. + how to parse, 199. + subordinate, 195. + syntax of, 328. + + Conjunctive adverbs, 188. + + Conjunctive pronoun. See _Relative pronoun_. + + Contracted sentences, analysis of, 255. + + Cooerdinate clauses, 269. + + Cooerdinate conjunctions. See _Conjunctions_. + + Cooerdinating _vs._ restrictive use of relative pronouns, 289. + + Copulative conjunction, 194. + + _Could._ See _Can_. + + + Dative case, in Old English, replaced by objective, 66. + + Declarative sentence, 231. + + Declension of interrogative pronouns, 73. + + Declension, of nouns, 51. + of personal pronouns, 60. + of relative pronouns, 80. + + Defective verbs, 160. + + Definite article. See _Articles_. + + Definite tenses, 148, 152. + + Degree, adverbs of, 185. + + Degrees. See _Comparison_. + + Demonstrative adjectives, 102. + syntax of, 303. + + Demonstrative pronouns, 90. + + Dependent clause. See _Subordinate clause_. + + Descriptive adjectives, 99. + + Descriptive use of nouns, 26. + + _Dice_, _dies_, 43. + + _Die by_, _for_, _from_, _of_, _with_, 333. + + Direct discourse, 320. + + Direct object, _vs._ indirect, 48, 242. + retained with passive verb, 242. + + Distributive adjectives, 102. + syntax of, 287, 315. + + Distributive pronouns, 91. + syntax of, 288, 300. + + Double comparative. See _Comparative_. + + Double possessive. See _Case_. + + _Drake_, _duck_, 35. + + _Drank_, _drunk_, 158. + + + _Each_, adjective, 102. + pronoun, 90, 92. + syntax of, 287. + + _Each other_, _one another_, 92, 299. + + _Eat_ (et), 158. + + _Eaves_, 42. + + _Either_, as adjective, 102. + syntax of, 287. + as conjunction, 194. + syntax of, 328. + as pronoun, 90, 92. + syntax of, 300. + + _Elder_, _older_, 110, 112. + + Elements of the sentence, 234, 257. + + Ellipsis, a source of error in pronouns, 280. + in complex sentence, 255. + + _'Em_, origin of, 62. + + _Empress_, 34. + + _-En_, added to plural, 39. + feminine suffix, 32. + plural suffix, original, 38. + + English, literary, spoken, vulgar, 12. + periods of, 33. + + Enlargement of predicate, 241. + of subject, object, complement, 240. + + _-Es_ original of possessive ending, 51. + plural suffix, 40. + + _-Ess_, feminine suffix, 33. + + _Every_, adjective, 102. + syntax of, 287. + + _Expect of_, _expect from_, 334. + + _Expected to have gone_, etc., 319. + + + Factitive object, 48, 235. + + _Farther, further_, 110, 112, 189. + + Feminine, 30. + + _Few, a few_, 126. + + _First_, 103, 112. + + _First two_, _two first_, etc., 308. + + _Fish_, _fishes_, 43. + + _For_, redundant, with infinitive, used as a noun, 212, 238. + uses of, 211. + + Foreign plurals, 45. + + _Former, the_, adjective, 102. + pronoun, 91. + + _From_, uses of, 212. + + _Further._ See _Farther_. + + Future tense, 147, 152. + + Future perfect, 148, 152. + + + _Gander_, _goose_, 36. + + _Gender_, "common gender," 31. + definition of, 30. + distinguished from sex, 30. + in English, as compared with other languages, 29. + modes of marking, in nouns, 32. + of personal pronouns, 60. + of relative pronouns, 80. + + _Genii_, _geniuses_, 43. + + Gerund, distinguished from participle and verbal noun, 177. + forms of, 176. + in syntax, possessive case with, 285. + + _Girl_, 35. + + _Got_, 159. + + Government, definition of, kinds of, 275. + + Grammar, basis of, 12. + definition of, 12. + divisions of, 13. + opinions on, 9. + province of, 10. + + + H, _an_ before, 120. + + _Had better_, _had rather_, 175. + + _Hanged_, _hung_, 159. + + _He_, _she_, _it_, 61. + + _His_ for _its_, 61. + + _Husband_, 36. + + + _I_, personal pronoun, 60. + + Imperative mood, 144. + of first person, 145. + + Imperative sentence, 231. + + Imperfect participle, 173. + + Indefinite adjective, 101. + + Indefinite article. See _Articles_. + + Indefinite pronoun, 93. + + Indefinite use of _you_, _your_, 67. + + Independent clause, 257. + + Independent elements, 245. + + _Indexes_, _indices_, 43. + + Indicative mood, uses of, 136. + + Indirect discourse, 320. + + Indirect object. See _Direct object_. + + Indirect questions. See _Questions_. + + Infinitive, active, with passive meaning, 176. + not a mood, 153. + syntax of, 319, 323. + uses of, 248. + + _-Ing_ words, summary of, 178. + + Interjections, 227. + + Interrogative adjectives, 105. + + Interrogative adverbs, 188. + + Interrogative pronouns, 72. + declension of, 73. + in indirect questions, 85. + syntax of, 283. + + Interrogative sentence, 231, 233. + + Intransitive verbs, 131. + made transitive, 131. + + Irregularities in syntax, 276. + + Irregularly compared adjectives, 110. + adverbs, 189. + + _It_, uses of, 67. + + "It was _me_," etc., 63, 281. + + _Its_, history of, 61. + + + _Kind_, _these kind_, etc., 303. + + _Kine_, double plural, 39. + + _King_, _queen_, 36. + + + _Lady_, _lord_, 36. + + _Last_, _latest_, 110, 113. + + _Latter, the_, adjective, 102, 113. + pronoun, 91. + + _Lay_, _lie_, 170. + + _Less_, _lesser_, 110. + + _Lie_. See _Lay_. + + _Like_, syntax of, 227. + uses of, 226. + + Literary English, 12. + + _Little_, _a little_, 126. + + Logic _vs._ form, in syntax, 276. + + Logical subject and predicate, 245. + + _Lord._ See _Lady_. + + _-Ly_, words in, 190. + + + _Madam_, 36. + + Manner, adverbs of, 185, 188. + conjunctions of, 195. + + _Many_, comparison of, 110, 112. + + _Many a_, 126. + + Mapping out sentences, 256, 265. + + _Mare_, 36. + + _Master_, _mistress_, 34. + + _May_, _might_, 160. + + _Means_, construction of, 41. + + _Mighty_ as adverb, 187. + + _Mine_, of _mine_, 64. + + Modifier, adverb, position of, 325. + + Modifiers. See _Enlargement_. + + _Mood_, definition of, 135. + imperative, 144. + indicative, 136, 137. + subjunctive, 137-144. + + _-Most_, in superlatives, 113, 114, 189. + + _Much_, comparison of, 110, 112, 189. + + _Must_, 161. + + + _Near_, _nearer_, _nigh_, etc., 110, 112. + + Negative, double, 326. + + _Neither_, adjective, 102. + syntax of, 287. + conjunction, 194. + syntax of, 328. + pronoun, 90, 92. + syntax of, 300. + + Neuter nouns, definition of, 30. + or gender nouns, according to use, 30. + two kinds of, 32. + + _News_, 41. + + _No_ in analysis, 246. + + Nominative. See _Case_. + + _None_, syntax of, 301. + + _Nor_, 194, 328. + + _Not a_, etc. 126. + + Noun clause, 258. + + Nouns, 17. + abstract, 20. + become half abstract, 25, 124. + become proper, 25. + formation of, 21. + case of, 46. + collective, 19. + common, 18. + definition of, 17. + descriptive, 26. + gender of, 29. + how to parse, 56. + kinds of, 17 + material, 19. + become class nouns, 24, 125. + neuter, used as gender nouns, 30. + number in, 38. + once singular, now plural, 42. + other words used as, 27. + plural, how formed, 38-41. + of abstract, 41 + of compound, etc. 43. + of foreign, 45. + of letters and figures, 46. + of material, 41. + of proper, 41. + same as singular, 39. + two forms of, 42 + with titles, 44. + proper, 18. + become common, 23. + syntax of, 278. + use of possessive form of, 278, 285. + with definite article, 121. + with different meaning in plural, 42. + with indefinite article, 124. + + Nouns, with no singular, 42. + with one plural, two meanings, 43. + with plural form, singular meaning, 41. + with singular or plural construction, plural form, 41. + + _Now_ as conjunction, 195, 196. + + _Number_, definition of, etc., in nouns. + See _Nouns_. + in adjectives, 106. + in pronouns, personal, 60. + in verbs, 148. + + Numeral adjectives, definite, 101. + distributive, 102. + indefinite, 101. + + Numeral pronouns, 92. + + + Object, adverbial, 48. + definition of, 48. + direct and indirect, 48. + in analysis, 235. + of preposition. See _Preposition_. + modifiers of, 240. + retained with passive verb, 242. + + Objective case, adverbial, dative, 48, 242. + in spoken English, 281. + instead of nominative, 279. + nominative instead of, 282. + of nouns, 48. + of pronouns, 66. + syntax of, 279. + + _Of_, uses of, 213. + + _Older._ See _Elder_. + + Omission of relative pronoun, 87, 293. + + _On_, _upon_, uses of, 216. + + _One_, definite numeral adjective, 101. + indefinite pronoun, 94. + possessive of, 93 + + _One another._ See _Each other_. + + _One_ (_the_), the other, as adjective, 103. + as pronoun, 91. + + _Only_, as conjunction, 194. + position of, as adverb, 325 + + Order, a part of syntax, 275. + inverted, in analysis, 233, 237. + + Ordinal adjectives, treatment of, 103. + + _Other_ with comparatives, 306. + + _Ought_, 161. + + _Our_, _ours_, 64. + + _Ourself_, 69. + + _Oxen_, 38. + + + _Pains_, 41. + + Parsing, models for, 56, 117. + of adjectives, 115, 116. + of adverbs, 191. + of articles, 127. + of conjunctions, 199. + of nouns, 56. + of prepositions, 219. + of pronouns, 95. + of relatives, 80. + of verb phrases, 180. + of verbals, 181. + of verbs, 179. + some idioms not parsed, 56. + what it is, 56. + + _Part from_, _part with_, 335. + + Participial adjective, 100. + + Participial phrase, 247. + + Participle, definition of, 172. + distinguished from other _-ing_ words, 177. + forms of, 174. + kinds of, 173. + syntax of, 322. + uses of, 150, 172. + + Parts of speech, article included in, 119. + words used as various, 27, 28. + + Passive voice, 134. + + _Peas_, _pease_, 43. + + _Pence_, _pennies_, 43. + + Person, agreement of verb and subject in, 317. + of nouns, 59. + of pronouns, 59. + of verbs, 148. + + Personal pronoun, absolute use of, 63. + agreement of, with antecedent, 287. + as predicate nominative, 281. + case of, 62. + compound, or reflexive, 69. + uses of, 70. + definition of, 59. + double possessive of, 64. + _'em_ and _them_, 62. + history of, 61. + objective of, for nominative in spoken English, 63, 281. + syntax of, 281. + table of, 60. + triple possessive of, 64. + uses of _it_, 67. + + Personification, of abstract nouns, 25. + of other nouns, 37. + + Phrase, definition of, 236. + kinds of, 236. + infinitive, 248. + participial, 247. + prepositional, 247. + + Place, adverbs of, 185, 188. + conjunctions of, 195. + prepositions of, 206. + + Plural, of adjectives, 106. + syntax of, 303. + of nouns. See _Nouns_. + of pronouns, 60, 61. + + _Politics_, singular or plural, 41. + + Positive degree. See _Comparison_. + + Possessive, appositional, of nouns, 49. + as antecedent of relative, 285. + double, of nouns, 54. + double, of pronouns. See _Personal pronoun_. + objective and subjective, 50. + of compound nouns, 53. + of indefinite pronoun, 303. + omission of _s_ in singular, 52. + origin of _'s_, 51. + syntax of, 278. + with modified noun omitted, 53. + with two objects, 278. + + Predicate, complement of, 235. + complete, 245. + definition of, 232. + logical _vs._ simple, 245. + modifiers of, 241. + + Prefixes, gender shown by, 32. + + Prepositions, certain, with certain words, 332. + classification of, 206. + definition of, 203. + followed by possessive case, 54, 64. + by nominative case, 283. + how to parse, 219. + objects of, 203. + position of, 202. + relations expressed by certain, 208. + same words as other parts of speech, 187, 195, 207. + syntax of, 331. + uses of, 129, 132, 205. + various, with same meaning, 333. + + Present tense used as future, 147. + + _Pretty_ as adverb, 186. + + Pronominal adjectives, interrogative, 105. + relative, 104. + _what_, exclamatory, 105. + + Pronouns, 58. + adjective, 89. + _all_, singular and plural, 302. + _any_, usually plural, 300. + _each other_, _one another_, 299. + _either_, _neither_, with verbs, 300. + _none_, usually plural, 301. + _somebody else's_, 303. + definition of, 58. + how to parse, 95. + indefinite, 93. + interrogative, 72. + _who_ as objective, 283. + personal, 59. + after _than_, _as_, 280. + antecedents of, 287. + nominative and objective, forms of, 279. + nominative form of, after _but_, 284. + objective form of, for predicate nominative, 281. + objective form of, in exclamations, 282. + possessive form of, as antecedent of relative, 285. + possessive form of, with gerund, 286. + relative, 74. + agreement of, with antecedent, 291. + anacoluthon with _which_, 295. + _and who_, _and which_, 296. + _as_, _that_, _who_, and _which_ after _same_, 295. + how to parse, 80. + omission of, 87, 293. + restrictive and unrestrictive, 289. + two relatives, same antecedent, 297. + syntax of, 279. + usefulness of, 58. + + Proper nouns. See _Nouns_. + + Purpose, clauses of, 263. + conjunctions of, 195. + + Quality, adjectives of, 99. + + Quantity, adjectives of, 101. + + Questions, direct and indirect, adverbs in, 188. + pronominal adjectives in, 105. + pronouns in, 85. + indirect, subjunctive in, 142. + + Quotations. See _Direct discourse_. + + + Rank, adjectives of same and different, 115. + + _Rather_, 189. + + Reflexive pronouns, history of, 69. + how formed, 69. + + Reflexive use of personal pronoun, 68. + + Relative pronoun, 74. + _but_ and _as_, 84. + distinguished from interrogative, in indirect questions, 85. + function of, 74. + indefinite or compound, 83. + omission of, 87, 293. + restrictive use of, 289. + syntax of, 289. + use of, 74. + + Result, clauses of, 263. + conjunctions of, 196. + + Retained object, 242. + + _Riches_, 42. + + + _S_, plural suffix, 40. + + _'S_, possessive ending, 51. + + _Same as_, _that_, _who_, _which_, 294. + + _Sat_, _sate_, 159. + + _Seeing_, conjunction, 195, 196. + + _Self_ in reflexive pronoun, 69. + + Sentences, analysis of complex, 26 + of compound, 271. + of elliptical, 255. + of simple, 252. + complex in form, simple in effect, 259. + + Sentences, definition of, 231. + kinds of, 231. + + Sequence of tenses, 319. + + _Set_, _sit_, 170. + + Sex and gender, 29. + + _Shall_, _should_, _will_, _would_, 162. + + _Shear_, forms of, 159. + + _Shot_, _shots_, 43. + + Simple sentence. See _Sentences_. + + Singular number, 38. + + _Sir_, 36. + + _Somebody else's_, etc., 303. + + _Sort_, _these sort_, 303. + + Spelling becoming phonetic in verbs, 169. + + _Spinster_, 33. + + Split infinitive, 323. + + Spoken English, 12. + + -Ster, feminine suffix, use of, in Middle English, 32. + in Modern English, 33. + + Subject, complete, 245. + definition of, 233. + grammatical _vs._ logical, 67, 245, 258. + modifiers of, 240. + things used as, 237, 258. + + Subjunctive mood, definition of, 137. + gradual disuse of, 144. + uses of, in literary English, 138. + in spoken English, 144. + + Subordinate clause, 257. + adjective, 260. + adverb, 262. + definition of, 257. + how to distinguish, 270. + kinds of, 257. + noun, 258. + other names for, 257. + + _Such_ as adverb, 186. + + _Such a_, 126. + + Suffix _-en_. See _-En_. + _-s_, _-es_, 38. + + Suffixes, foreign, 33. + + Superlative degree, double, 307. + in meaning, not in form, 107. + not suggesting comparison, 109. + of adjectives, 108. + of adverbs, 189. + syntax of, 306. + with two objects, 306. + + Syntax, basis of, 277. + definition of, 275. + in English not same as in classical languages, 275. + + Tense, definition of, 147. + + Tenses, definite, meaning of, 148. + in Modern English, made up of auxiliaries, 147. + number of, in Old English, 147. + sequence of, 319. + table of, 152. + + _Than me_, _than whom_, 280. + + _That_, omission of, when subject, 88. + when object, 87. + relative, restrictive, and cooerdinating, 289, 290. + _that ... and which_, 297. + uses of, 222. + + _That_, _this_, as adjectives, 106. + as adverbs, 186. + history of plural of, 106. + + _The_, as article, 120. + as adverb, 123, 186. + history of, 119. + syntax of, 309. + + _Their_, _they_, 61. + + _Then_, "the _then_ king," etc., 116. + + _There_ introductory, 191. + + _These kind_, syntax of. See _Kind_. + + _These_, _this_, _those_. See _That_, history of. + + _Thou_, _thy_, _thee_, uses of, 61. + + _Time_, adverbs of, 185, 188. + conjunctions of, 195. + prepositions of, 207. + + _To_, before infinitive, 175. + in exclamations, 175. + omitted with certain verbs, 175. + uses of, as preposition, 217. + + _T'other_, _the tother_, 119. + + _-Trix_, feminine suffix, 33. + + _Try and_, _try to_, 330. + + _Two first_, _first two_, etc., 308. + + _Under_, adjective, 114. + + _Upon_, uses of. See _On_. + + _Upper_, 114. + + _Utter_, _uttermost_, 111, 114. + + Verb phrases, 128. + parsing of, 180. + + Verbal noun, 20. + distinguished from other _-ing_ words, 21, 173. + + Verbals, cleft infinitive, 323. + gerund, 176. + how to parse, 181. + infinitive, 174, 248. + kinds of, 172. + participle, 172. + carelessly used, 322. + uses of, in analysis, 247. + syntax of, 322. + + Verbs, agreement of, with subject in number, 312-316. + in person, 317. + auxiliary, 148. + conjugation of, 149. + defective, 160. + definition of, 129. + how to parse, 179. + in indirect discourse, 320. + intransitive, made transitive, 131. + mood of, 135. + of incomplete predication, 150, 236. + passive form, active meaning, 151. + person and number of, 148. + retained object with passive, 242. + strong, definition of, 154. + remarks on certain, 157. + table of, 155. + syntax of, 312. + tense of, 147. + sequence of, 319. + transitive and intransitive, 130. + voice of, 133. + weak, definition of, 154. + spelling of, 169. + table of irregular, 167. + + _Vixen_, 33. + + Vocative nominative, 47. + in analysis, 245. + + Voice, active, 133. + passive, 134. + + Vowel change, past tense of verbs formed by, 154. + plural formed by, 39. + + Vulgar English, 12. + + Weak verbs, regular, irregular, 167. + spelling of, becoming phonetic, 169. + + _Went_, 159. + + _What_, uses of, 223. + _but what_, 330. + _what a_, 105. 126. + + _Whereby_, _whereto_, etc., 85. + + _Whether_, conjunction, 194. + interrogative pronoun, 72. + + _Which_, antecedent of, 79. + as adjective, 104, 105. + as relative pronoun, 75. + in indirect questions, 85. + indefinite relative, 83. + interrogative pronoun in direct questions, 72. + syntax of, 295-299. + _whose_, possessive of, 78. + + _Who_, as relative, 75. + in direct questions, 72. + in indirect questions, 85. + indefinite relative, 83. + objective, in spoken English, 73. + referring to animals, 77. + syntax of, 296, 299. + + _Widower_, 37. + + _Wife_, 36. + + _Will_, _would_. See _Shall_. + + _Witch_, _wizard_, 36. + + _With_, uses of, 218. + + _Woman_, 32. + + Words in _-ing_, 178. + in _-ly_, 190. + + _Worse_, _worser_, 111. + + + _Y_, plural of nouns ending in. 40. + + _Yes_ in analysis, 246. + + _Yon_, _yonder_, 103. + + _You_, singular and plural, 61. + + _Yours_, _of yours_, 64. + + _Yourself_, _yourselves_, 70. + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of An English Grammar +by W. M. Baskervill and J. W. 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