OBS. 31.—While discrepances like the foregoing abound in our best dictionaries, none of our grammars supply any hints tending to show which of these various forms we ought to prefer. Perhaps the following suggestions, together with the six Rules for the Figure of Words, in Part First, may enable the reader to decide these questions with sufficient accuracy. (1.) Two short radical nouns are apt to unite in a permanent compound, when the former, taking the sole accent, expresses the main purpose or chief characteristic of the thing named by the latter; as, teacup, sunbeam, daystar, horseman, sheepfold, houndfish, hourglass. (2.) Temporary compounds of a like nature may be formed with the hyphen, when there remain two accented syllables; as, castle-wall, bosom-friend, fellow-servant, horse-chestnut, goat-marjoram, marsh-marigold. (3.) The former of two nouns, if it be not plural, may be taken adjectively, in any relation that differs from apposition and from possession; as, "The silver cup,"—"The parent birds,"—"My pilgrim feet,"—"Thy hermit cell,"—"Two brother sergeants." (4.) The possessive case and its governing noun, combining to form a literal name, may be joined together without either hyphen or apostrophe: as, tradesman, ratsbane, doomsday, kinswoman, craftsmaster. (5.) The possessive case and its governing noun, combining to form a metaphorical name, should be written with both apostrophe and hyphen; as, Job's-tears, Jew's-ear, bear's-foot, colts-tooth, sheep's-head, crane's-bill, crab's-eyes, hound's-tongue, king's-spear, lady's-slipper, lady's-bedstraw, &c. (6.) The possessive case and its governing noun, combining to form an adjective, whether literal or metaphorical, should generally be written with both apostrophe and hyphen; as, "Neats-foot oil,"—"Calfs-foot jelly,"—"A carp's-tongue drill,"—"A bird's-eye view,"—"The states'-rights' party,"—"A camel's-hair shawl." But a triple compound noun may be formed with one hyphen only: as, "In doomsday-book;" (—Joh. Dict.;) "An armsend-lift." Cardell, who will have all possessives to be adjectives, writes an example thus: "John's camel's hair girdle."—Elements of Eng. Gram., p. 39. That is as if John's camel had a hair girdle! (7.) When the possessive case and its governing noun merely help to form a regular phrase, the compounding of them in any fashion may be reckoned improper; thus the phrases, a day's work, at death's door, on New Year's Day, a new year's gift, All Souls' Day, All Saints' Day, All Fools' Day, the saints' bell, the heart's blood, for dog's meat, though often written otherwise, may best stand as they do here.

OBS. 32.—The existence of a permanent compound of any two words, does not necessarily preclude the use of the possessive relation between the same words. Thus, we may speak of a horse's shoe or a goat's skin, notwithstanding there are such words as horseshoe and goatskin. E.g., "That preach ye upon the housetops."—ALGER'S BIBLE: Matt., x, 27. "Unpeg the basket on the house's top."—Beauties of Shak., p. 238. Webster defines frostnail, (which, under the word cork, he erroneously writes frost nail,) "A nail driven into a horse-shoe, to prevent the horse from slipping on ice." Worcester has it, "A nail driven into a horse's shoe, to prevent his slipping on the ice." Johnson, "A nail with a prominent head driven into the horse's shoes, that it may pierce the ice." Maunder, "A nail with a sharp head driven into the horses' shoes in frosty weather." None of these descriptions is very well written. Say rather, "A spur-headed nail driven into a horse's shoe to prevent him from slipping." There is commonly some difference, and sometimes a very great one, between the compound noun and the possessive relation, and also between the radical compound and that of the possessive. Thus a harelip is not a hare's lip, nor is a headman a headsman, or heart-ease heart's-ease. So, according to the books, a cat-head, a cat's-head, and a cat's head, are three very different things; yet what Webster writes, cat-tail, Johnson, cats-tail, Walker and others, cats-tail, means but the same thing, though not a cat's tail. Johnson's "kingspear, Jews-ear, lady-mantle, and lady-bedstraw," are no more proper, than Webster's "bear's-wort, lion's foot, lady's mantle, and lady's bed-straw." All these are wrong.

OBS. 33.—Particular examples, both of proper distinction, and of blind irregularity, under all the heads above suggested, may be quoted and multiplied indefinitely, even from our highest literary authorities; but, since nothing can be settled but by the force of principles, he who would be accurate, must resort to rules,—must consider what is analogical, and, in all doubtful cases, give this the preference. But, in grammar, particular analogies are to be respected, as well as those which are more general. For example, the noun side, in that relation which should seem to require the preceding noun to be in the possessive case, is usually compounded with it, the hyphen being used where the compound has more than two syllables, but not with two only; as, bedside, hillside, roadside, wayside, seaside, river-side, water-side, mountain-side. Some instances of the separate construction occur, but they are rare: as, "And her maidens walked along by the river's side."—Exodus, ii, 5. After this noun also, the possessive preposition of is sometimes omitted; as, "On this side the river;"(—Bible;) "On this side Trent."—Cowell. Better, "On this side of the river," &c. "Blind Bartimeus sat by the highway side, begging."—Mark, x, 46. Here Alger more properly writes "highway-side." In Rev., xiv, 20th, we have the unusual compound, "horse-bridles." The text ought to have been rendered, "even unto the horses' bridles." Latin, "usque ad fraenos equorum." Greek, "[Greek: achri ton chalinon ton hippon]."

OBS. 34.—Correlatives, as father and son, husband and wife, naturally possess each other; hence such combinations as father's son, and son's father, though correct enough in thought, are redundant in expression. The whole and a part are a sort of correlatives, but the whole seems to possess its parts, more properly than any of the parts, the whole. Yet we seldom put the whole in the possessive case before its part, or parts, but rather express the relation by of; as, "a quarter of a dollar," rather than, "a dollar's quarter." After the noun half, we usually suppress this preposition, if an article intervene; as, "half a dollar," rather than, "half of a dollar," or "a dollar's half." So we may say, "half the way," for "half of the way;" but we cannot say, "half us" for "half of us." In the phrase, "a half dollar," the word half is an adjective, and a very different meaning is conveyed. Yet the compounds half-pint and half-penny are sometimes used to signify, the quantity of half a pint, the value of half a penny. In weight, measure, or time, the part is sometimes made possessive of the whole; as, "a pound's weight, a yard's length, an hour's time." On the contrary, we do not say, "weight's pound, length's yard, or time's hour;" nor yet, "a pound of weight, a yard of length;" and rarely do we say, "an hour of time." Pound and yard having other uses, we sometimes say, "a pound in weight, a yard in length;" though scarcely, "an hour in time."

OBS. 35.—Between a portion of time and its correlative action, passion, or being, the possessive relation is interchangeable; so that either term may be the principal, and either, the adjunct: as, "Three years' hard work," or, "Three years of hard work." Sometimes we may even put either term in either form; as, "During the ten years' war,"—"During the ten years of war,"—"During the war of ten years,"—"During the war's ten years." Hence some writers, not perceiving why either word should make the other its governed adjunct, place both upon a par, as if they were in apposition; as, "Three days time."—Brown's Estimate, Vol. ii, p. 156. "By a few years preparation."—Blair's Rhet., p. 341. "Of forty years planting."—Wm. Penn. "An account, of five years standing." If these phrases were correct, it would also be correct to say, "one day time,"—"one year preparation,"—"one year planting,"—"of one year standing;" but all these are manifestly bad English; and, by analogy, so are the others.

OBS. 36.—Any noun of weight, measure, or time, put immediately before an other, if it be not in the possessive case, will naturally be understood adjectively; as, "No person can, by words only, give to an other an adequate idea of a pound weight, or [a] foot rule."—Gregory's Dict. This phraseology can, with propriety, refer only to the weight or the rule with which we weigh or measure; it cannot signify a pound in weight, or a foot in length, though it is very probable that the author intended the latter. When the noun times is used before an other noun by way of multiplication, there may be supposed an ellipsis of the preposition of between the two, just as when we divide by the word half; as, "An hour is sixty times the length of a minute."—Murray's Gram., p. 48. "Thirty seconds are half the length of a minute." That is,—"half of the length,"—"sixty times of the length."

NOTES TO RULE IV.

NOTE I.—In the syntax of the possessive case, its appropriate form, singular or plural, should be observed, agreeably to the sense and declension of the word. Thus, write John's, men's, hers, its, ours, yours, theirs; and not, Johns, mens', her's, it's, our's, your's, their's.

NOTE II.—When nouns of the possessive case are connected by conjunctions or put in apposition, the sign of possession must always be annexed to such, and such only, as immediately precede the governing noun, expressed or understood; as, "John and Eliza's teacher is a man of more learning than James's or Andrew's"—"For David my servant's sake."—Bible. "For my sake and the gospel's."—Ib. "Lost in love's and friendship's smile."—Scott.

NOTE III.—The relation of property may also be expressed by the preposition of and the objective; as, "The will of man," for "man's will." Of these forms, we should adopt that which will render the sentence the most perspicuous and agreeable; and, by the use of both, avoid an unpleasant repetition of either.

NOTE IV.—A noun governing the possessive plural, should not, by a forced agreement, be made plural, when its own sense does not require it; as, "For our parts,"—"Were I in your places:" for we may with propriety say, "Our part, your place, or your condition;" as well as, "Our desire, your intention, their resignation."—L. Murray's Gram., p. 169. A noun taken figuratively may also be singular, when the literal meaning would require the plural: such expressions as, "their face,"—"their neck,"—"their hand,"—"their head,"—"their heart,"—"our mouth,"—"our life,"—are frequent in the Scriptures, and not improper.

NOTE V.—The possessive case should not be needlessly used before a participle that is not taken in other respects as a noun. The following phrase is therefore wrong: "Adopted by the Goths in their pronouncing the Greek."—Walker's Key, p. 17. Expunge their. Again: "Here we speak of their becoming both in form and signification passive."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 226. Say rather, "Here we speak of them as becoming passive, both in form and signification."

IMPROPRIETIES FOR CORRECTION. FALSE SYNTAX UNDER RULE IV.

EXAMPLES UNDER NOTE I.—THE POSSESSIVE FORM.

"Mans chief good is an upright mind." See Brown's Institutes of E. Gram., p. 179.

[FORMULE.—Not proper, because the noun mans, which is intended for the possessive singular of man, has not the appropriate form of that case and number. But, according to Note 1st under Rule 4th, "In the syntax ef the possessive case, its appropriate form, singular or plural, should be observed, agreeably to the sense and declension of the word." Therefore, mans should be maris, with the apostrophe before the s; thus, "Man's chief good is an upright mind."]

"The translator of Mallets History has the following note,"—Webster's Essays, p. 263. "The act, while it gave five years full pay to the officers, allowed but one year's pay to the privates."—Ib., p. 184. "For the study of English is preceded by several years attention to Latin and Greek."—Ib., p. 7. "The first, the Court Baron, is the freeholders or freemens court."—Coke, Litt., p. 74. "I affirm, that Vaugelas' definition labours under an essential defect."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 163. "I affirm, that Vangelas's definition labours under an essential defect."—Murray's Octavo Gram., Fourth Amer. Ed., Vol. ii, p. 360.[351] "There is a chorus in Aristophane's plays."—Blair's Rhet., p. 480. "It denotes the same perception in my mind as in their's."—Duncan's Logic, p. 65. "This afterwards enabled him to read Hicke's Saxon Grammar."—Life of Dr. Murray, p. 76. "I will not do it for tens sake."—Dr. Ash's Gram., p. 56. "I arose, and asked if those charming infants were her's."—Werter, p. 21. "They divide their time between milliners shops and taverns."—Brown's Estimate, Vol. i, p. 65. "The angels adoring of Adam is also mentioned in the Talmud."—Sale's Koran, p. 6. "Quarrels arose from the winners insulting of those who lost."—Ib., p. 171. "The vacancy, occasioned by Mr. Adams' resignation."—Adams's Rhet., Vol. i, p. vii. "Read for instance Junius' address, commonly called his letter to the king."—Ib., i, 225. "A perpetual struggle against the tide of Hortensius' influence."—Ib., ii, 23. "Which, for distinction sake, I shall put down severally."—Johnson's Gram. Com., p. 302. "The fifth case is in a clause signifying the matter of ones fear."—Ib., p. 312. "And they took counsel, and bought with them the potters' field."—ALGER'S BIBLE: Matt., xxvii, 7. "Arise for thy servant's help, and redeem them for thy mercy's sake."—Jenks's Prayers, p. 265. "Shall not their cattle, and their substance, and every beast of their's be ours?"—SCOTT'S BIBLE: Gen., xxxiv, 23. "And every beast of their's, be our's?"—FRIENDS' BIBLE: ib. "It's regular plural, bullaces, is used by Bacon."—Churchill's Gram., p. 213. "Mordecai walked every day before the court of the womens house."—SCOTT'S BIBLE: Esther, ii, 11. "Behold, they that wear soft clothing are in king's houses."—IB. and FRIENDS' BIBLE: Matt., xi, 8: also Webster's Imp. Gram., p. 173. "Then Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, took Zipporah, Moses' wife, and her two sons; and Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, came, with his sons and his wife, unto Moses."—ALGER'S BIBLE, and THE FRIENDS': Exod., xviii, 2—6. "King James' translators merely revised former translations."—Rev. B. Frazee's Gram., p. 137. "May they be like corn on houses tops."—White, on the English Verb., p. 160.

"And for his Maker's image sake exempt." —Par. Lost, B. xi, l. 514.

"By all the fame acquir'd in ten years war." —Rowe's Lucan, B. i, l. 674.

"Nor glad vile poets with true critics gore." —Pope's Dunicad, [sic—KTH] p. 175.

"Man only of a softer mold is made, Not for his fellow's ruin, but their aid." —Dryden's Poems, p. 92.

UNDER NOTE II.—POSSESSIVES CONNECTED.

"It was necessary to have both the physician, and the surgeon's advice."—Cooper's Pl. and Pr. Gram., p. 140. "This out-side fashionableness of the Taylor on Tire-woman's making."—Locke, on Education, p. 49. "Some pretending to be of Paul's party, others of Apollos, others of Cephas, and others, pretending yet higher, to be of Christ's."—Woods Dict., w. Apollos. "Nor is it less certain that Spenser's and Milton's spelling agrees better with our pronunciation."— Philol. Museum, i, 661. "Law's, Edwards', and Watts' surveys of the Divine Dispensations."—Burgh's Dignity, Vol. i, p. 193. "And who was Enoch's Saviour, and the Prophets?"—Bayly's Works, p. 600. "Without any impediment but his own, or his parents or guardians will."—Literary Convention, p. 145. "James relieves neither the boy[352] nor the girl's distress."—Nixon's Parser, p. 116. "John regards neither the master nor the pupil's advantage."—Ib., p. 117. "You reward neither the man nor the woman's labours."—Ib. "She examines neither James nor John's conduct."— Ib. "Thou pitiest neither the servant nor the master's injuries."—Ib. "We promote England or Ireland's happiness."—Ib. "Were Cain and Abel's occupation the same?"—Brown's Inst., p. 179. "Were Cain's and Abel's occupations the same?"—Ib. "What was Simon's and Andrew's employment?"— Author. "Till he can read himself Sanctii Minerva with Scioppius and Perizonius's Notes."—Locke, on Education, p. 295.

"And love's and friendship's finely—pointed dart Falls blunted from each indurated heart."—Goldsmith.

UNDER NOTE III.—CHOICE OF FORMS.

"But some degree of trouble is all men's portion."—Murray's Key, p. 218; Merchant's, 197. "With his father's and mother's names upon the blank leaf."—Corner-Stone, p. 144. "The general, in the army's name, published a declaration."—HUME: in Priestley's Gram., p. 69. "The Commons' vote."—Id, ib. "The Lords' house."—Id., ib. "A collection of writers faults."—SWIFT: ib., p. 68. "After ten years wars."—Id., ib. "Professing his detestation of such practices as his predecessors."—Notes to the Dunciad. "By that time I shall have ended my years office."—Walker's Particles, p. 104. "For Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife."—Mark, vi, 17. "For Herodias's sake, his brother Philip's wife."—Murray's Key, p. 194. "I endure all things for the elect's sakes, that they may also obtain salvation."—FRIENDS' BIBLE: 2 Tim., ii, 10. "For the elects' sakes."—SCOTT'S BIBLE. "For the elect's sake."—ALGER'S BIBLE, and BRUCE'S. "He was Louis the Sixteenth's son's heir."—W. Allen's Exercises, Gram., p. 329. "The throne we honour is the choice of the people."—"An account of the proceedings of the court of Alexander."—"An excellent tutor of a person of fashion's child!"—Gil Bias, Vol. 1, p. 20. "It is curious enough, that this sentence of the Bishop is, itself, ungrammatical!"—Cobbett's E. Gram., 201. "The troops broke into Leopold the emperor's palace."—Nixon's Parser, p. 59. "The meeting was called by Eldon the judge's desire."—Ibid. "Peter's, John's, and Andrew's occupation was that of fishermen."—Brace's Gram., p. 79. "The venerable president of the Royal Academy's debility has lately increased."—Maunder's Gram., p. 12.

UNDER NOTE IV.—NOUNS WITH POSSESSIVES PLURAL.

"God hath not given us our reasons to no purpose."—Barclay's Works, Vol. i, p. 496. "For our sakes, no doubt, this is written."—1 Cor., ix, 10. "Are not health and strength of body desirable for their own sakes?"—Hermes, p. 296; Murray's Gram., 289. "Some sailors who were boiling their dinners upon the shore."—Day's Sandford and Merton, p. 99. "And they in their turns were subdued by others."—Pinnock's Geography, p. 12. "Industry on our parts is not superseded by God's grace."—Arrowsmith. "Their Healths perhaps may be pretty well secur'd."—Locke, on Education, p. 51. "Though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor."—Murray's Gram., p. 211. "It were to be wished, his correctors had been as wise on their parbs."—Harris's Hermes, p. 60. "The Arabs are commended by the ancients for being most exact to their words, and respectful to their kindred."—Sale's Koran. "That is, as a reward of some exertion on our parts."—Gurney's Evidences, p. 86. "So that it went ill with Moses for their sakes."—Psalms, cvi, 32. "All liars shall have their parts in the burning lake."—Watts, p. 33. "For our own sakes as well as for thine."—Pref. to Waller's Poems, p. 3. "By discover- ing their abilities to detect and amend errors."—Murray's Gram., Vol. 11, p. iv.

"This world I do renounce; and, in your sights, Shake patiently my great affliction off."—Beauties of Shak., p. 286 "If your relenting angers yield to treat, Pompey and thou, in safety, here may meet."—Rowe's Lucan, B. iii, l. 500.

UNDER NOTE Y.—POSSESSIVES WITH PARTICIPLES.

"This will encourage him to proceed without his acquiring the prejudice."—Smith's Gram., p. 5. "And the notice which they give of an action's being completed or not completed."—L. Murray's Gram., p. 72; Alger's, 30. "Some obstacle or impediment that prevents its taking place."—Priestley's Gram., p. 38; Alex. Murray's, 37. "They have apostolical authority for their so frequently urging the seeking of the Spirit."—The Friend, Vol. xii, p. 54. "Here then is a wide field for reason's exerting its powers in relation to the objects of taste."— Blair's Rhet., p. 18. "Now this they derive altogether from their having a greater capacity of imitation and description."—Ib., p. 51. "This is one clear reason of their paying a greater attention to that construction." —Ib., p. 123. "The dialogue part had also a modulation of its own, which was capable of its being set to notes."—Ib., p. 471. "What is the reason of our being often so frigid and unpersuasive in public discourse?"—Ib., p. 334. "Which is only a preparation for his leading his forces directly upon us."—Ib., p. 264. "The nonsense about which's relating to things only, and having no declension, needs no refutation."—Fowle's True E. Gram., p. 18. "Who, upon his breaking it open, found nothing but the following inscription."—Rollin, Vol. ii, p. 33. "A prince will quickly have reason to repent his having exalted one person so high."—Id., ii, 116. "Notwithstanding it's being the immediate subject of his discourse."— Churchill's Gram., p. 294. "With our definition of its being synonymous with time."—Booth's Introd., p. 29. "It will considerably increase the danger of our being deceived."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 293. "His beauties can never be mentioned without their suggesting his blemishes also."— Blair's Rhet., p. 442. "No example has ever been adduced of a man's conscientiously approving of an action, because of its badness."—Gurney's Evidences, p. 90. "The last episode of the angel's shewing Adam the fate of his posterity, is happily imagined."—Blair's Rhet., p. 452. "And the news came to my son, of his and the bride being in Dublin."—Castle Rackrent, p. 44. "There is no room for the mind's exerting any great effort."—Blair's Rhet., p. 32. "One would imagine, that these criticks never so much as heard of Homer's having written first."—Pope's Preface to Homer. "Condemn the book, for its not being a geography."—O. B. Peirce's Gram., p. 317. "There will be in many words a transition from their being the figurative to their being the proper signs of certain ideas."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 322. "The doctrine of the Pope's being the only source of ecclesiastical power."—Religious World, ii, 290. "This has been the more expedient from the work's being designed for the benefit of private learners."—Murray's Exercises, Introd., p. v. "This was occasioned by the Grammar's having been set up, and not admitting of enlargement."—Ib., Advertisement, p. ix.

RULE V.—OBJECTIVES.

A Noun or a Pronoun made the object of an active-transitive verb or participle, is governed by it in the objective case: as, "I found her assisting him"—"Having finished the work, I submit it."

"Preventing fame, misfortune lends him wings, And Pompey's self his own sad story brings." —Rowe's Lucan, B. viii, l. 66.

OBSERVATIONS ON RULE V.

OBS. 1.—To this rule there are no exceptions; but to the old one adopted by Murray and others, "Active verbs govern the objective case," there are more than any writer will ever think it worth his while to enumerate. In point of brevity, the latter has the advantage, but in nothing else; for, as a general rule for NOUNS AND PRONOUNS, this old brief assertion is very defective; and, as a rule for "THE SYNTAX OF VERBS," under which head it has been oftener ranked, it is entirely useless and inapplicable. As there are four different constructions to which the nominative case is liable, so there are four in which the objective may be found; and two of these are common to both; namely, apposition, and sameness of case. Every objective is governed by some verb or participle, according to Rule 5th, or by some preposition, according to Rule 7th; except such as are put in apposition with others, according to Rule 3d, or after an infinitive or a participle not transitive, according to Rule 6th: as, "Mistaking one for the other, they took him, a sturdy fellow, called Red Billy, to be me." Here is every construction which the objective case can have; except, perhaps, that in which, as an expression of time, place, measure, or manner, it is taken after the fashion of an adverb, the governing preposition being suppressed, or, as some say, no governing word being needed. Of this exception, the following quotations may serve for examples: "It holds on by a single button round my neck, cloak-fashion"—EDGEWORTH'S Castle Rackrent. p. 17. A man quite at leisure to parse all his words, would have said, "in the fashion of a cloak." Again: "He does not care the rind of a lemon for her all the while."—Ib., p. 108. "We turn our eyes this way or that way."—Webster's Philos. Gram., p. 172; Frazee's Gram., 157. Among his instances of "the objective case restrictive," or of the noun "used in the objective, without a governing word," Dr. Bullions gives this: "Let us go home" But, according to the better opinion of Worcester, home is here an adverb, and not a noun. See Obs. 6th on Rule 7th.

OBS. 2.—The objective case generally follows the governing word: as, "And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him"—Gen., xlii, 8. But when it is emphatic, it often precedes the nominative; as, "Me he restored to mine office, and him he hanged."—Gen., xli, 13. "John have I beheaded."—Luke, ix, 9. "But me ye have not always."—Matt., xxvi, 11. "Him walking on a sunny hill he found."—Milton. In poetry, the objective is sometimes placed between the nominative and the verb; as,

"His daring foe securely him defied."—Milton.

"Much he the place admired, the person more."—Id.

"The broom its yellow leaf shed."—Langhorne.

If the nominative be a pronoun which cannot be mistaken for an objective, the words may possibly change places; as, "Silver and gold have I none."—Acts, iii, 6. "Created thing nought valued he nor shunn'd."—Milton, B. ii, l. 679. But such a transposition of two nouns can scarcely fail to render the meaning doubtful or obscure; as,

"This pow'r has praise, that virtue scarce can warm, Till fame supplies the universal charm."—Dr. Johnson.

A relative or an interrogative pronoun is commonly placed at the head of its clause, and of course it precedes the verb which governs it; as, "I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest."—Acts, ix, 5. "Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted?"—Ib., vii, 52.

"Before their Clauses plac'd, by settled use, The Relatives these Clauses introduce."—Ward's Gram., p. 86.

OBS. 3.—Every active-transitive verb or participle has some noun or pronoun for its object, or some pronominal adjective which assumes the relation of the objective case. Though verbs are often followed by the infinitive mood, or a dependent clause, forming a part of the logical predicate; yet these terms, being commonly introduced by a connecting particle, do not form such an object as is contemplated in our definition of a transitive verb. Its government of the objective, is the only proper criterion of this sort of verb. If, in the sentence, "Boys love to play," the former verb is transitive, as several respectable grammarians affirm; why not also in a thousand others; as, "Boys like to play;"—"Boys delight to play;"—"Boys long to play;"—"The boys seem to play;"—"The boys cease to play;"—"The boys ought to play;"—"The boys go out to play;"—"The boys are gone out to play;"—"The boys are allowed to play;" and the like? The construction in all is precisely the same, and the infinitive may follow one kind of verb just as well as an other. How then can the mere addition of this mood make any verb transitive? or where, on such a principle, can the line of distinction for transitive verbs be drawn? The infinitive, in fact, is governed by the preposition to; and the preceding verb, if it has no other object, is intransitive. It must, however, be confessed that some verbs which thus take the infinitive after them, cannot otherwise be intransitive; as, "A great mind disdains to hold any thing by courtesy."—Johnson's Life of Swift. "They require to be distinguished by a comma."—Murray's Gram., p. 272.

OBS. 4.—A transitive verb, as I have elsewhere shown, may both govern the objective case, and be followed by an infinitive also; as, "What have I to do with thee?"—John, ii, 4. This question, as one would naturally take it, implies, "I have nothing to do with thee;" and, by analogy, what is governed by have, and not by do; so that the latter verb, though not commonly intransitive, appears to be so here. Indeed the infinitive mood is often used without an objective, when every other part of the same verb would require one. Maunder's rule is, "Transitive verbs and participles govern either the objective case or the infinitive mode."—Comprehensive Gram., p. 14. Murray teaches, not only that, "The infinitive mood does the office of a substantive in the objective case; as, 'Boys love to play;'" but that, "The participle with its adjuncts, may be considered as a substantive phrase in the objective case, governed by the preposition or verb; as, 'He studied to avoid expressing himself too severely.'"—See his Octavo Gram., pp. 184 and 194. And again: "Part of a sentence, as well as a noun or pronoun, may be said to be in the objective case, or to be put objectively, governed by the active verb; as, 'We sometimes see virtue in distress, but we should consider how great will be her ultimate reward.' Sentences or phrases under this circumstance, may be termed objective sentences or phrases."—Ib., p. 180.

OBS. 5.—If we admit that sentences, parts of sentences, infinitives, participles with their adjuncts, and other phrases, as well as nouns and pronouns, may be "in the objective case;" it will be no easy matter, either to define this case, or to determine what words do, or do not, govern it.[353] The construction of infinitives and participles will be noticed hereafter. But on one of Murray's examples, I would here observe, that the direct use of the infinitive for an objective noun is a manifest Grecism; as, "For to will is present with me; but to perform that which is good, I find not."—Octavo Gram., p. 184. That is, "the performance of that which is good, I find not." Or perhaps we may supply a noun after the verb, and take this text to mean, "But to perform that which is good, I find not the ability." Our Bible has it, "But how to perform that which is good. I find not;" as if the manner in which he might do good, was what the apostle found not: but Murray cites it differently, omitting the word how, as we see above. All active verbs to which something is subjoined by when, where, whence, how, or why, must be accounted intransitive, unless we suppose them to govern such nouns of time, place, degree, manner, or cause, as correspond to these connectives; as, "I know why she blushed." Here we might supply the noun reason, as, "I know the reason why she blushed;" but the word is needless, and I should rather parse know as being intransitive. As for "virtue in distress," if this is an "objective phrase," and not to be analyzed, we have millions of the same sort; but, if one should say, "Virtue in distress excites pity," the same phrase would demonstrate the absurdity of Murray's doctrine, because the two nouns here take two different cases.

OBS. 6.—The word that, which is often employed to introduce a dependent clause, is, by some grammarians, considered as a pronoun, representing the clause which follows it; as, "I know that Messias cometh."—John, iv, 25. This text they would explain to mean, "Messias cometh, I know that;" and their opinion seems to be warranted both by the origin and by the usual import of the particle. But, in conformity to general custom, and to his own views of the practical purposes of grammatical analysis, the author has ranked it with the conjunctions. And he thinks it better, to call those verbs intransitive, which are followed by that and a dependent clause, than to supply the very frequent ellipses which the other explanation supposes. To explain it as a conjunction, connecting an active-transitive verb and its object, as several respectable grammarians do, appears to involve some inconsistency. If that is a conjunction, it connects what precedes and what follows; but a transitive verb should exercise a direct government, without the intervention of a conjunction. On the other hand, the word that has not, in any such sentence, the inherent nature of a pronoun. The transposition above, makes it only a pronominal adjective; as, "Messias cometh, I know that fact." And in many instances such a solution is impracticable; as, "The people sought him, and came unto him, and stayed him, that he should not depart from them."—Luke, iv, 42. Here, to prove that to be a pronoun, the disciples of Tooke and Webster must resort to more than one imaginary ellipsis, and to such inversion as will scarcely leave the sense in sight.

OBS. 7.—In some instances the action of a transitive verb gives to its direct object an additional name, which is also in the objective case, the two words being in apposition; as, "Thy saints proclaim thee king."—Cowper. "And God called the firmament Heaven."—Bible. "Ordering them to make themselves masters of a certain steep eminence."—Rollin, ii, 67. And, in such a construction, the direct object is sometimes placed before the verb; though the name which results from the action, cannot be so placed: as, "And Simon he surnamed Peter."—Mark, iii, 15. "Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God."—Rev., iii, 12. Some grammarians seem not to have considered this phraseology as coming within the rule of apposition. Thus Webster: "We have some verbs which govern two words in the objective case; as,

'Did I request thee, maker, from my clay To mold me man?'—Milton, 10, 744.

'God seems to have made him what he was.'—Life of Cowper."[354]—Philosophical Gram., p. 170. Improved Gram., p. 120. See also Weld's Gram., 2d Ed., p. 154; "Abridged Ed.," p. 119; and Fowler's E. Gram., Sec.450. So Murray: "Some of our verbs appear to govern two words in the objective case; as, 'The Author of my being formed me man.'—'They desired me to call them brethren.'—'He seems to have made him what he was.' "—Octavo Gram., p. 183. Yet this latter writer says, that in the sentence, "They appointed me executor," and others like it," the verb to be is understood."—Ib., p. 182. These then, according to his own showing, are instances of apposition; but I pronounce then such, without either confounding same cases with apposition, or making the latter a species of ellipsis. See Obs. 1st and 2d, under Rule 3d.

OBS. 8.—In general, if not always, when a verb is followed by two objectives which are neither in apposition nor connected by a conjunction, one of them is governed by a preposition understood; as, "I paid [to] him the money"—"They offered [to] me a seat"—"He asked [of] them the question"—"I yielded, and unlock'd [to] her all my heart."—Milton. In expressing such sentences passively, the object of the preposition is sometimes erroneously assumed for the nominative; as, "He was paid the money," in stead of, "The money was paid [to] him."—"I was offered a seat," in stead of, "A seat was offered [to] me." This kind of error is censured by Murray more than once, and yet he himself has, in very many instances, fallen into it. His first criticism on it, is in the following words: "We sometimes meet with such expressions as these: 'They were asked a question;' 'They were offered a pardon;' 'He hath been left a great estate by his father.' In these phrases, verbs passive are made to govern the objective case. This license is not to be approved. The expressions should be: 'A question was put to them;' 'A pardon was offered to them;' 'His father left him a great estate.'"—L. Murray's Octavo Gram., p. 183. See Obs. 12, below.

OBS. 9.—In the Latin syntax, verbs of asking and teaching are said to govern two accusatives; as, "Posce Deum veniam, Beg pardon of God."—Grant's Latin Gram., p. 207. "Docuit me grammaticam, He taught me grammar."—Grant, Adam, and others. And again: "When a verb in the active voice governs two cases, in the passive it retains the latter case; as, Doceor grammaticam, I am taught grammar."—Adam's Gram., p. 177. These writers however suggest, that in reality the latter accusative is governed, not by the verb, but by a preposition understood. "'Poscere deos veniam is 'to ask the gods for pardon.'"—Barnes's Philological Gram., p. 116. In general the English idiom does not coincide with what occurs in Latin under these rules. We commonly insert a preposition to govern one or the other of the terms. But we sometimes leave to the verb the objective of the person, and sometimes that of the thing; and after the two verbs ask and teach, we sometimes seem to leave both: as, "When thou dost ask me blessing, I'll kneel down, and ask of thee forgiveness."— Shakspeare. "In long journeys, ask your master leave to give ale to the horses."—Swift. "And he asked them of their welfare."—Gen., xliii, 27. "They asked of him the parable."—Mark, iv, 10. ("Interrogarunt eum de parabola."—Beza.) "And asking them questions"—Luke, ii, 46. "But teach them thy sons."—Deut., iv, 9. "Teach them diligently unto thy children"—Ib., vi, 7. '"Ye shall teach them your children."—Ib., xi, 19. "Shall any teach God knowledge?"—Job, xxi, 22. "I will teach you the fear of the Lord."—Psal, xxxiv, 11. "He will teach us of his ways."—Isaiah, ii, 3; Micah, iv, 2. "Let him that is taught in the word, communicate."—Gal., vi, 6.

OBS. 10.—After a careful review of the various instances in which more than one noun or pronoun may possibly be supposed to be under the government of a single active verb in English, I incline to the opinion that none of our verbs ought to be parsed as actually governing two cases, except such as are followed by two objectives connected by a conjunction. Consequently I do not admit, that any passive verb can properly govern an objective noun or pronoun. Of the ancient Saxon dative case, and of what was once considered the government of two cases, there yet appear some evident remains in our language; as, "Give him bread to eat."—"Bread shall be given him"—Bible. But here, by almost universal consent, the indirect object is referred to the government of a "preposition understood;" and in many instances this sort of ellipsis is certainly no elegance: as, "Give [to] truth and virtue the same arms which you give [to] vice and falsehood, and the former are likely to prevail."—Blair's Rhet., p. 235. The questionable expression, "Ask me blessing," if interpreted analogically, must mean, "Ask for me a blessing," which is more correct and explicit; or, if me be not supposed a dative, (and it does not appear to be so, above,) the sentence is still wrong, and the correction must be, "Ask of me a blessing," or, "Ask my blessing." So, "Ask your master leave," ought rather to be, "Ask of your master leave," "Ask your master for leave," or, "Ask your master's leave." The example from Mark ought to be, "They asked him about the parable." Again, the elliptical sentence, "Teach them thy sons," is less perspicuous, and therefore less accurate, than the full expression, "Teach them to thy sons." To teach is to tell things to persons, or to instruct persons in things; to ask is to request or demand things of or from persons, or to interrogate or solicit persons about or for things. These verbs cannot be proved to govern two cases in English, because it is more analogical and more reasonable to supply a preposition, (if the author omits it,) to govern one or the other of the objects.

OBS. 11.—Some writers erroneously allow passive verbs to govern the objective in English, not only where they imagine our idiom to coincide with the Latin, but even where they know that it does not. Thus Dr. Crombie: "Whatever is put in the accusative case after the verb, must be the nominative to it in the passive voice, while the other case is retained under the government of the verb, and cannot become its nominative. Thus, 'I persuade you to this or of this, 'Persuadeo hoc tibi. Here, the person persuaded is expressed in the dative case, and cannot, therefore, be the nominative to the passive verb. We must, therefore, say, Hoc tibi persuadetur, 'You are persuaded of this;' not, Tu persuaderis. 'He trusted me with this affair,' or 'He believed me in this,' Hoc mihi credidit.—Passively, Hoc mihi creditum est. 'I told you this,' Hoc tibi dixi. 'YOU WERE TOLD THIS,' Hoc tibi dictum est; not, Tu dictus es." [No, surely: for, 'Tu dictus es,' means, 'You were called,' or, 'Thou art reputed;'—and, if followed by any case, it must be the nominative.'] "It is the more necessary to attend to this rule, and to these distinctions, as the idioms of the two languages do not always concur. Thus, Hoc tibi dictum est, means not only 'This was told to you,' but 'YOU WERE TOLD THIS.' Liber mihi apatre promissus est, means both 'A book was promised (to) me by my father,' and 'I WAS PROMISED A BOOK.' Is primum rogatua est sententiam, 'He was first asked for his opinion,' and 'An opinion was first asked of him;' in which last the accusative of the person becomes, in Latin, the nominative in the passive voice." See Grants Latin Gram., p. 210.

OBS. 12.—Murray's second censure upon passive government, is this: "The following sentences, which give [to] the passive voice the regimen of an active verb, are very irregular, and by no means to be imitated. 'The bishops and abbots were allowed their seats in the house of lords.' 'Thrasea was forbidden the presence of the emperor.' 'He was shown that very story in one of his own books.'[355] These sentences should have been: 'The bishops and abbots were allowed to have (or to take) their seats in the house of lords;' or, 'Seats in the house of lords were allowed to the bishops and abbots:' 'Thrasea was forbidden to approach the presence of the emperor;' or, 'The presence of the emperor was forbidden to Thrasea:' 'That very story was shown to him in one of his own books.'"—Octavo Gram., p. 223. See Obs. 8, above. One late grammarian, whose style is on the whole highly commendable for its purity and accuracy, forbears to condemn the phraseology here spoken of; and, though he does not expressly defend and justify it, he seems disposed to let it pass, with the license of the following canon. "For convenience, it may be well to state it as a rule, that—Passive verbs govern an objective, when the nominative to the passive verb is not the proper object of the active voice."—Barnard's Analytic Gram., p. 134. An other asserts the government of two cases by very many of our active verbs, and the government of one by almost any passive verb, according to the following rules: "Verbs of teaching, giving, and some others of a similar nature, govern two objectives, the one of a person and the other of a thing; as, He taught me grammar: His tutor gave him a lesson: He promised me a reward. A passive verb may govern an objective, when the words immediately preceding and following it, do not refer to the same thing; as, Henry was offered a dollar by his father to induce him to remain."—J. M. Putnam's Gram., pp. 110 and 112.

OBS. 13.—The common dogmas, that an active verb must govern an object, and that a neuter or intransitive verb must not, amount to nothing as directions to the composer; because the classification of verbs depends upon this very matter, whether they have, or have not, an object after them; and no general principle has been, or can be, furnished beforehand, by which their fitness or unfitness for taking such government can be determined. This must depend upon usage, and usage must conform to the sense intended. Very many verbs—probably a vast majority—govern an object sometimes, but not always: many that are commonly intransitive or neuter, are not in all their uses so; and many that are commonly transitive, have sometimes no apparent regimen. The distinction, then, in our dictionaries, of verbs active and neuter, or transitive and intransitive, serves scarcely any other purpose, than to show how the presence or absence of the objective case, affects the meaning of the word. In some instances the signification of the verb seems almost merged in that of its object; as, to lay hold, to make use, to take care. In others, the transitive character of the word is partial; as, "He paid my board; I told you so." Some verbs will govern any objective whatever; as, to name, to mention. What is there that cannot be named or mentioned? Others again are restricted to one noun, or to a few; as, to transgress a law, or rule. What can be transgressed, but a law, a limit, or something equivalent? Some verbs will govern a kindred noun, or its pronoun, but scarcely any other; as, "He lived a virtuous life."—"Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed"—Gen., xxxvii, 6. "I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it."—Isaiah, v, 6.

OBS. 14.—Our grammarians, when they come to determine what verbs are properly transitive, and what are not so, do not in all instances agree in opinion. In short, plain as they think the matter, they are much at odds. Many of them say, that, "In the phrases, 'To dream a dream,' 'To live a virtuous life,' 'To run a race,' 'To walk a horse,' 'To dance a child,' the verbs assume a transitive character, and in these cases may be denominated active."—See Guy's Gram., p. 21; Murray's, 180; Ingersoll's, 183; Fisk's, 123; Smith's, 153. This decision is undoubtedly just; yet a late writer has taken a deal of pains to find fault with it, and to persuade his readers, that, "No verb is active in any sense, or under any construction, that will not, in every sense, permit the objective case of a personal pronoun after it."—Wright's Gram., p. 174. Wells absurdly supposes, "An intransitive verb may be used to govern an objective."—Gram., p. 145. Some imagine that verbs of mental action, such as conceive, think, believe, &c., are not properly transitive; and, if they find an object after such a verb, they choose to supply a preposition to govern it: as, "I conceived it (of it) in that light."—Guy's Gram., p. 21. "Did you conceive (of) him to be me?"—Ib., p. 28. With this idea, few will probably concur.

OBS. 15.—We sometimes find the pronoun me needlessly thrown in after a verb that either governs some other object or is not properly transitive, at least, in respect to this word; as, "It ascends me into the brain; dries me there all the foolish, dull, and crudy vapours."—Shakspeare's Falstaff. "Then the vital commoners and inland petty spirits muster me all to their captain, the heart."—Id. This is a faulty relic of our old Saxon dative case. So of the second person; "Fare you well, Falstaff."—Shak. Here you was written for the objective case, but it seems now to have become the nominative to the verb fare. "Fare thee well."—W. Scott. "Farewell to thee."—Id. These expressions were once equivalent in syntax; but they are hardly so now; and, in lieu of the former, it would seem better English to say, "Fare thou well." Again: "Turn thee aside to thy right hand or to thy left, and lay thee hold on one of the young men, and take thee his armour."—2 Sam., ii, 21. If any modern author had written this, our critics would have guessed he had learned from some of the Quakers to misemploy thee for thou. The construction is an imitation of the French reciprocal or reflected verbs. It ought to be thus: "Turn thou aside to thy right hand or to thy left, and lay hold on one of the young men, and take to thyself his armour." So of the third person: "The king soon found reason to repent him of his provoking such dangerous enemies."—HUME: Murray's Gram., Vol. i, p. 180. Here both of the pronouns are worse than useless, though Murray discerned but one error.

"Good Margaret, run thee into the parlour; There thou shalt find my cousin Beatrice."—SHAK.: Much Ado.

NOTES TO RULE V.

NOTE I.—Those verbs or participles which require a regimen, or which signify action that must terminate transitively, should not be used without an object; as, "She affects [kindness,] in order to ingratiate [herself] with you."—"I must caution [you], at the same time, against a servile imitation of any author whatever."—Blair's Rhet., p. 192.

NOTE II.—Those verbs and participles which do not admit an object, or which express action that terminates in themselves, or with the doer, should not be used transitively; as, "The planters grow cotton." Say raise, produce, or cultivate. "Dare you speak lightly of the law, or move that, in a criminal trial, judges should advance one step beyond what it permits them to go?"—Blair's Rhet., p. 278. Say,—"beyond the point to which it permits them to go."

NOTE III.—No transitive verb or participle should assume a government to which its own meaning is not adapted; as, "Thou is a pronoun, a word used instead of a noun—personal, it personates 'man.'"—Kirkham's Gram., p. 131. Say, "It represents man." "Where a string of such sentences succeed each other."—Blair's Rhet., p. 168. Say, "Where many such sentences come in succession."

NOTE IV.—The passive verb should always take for its subject or nominative the direct object of the active-transitive verb from which it is derived; as, (Active,) "They denied me this privilege." (Passive,) "This privilege was denied me;" not, "I was denied this privilege:" for me may be governed by to understood, but privilege cannot, nor can any other regimen be found for it.

NOTE V.—Passive verbs should never be made to govern the objective case, because the receiving of an action supposes it to terminate on the subject or nominative.[356] Errors: "Sometimes it is made use of to give a small degree of emphasis."—L. Murray's Gram., 8vo, p. 197. Say, "Sometimes it is used," &c. "His female characters have been found fault with as insipid."—Hazlitt's Lect., p. 111. Say,—"have been censured;" or,—"have been blamed, decried, dispraised, or condemned."

NOTE VI.—The perfect participle, as such, should never be made to govern any objective term; because, without an active auxiliary, its signification is almost always passive: as, "We shall set down the characters made use of to represent all the elementary sounds."—L. Murray's Gram., p. 5; Fisk's, 34. Say,—"the characters employed, or used."

NOTE VII.—As the different cases in English are not always distinguished by their form, care must be taken lest their construction be found equivocal, or ambiguous; as, "And we shall always find our sentences acquire more vigour and energy when thus retrenched."—Blair's Rhet., p. 111. Say, "We shall always find that our sentences acquire more vigour," &c.; or, "We shall always find our sentences to acquire more vigour and energy when thus retrenched."

NOTE VIII.—In the language of our Bible, rightly quoted or printed, ye is not found in the objective case, nor you in the nominative; scriptural texts that preserve not this distinction of cases, are consequently to be considered inaccurate.



IMPROPRIETIES FOR CORRECTION. FALSE SYNTAX UNDER RULE V.

UNDER THE RULE ITSELF.—THE OBJECTIVE FORM.

"Who should I meet the other day but my old friend!"—Spectator, No. 32.

[FORMULE.—Not proper, because the pronoun who is in the nominative case, and is used as the object of the active-transitive verb should meet. But, according to Rule 5th, "A noun or a pronoun made the object of an active-transitive verb or participle, is governed by it in the objective case." Therefore, who should be whom; thus, "Whom should I meet," &c.]

"Let not him boast that puts on his armour, but he that takes it off."—Barclay's Works, iii, 262. "Let none touch it, but they who are clean."—Sale's Koran, 95. "Let the sea roar, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein."—Psalms, xcviii, 7. "Pray be private, and careful who you trust."—Mrs. Goffe's Letter. "How shall the people know who to entrust with their property and their liberties?"— District School, p. 301. "The chaplain entreated my comrade and I to dress as well as possible."—World Displayed, i, 163. "He that cometh unto me, I will in no wise cast out."—Tract, No. 3, p. 6. "Who, during this preparation, they constantly and solemnly invoke."—Hope of Israel, p. 84. "Whoever or whatever owes us, is Debtor; whoever or whatever we owe, is Creditor."—Marsh's Book-Keeping, p. 23. "Declaring the curricle was his, and he should have who he chose in it."—Anna Ross, p. 147. "The fact is, Burke is the only one of all the host of brilliant contemporaries who we can rank as a first-rate orator."—The Knickerbocker, May, 1833. "Thus you see, how naturally the Fribbles and the Daffodils have produced the Messalina's of our time:"—Brown's Estimate, ii, 53. "They would find in the Roman list both the Scipio's."—Ib., ii, 76. "He found his wife's clothes on fire, and she just expiring."—New-York Observer. "To present ye holy, unblameable, and unreproveable in his sight."—Barclay's Works, i, 353. "Let the distributer do his duty with simplicity; the superintendent, with diligence; he who performs offices of compassion, with cheerfulness."—Stuart's Romans, xii, 9. "If the crew rail at the master of the vessel, who will they mind?"—Collier's Antoninus, p. 106. "He having none but them, they having none but hee."—DRAYTON'S Polyolbion.

"Thou, nature, partial nature, I arraign! Of thy caprice maternal I complain!"—Burns's Poems, p. 50. "Nor knows he who it is his arms pursue With eager clasps, but loves he knows not who."—Addison's, p. 218.

UNDER NOTE I.—OF VERBS TRANSITIVE.

"When it gives that sense, and also connects, it is a conjunction."—L. Murray's Gram., p. 116. "Though thou wilt not acknowledge, thou canst not deny the fact."—Murray's Key, p. 209. "They specify, like many other adjectives, and connect sentences."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 114. "The violation of this rule tends so much to perplex and obscure, that it is safer to err by too many short sentences."—Murray's Gram., p. 312. "A few Exercises are subjoined to each important definition, for him to practice upon as he proceeds in committing."—Nutting's Gram., 3d Ed., p. vii. "A verb signifying actively governs the accusative."—Adam's Gram., p. 171; Gould's, 172; Grant's, 199; and others. "Or, any word that will conjugate, is a verb."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 44. "In these two concluding sentences, the author, hastening to finish, appears to write rather carelessly."—Blair's Rhet., p. 216. "He simply reasons on one side of the question, and then finishes."—Ib., p. 306. "Praise to God teaches to be humble and lowly ourselves."—ATTERBURY: ib., p. 304. "This author has endeavored to surpass."—Green's Inductive Gram., p. 54. "Idleness and plezure fateeg az soon az bizziness."—Noah Webster's Essays, p. 402. "And, in conjugating, you must pay particular attention to the manner in which these signs are applied."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 140. "He said Virginia would have emancipated long ago."—The Liberator, ix, 33. "And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience."—2 Cor., x, 6. "However, in these cases, custom generally determines."—Wright's Gram., p. 50. "In proof, let the following cases demonstrate."—Ib., p. 46. "We must surprise, that he should so speedily have forgotten his first principles."—Ib., p. 147. "How should we surprise at the expression, 'This is a soft question!'"—Ib., p. 219. "And such as prefer, can parse it as a possessive adjective."—Goodenow's Gram., p. 89. "To assign all the reasons, that induced to deviate from other grammarians, would lead to a needless prolixity."—Alexander's Gram., p. 4. "The Indicative mood simply indicates or declares."—Farnum's Gram., p. 33.

UNDER NOTE II.—OF VERBS INTRANSITIVE.

"In his seventh chapter he expatiateth himself at great length."—Barclay's Works, iii, 350. "He quarrelleth my bringing some testimonies of antiquity, agreeing with what I say."—Ib., iii, 373. "Repenting him of his design."—Hume's Hist., ii, 56. "Henry knew, that an excommunication could not fail of operating the most dangerous effects."—Ib., ii, 165. "The popular lords did not fail to enlarge themselves on the subject."—Mrs. Macaulay's Hist., iii, 177. "He is always master of his subject; and seems to play himself with it."—Blair's Rhet., p. 445. "But as soon as it comes the length of disease, all his secret infirmities shew themselves."—Ib., p. 256. "No man repented him of his wickedness."—Jeremiah, viii, 6. "Go thee one way or other, either on the right hand, or on the left."—Ezekiel, xxi, 16. "He lies him down by the rivers side."—Walker's Particles, p. 99. "My desire has been for some years past, to retire myself to some of our American plantations."—Cowley's Pref. to his Poems, p. vii. "I fear me thou wilt shrink from the payment of it."—Zenobia, i, 76. "We never recur an idea, without acquiring some combination."—Rippingham's Art of Speaking, p. xxxii.

"Yet more; the stroke of death he must abide, Then lies him meekly down fast by his brethren's side."—Milton.

UNDER NOTE III.—OF VERBS MISAPPLIED.

"A parliament forfeited all those who had borne arms against the king."—Hume's Hist., ii, 223. "The practice of forfeiting ships which had been wrecked."—Ib., i, 500. "The nearer his military successes approached him to the throne."—Ib., v, 383. "In the next example, you personifies ladies, therefore it is plural."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 103. "The first its personates vale; the second its represents stream."—Ib., p. 103. "Pronouns do not always avoid the repetition of nouns."—Ib., p. 96. "Very is an adverb of comparison, it compares the adjective good."—Ib., p. 88. "You will please to commit the following paragraph."—Ib., p. 140. "Even the Greek and Latin passive verbs require an auxiliary to conjugate some of their tenses."—Murray's Gram., p. 100. "The deponent verbs, in Latin, require also an auxiliary to conjugate several of their tenses."—Ib., p. 100. "I have no doubt he made as wise and true proverbs, as any body has done since."—Ib., p. 145. "A uniform variety assumes as many set forms as Proteus had shapes."—Kirkham's Elocution, p. 72. "When words in apposition follow each other in quick succession."—Nixon's Parser, p. 57. "Where such sentences frequently succeed each other."—L. Murray's Gram., p. 349. "Wisdom leads us to speak and act what is most proper."—Blair's Rhet., p. 99; Murray's Gram., i, 303.

"Jul. Art thou not Romeo, and a Montague? Rom. Neither, fair saint, if either thee dislike."—Shak.

UNDER NOTE IV.—OF PASSIVE VERBS.

"We too must be allowed the privilege of forming our own laws."—L. Murray's Gram., p. 134. "For we are not only allowed the use of all the ancient poetic feet," &c.—Ib., p. 259; Kirkham's Elocution, 143; Jamieson's Rhet., 310. "By what code of morals am I denied the right and privilege?"—Dr. Bartlett's Lect., p. 4. "The children of Israel have alone been denied the possession of it."—Keith's Evidences, p. 68. "At York fifteen hundred Jews were refused all quarter."—Ib., p. 73. "He would teach the French language in three lessons, provided he was paid fifty-five dollars in advance."—Chazotte's Essay, p. 4. "And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come."—Luke, xvii, 20. "I have been shown a book."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 392. "John Horne Tooke was refused admission only because he had been in holy orders."—Diversions of Purley, i, 60. "Mr. Horne Tooke having taken orders, he was refused admission to the bar."—Churchill's Gram., p. 145. "Its reference to place is lost sight of."—Bullions's E. Gram., p. 116. "What striking lesson are we taught by the tenor of this history?"—Bush's Questions, p. 71. "He had been left, by a friend, no less than eighty thousand pounds."—Priestley's Gram., p. 112. "Where there are many things to be done, each must be allowed its share of time and labour."—Johnson's Pref. to Dict., p. xiii. "Presenting the subject in a far more practical form than it has been heretofore given."—Kirkham's Phrenology, p. v. "If a being of entire impartiality should be shown the two companies."—Scott's Pref. to Bible, p. vii. "He was offered the command of the British army."—Grimshaw's Hist., p. 81. "Who had been unexpectedly left a considerable sum."—Johnson's Life of Goldsmith. "Whether a maid or a widow may be granted such a privilege."—Spectator, No. 536. "Happily all these affected terms have been denied the public suffrage."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 199. "Let him next be shewn the parsing table."—Nutting's Gram., p. viii. "Thence, he may be shown the use of the Analyzing Table."—Ib., p. ix. "Pittacus was offered a great sum of money."—Sanborn's Gram., p. 228. "He had been allowed more time for study."—Ib., p. 229. "If the walks were a little taken care of that lie between them."—Addison's Spect., No. 414. "Suppose I am offered an office or a bribe."—Pierpont's Discourse, Jan. 27, 1839.

"Am I one chaste, one last embrace deny'd? Shall I not lay me by his clay-cold side?" —Rowe's Lucan, B. ix, l. 103.

UNDER NOTE V.—PASSIVE VERBS TRANSITIVE.

"The preposition to is made use of before nouns of place, when they follow verbs and participles of motion."—Murray's Gram., p. 203; Ingersoll's, 231; Greenlef's, 35; Fisk's, 143; Smith's, 170; Guy's, 90; Fowler's, 555. "They were refused entrance into the house."—Murray's Key, ii, 204. "Their separate signification has been lost sight of."—Horne Tooke, ii, 422. "But, whenever ye is made use of, it must be in the nominative, and never in the objective, case."—Cobbett's E. Gram., 58. "It is said, that more persons than one are paid handsome salaries, for taking care to see acts of parliament properly worded."—Churchill's Gram., p. 334. "The following Rudiments of English Grammar, have been made use of in the University of Pennsylvania."—DR. ROGERS: in Harrison's Gram., p. 2. "It never should be lost sight of."—Newman's Rhetoric, p. 19. "A very curious fact hath been taken notice of by those expert metaphysicians."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 281. "The archbishop interfered that Michelet's lectures might be put a stop to."—The Friend, ix, 378. "The disturbances in Gottengen have been entirely put an end to."—Daily Advertiser. "Besides those that are taken notice of in these exceptions."—Priestley's Gram., p. 6. "As one, two, or three auxiliary verbs are made use of."—Ib., p. 24. "The arguments which have been made use of."—Addison's Evidences, p. 32. "The circumstance is properly taken notice of by the author."—Blair's Rhet., p. 217. "Patagonia has never been taken possession of by any European nation."—Cumming's Geog., p. 62. "He will be found fault withal no more, i. e. not hereafter."—Walker's Particles, p. 226. "The thing was to be put an end to somehow."—Leigh Hunt's Byron, p. 15. "In 1798, the Papal Territory was taken possession of by the French."—Pinnock's Geog., p. 223. "The idea has not for a moment been lost sight of by the Board."—Common School Journal, i, 37. "I shall easily be excused the labour of more transcription."—Johnson's Life of Dryden. "If I may be allowed that expression."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 259, and 288. "If without offence I may be indulged the observation."—Ib., p. 295. "There are other characters, which are frequently made use of in composition."— Murray's Gram., p. 280; Ingersoll's, 293. "Such unaccountable infirmities might be in many, perhaps in most, cases got the better of."—Seattle's Moral Science, i, 153. "Which ought never to be had recourse to."—Ib., i, 186. "That the widows may be taken care of."—Barclay's Works, i, 499. "Other cavils will yet be taken notice of."—Pope's Pref. to Homer. "Which implies, that all Christians are offered eternal salvation."—West's Letters, p. 149. "Yet even the dogs are allowed the crumbs which fall from their master's table."—Campbell's Gospels, Matt., xv. 27. "For we say the light within must be taken heed unto."—Barclay's Works, i, 148. "This sound of a is taken notice of in Steele's Grammar."—Walker's Dict., p. 22. "One came to be paid ten guineas for a pair of silver buckles."—Castle Rackrent, p. 104. "Let him, therefore, be carefully shewn the application of the several questions in the table."—Nutting's Gram., p. 8, "After a few times, it is no longer taken notice of by the hearers."—Sheridan's Lect., p. 182. "It will not admit of the same excuse, nor be allowed the same indulgence, by people of any discernment."—Ibid. "Inanimate things may be made property of."—Beanie's M. Sci., p. 355.

"And, when he's bid a liberaller price, Will not be sluggish in the work, nor nice."—Butler's Poems, p. 162.

UNDER NOTE VI.—OF PERFECT PARTICIPLES.

"All the words made use of to denote spiritual and intellectual things, are in their origin metaphors."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 380. "A reply to an argument commonly made use of by unbelievers."—Blair's Rhet., p. 293. "It was heretofore the only form made use of in the preter tenses."—Dr. Ash's Gram., p. 47. "Of the points, and other characters made use of in writing."—Ib., p. xv. "If thy be the personal pronoun made use of."—Walker's Dict. "The Conjunction is a word made use of to connect sentences."—Burn's Gram., p. 28. "The points made use of to answer these purposes are the four following."—Harrison's Gram., p. 67. "Incense signifies perfumes exhaled by fire, and made use of in religious ceremonies."—Murray's Key, p. 171. "In most of his orations, there is too much art; even carried the length of ostentation."—Blair's Rhet., p. 246. "To illustrate the great truth, so often lost sight of in our times."—Common School Journal, I, 88. "The principal figures, made use of to affect the heart, are Exclamation, Confession, Deprecation, Commination, and Imprecation."—Formey's Belles-Lettres, p. 133. "Disgusted at the odious artifices made use of by the Judge."—Junius, p. 13. "The whole reasons of our being allotted a condition, out of which so much wickedness and misery would in fact arise."—Butler's Analogy p. 109. "Some characteristieal circumstance being generally invented or laid hold of."—Kames, El. of Crit., ii, 246.

"And by is likewise us'd with Names that shew The Means made use of, or the Method how."—Ward's Gram., p. 105.

UNDER NOTE VII.—CONSTRUCTIONS AMBIGUOUS.

"Many adverbs admit of degrees of comparison as well as adjectives."—Priestley's Gram., p. 133. "But the author, who, by the number and reputation of his works, formed our language more than any one, into its present state, is Dryden."—Blair's Rhet., p. 180. "In some States, Courts of Admiralty have no juries, nor Courts of Chancery at all."—Webster's Essays, p, 146. "I feel myself grateful to my friend."—Murray's Key, p. 276. "This requires a writer to have, himself, a very clear apprehension of the object he means to present to us."—Blair's Rhet., p. 94. "Sense has its own harmony, as well as sound."—lb., p. 127. "The apostrophe denotes the omission of an i which was formerly inserted, and made an addition of a syllable to the word."—Priestley's Gram., p. 67. "There are few, whom I can refer to, with more advantage than Mr. Addison."—Blair's Rhet., p. 139. "DEATH, in theology, [is a] perpetual separation from God, and eternal torments."—Webster's Dict. "That could inform the traveler as well as the old man himself!"—O. B. Peirce's Gram., p. 345.

UNDER NOTE VIII.—YE AND YOU IN SCRIPTURE.

"Ye daughters of Rabbah, gird ye with sackcloth."—ALGER'S BIBLE: Jer., xlix, 3. "Wash ye, make you clean."—Brown's Concordance, w. Wash. "Strip ye, and make ye bare, and gird sackcloth upon your loins."—ALGER'S BIBLE: Isaiah, xxxii, 11. "You are not ashamed that you make yourselves strange to me."—FRIENDS' BIBLE: Job, xix, 3. "You are not ashamed that ye make yourselves strange to me."—ALGER'S BIBLE: ib. "If you knew the gift of God."—Brown's Concordance, w. Knew. "Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity, I know ye not."—Penington's Works, ii, 122.

RULE VI.—SAME CASES.

A Noun or a Pronoun put after a verb or participle not transitive, agrees in case with a preceding noun or pronoun referring to the same thing: as, "It is I."—"These are they."—"The child was named John."—"It could not be he."—"The Lord sitteth King forever."—Psalms, xxix, 10.

"What war could ravish, commerce could bestow, And he return'd a friend, who came a foe." —Pope, Ep. iii, l. 206.

OBSERVATIONS ON RULE VI.

OBS. 1.—Active-transitive verbs, and their imperfect and preperfect participles, always govern the objective case; but active-intransitive, passive, and neuter verbs, and their participles, take the same case after as before them, when both words refer to the same thing. The latter are rightly supposed not to govern[357] any case; nor are they in general followed by any noun or pronoun. But, because they are not transitive, some of them become connectives to such words as are in the same case and signify the same thing. That is, their finite tenses may be followed by a nominative, and their infinitives and participles by a nominative or an objective, agreeing with a noun or a pronoun which precedes them. The cases are the same, because the person or thing is one; as, "I am he."—"Thou art Peter."—"Civil government being the sole object of forming societies, its administration must be conducted by common consent."—Jefferson's Notes, p. 129. Identity is both the foundation and the characteristic of this construction. We chiefly use it to affirm or deny, to suggest or question, the sameness of things; but sometimes figuratively, to illustrate the relations of persons or things by comparison:[358] as, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman."—John, xv, 1. "I am the vine, ye are the branches."—John, xv, 5. Even the names of direct opposites, are sometimes put in the same case, under this rule; as,

"By such a change thy darkness is made light, Thy chaos order, and thy weakness might."—Cowper, Vol. i, p. 88.

OBS. 2.—In this rule, the terms after and preceding refer rather to the order of the sense and construction, than to the mere placing of the words; for the words in fact admit of various positions. The proper subject of the verb is the nominative to it, or before it, by Rule 2d; and the other nominative, however placed, is understood to be that which comes after it, by Rule 6th. In general, however, the proper subject precedes the verb, and the other word follows it, agreeably to the literal sense of the rule. But when the proper subject is placed after the verb, as in certain instances specified in the second observation under Rule 2d, the explanatory nominative is commonly introduced still later; as, "But be thou an example of the believers."—1 Tim. iv, 12. "But what! is thy servant a dog?"—2 Kings, viii, 13. "And so would I, were I Parmenio."—Goldsmith. "O Conloch's daughter! is it thou?"—Ossian. But in the following example, on the contrary, there is a transposition of the entire lines, and the verb agrees with the two nominatives in the latter:

"To thee were solemn toys or empty show, The robes of pleasure and the veils of wo."—Dr. Johnson.

OBS. 3.—In interrogative sentences, the terms are usually transposed,[359] or both are placed after the verb; as, "Am I a Jew?"—John, xviii, 35. "Art thou a king then?"—Ib., ver. 37. "What is truth?"—Ib., ver. 38. "Who art thou?"—Ib., i, 19. "Art thou Elias?"—Ib., i, 21. "Tell me, Alciphron, is not distance a line turned endwise to the eye?"—Berkley's Dialogues, p. 161.

"Whence, and what art thou, execrable shape?"—Milton.

"Art thou that traitor angel? art thou he?"—Idem.

OBS. 4.—In a declarative sentence also, there may be a rhetorical or poetical transposition of one or both of the terms: as, "And I thy victim now remain."—Francis's Horace, ii, 45. "To thy own dogs a prey thou shalt be made."—Pope's Homer, "I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame."—Job, xxix, 15. "Far other scene is Thrasymene now."—Byron. In the following sentence, the latter term is palpably misplaced: "It does not clearly appear at first what the antecedent is to they."—Blair's Rhet., p. 218. Say rather: "It does not clearly appear at first, what is the antecedent to [the pronoun] they." In examples transposed like the following, there is an elegant ellipsis of the verb to which the pronoun is nominative; as, am, art, &c.

"When pain and anguish wring the brow, A ministering angel thou."—Scott's Marmion.

"The forum's champion, and the people's chief, Her new-born Numa thou—with reign, alas! too brief."—Byron.

"For this commission'd, I forsook the sky— Nay, cease to kneel—thy fellow-servant I."—Parnell.

OBS. 5.—In some peculiar constructions, both words naturally come before the verb; as, "I know not who she is."—"Who did you say it was?"—"I know not how to tell thee who I am."—Romeo. "Inquire thou whose son the stripling is."—1 Sam., xvii, 56. "Man would not be the creature which he now is."—Blair. "I could not guess who it should be."—Addison. And they are sometimes placed in this manner by hyberbaton [sic—KTH], or transposition; as, "Yet he it is."—Young. "No contemptible orator he was."—Dr. Blair. "He it is to whom I shall give a sop."—John, xiii, 26. "And a very noble personage Cato is."—Blair's Rhet., p. 457. "Clouds they are without water."—Jude, 12.

"Of worm or serpent kind it something looked, But monstrous, with a thousand snaky heads."—Pollok, B. i, l. 183.

OBS. 6.—As infinitives and participles have no nominatives of their own, such of them as are not transitive in their nature, may take different cases after them; and, in order to determine what case it is that follows them, the learner must carefully observe what preceding word denotes the same person or thing, and apply the principle of the rule accordingly. This word being often remote, and sometimes understood, the sense is the only clew to the construction. Examples: "Who then can bear the thought of being an outcast from his presence?"—Addison. Here outcast agrees with who, and not with thought. "I cannot help being so passionate an admirer as I am."—Steele. Here admirer agrees with I. "To recommend what the soberer part of mankind look upon to be a trifle."—Steele. Here trifle agrees with what as relative, the objective governed by upon. "It would be a romantic madness, for a man to be a lord in his closet."—Id. Here madness is in the nominative case, agreeing with it; and lord, in the objective, agreeing with man. "To affect to be a lord in one's closet, would be a romantic madness." In this sentence also, lord is in the objective, after to be; and madness, in the nominative, after would be.

"'My dear Tibullus!' If that will not do, Let me be Horace, and be Ovid you."—Pope, B. ii, Ep. ii, 143.

OBS. 7.—An active-intransitive or a neuter participle in ing, when governed by a preposition, is often followed by a noun or a pronoun the case of which depends not on the preposition, but on the case which goes before. Example: "The Jews were in a particular manner ridiculed for being a credulous people."—Addison's Evidences, p. 28. Here people is in the nominative case, agreeing with Jews. Again: "The learned pagans ridiculed the Jews for being a credulous people." Here people is in the objective case, because the preceding noun Jews is so. In both instances the preposition for governs the participle being, and nothing else. "The atrocious crime of being a young man, I shall neither attempt to palliate or deny."—PITT: Bullions's E. Gram., p. 82; S. S. Greene's, 174. Sanborn has this text, with "nor" for "or."—Analytical Gram., p. 190. This example has been erroneously cited, as one in which the case of the noun after the participle is not determined by its relation to any other word. Sanborn absurdly supposes it to be "in the nominative independent." Bullions as strangely tells us, "it may correctly be called the objective indefinite"—like me in the following example: "He was not sure of its being me."—Bullions's E. Gram., p. 82. This latter text I take to be bad English. It should be, "He was not sure of it as being me;" or, "He was not sure that it was I." But, in the text above, there is an evident transposition. The syntactical order is this: "I shall neither deny nor attempt to palliate the atrocious crime of being a young man." The words man and I refer to the same person, and are therefore in the same case, according to the rule which I have given above.

OBS. 8.—S. S. Greene, in his late Grammar, improperly denominates this case after the participle being, "the predicate-nominative," and imagines that it necessarily remains a nominative even when the possessive case precedes the participle. If he were right in this, there would be an important exception to Rule 6th above. But so singularly absurd is his doctrine about "abridged predicates," that in general the abridging shows an increase of syllables, and often a conversion of good English into bad. For example: "It [the predicate] remains unchanged in the nominative, when, with the participle of the copula, it becomes a verbal noun, limited by the possessive case of the subject; as, 'That he was a foreigner prevented his election,'='His being a foreigner prevented his election.'"—Greene's Analysis, p. 169. Here the number of syllables is unaltered; but foreigner is very improperly called "a verbal noun," and an example which only lacks a comma, is changed to what Wells rightly calls an "anomalous expression," and one wherein that author supposes foreigner and his to be necessarily in the same case. But Greene varies this example into other "abridged forms," thus: "I knew that he was a foreigner," = "I knew his being, or of his being a foreigner." "The fact that he was a foreigner, = of his being a foreigner, was undeniable." "When he was first called a foreigner, = on his being first called a foreigner, his anger was excited."—Ib., p. 171. All these changes enlarge, rather than abridge, the expression; and, at the same time, make it questionable English, to say the least of it.

OBS. 9.—In some examples, the adverb there precedes the participle, and we evidently have nothing by which to determine the case that follows; as, "These judges were twelve in number. Was this owing to there being twelve primary deities among the Gothic nations?"—Webster's Essays, p. 263. Say rather: "Was this because there were twelve primary deities among the Gothic nations?" "How many are injured by Adam's fall, that know nothing of there ever being such a man in the world!"—Barclay's Apology, p. 185. Say rather,—"who know not that there ever was such a man in the world!"

OBS. 10.—In some other examples, we find a possessive before the participle, and a doubtful case after it; as, "This our Saviour himself was pleased to make use of as the strongest argument of his being the promised Messiah"—Addison's Evidences, p. 81. "But my chief affliction consisted in my being singled out from all the other boys, by a lad about fifteen years of age, as a proper object upon whom he might let loose the cruelty of his temper."—Cowper's Memoir, p. 13. "[Greek: Tou patros [ontos] onou euthus hypemnaesthae]. He had some sort of recollection of his father's being an ass"—Collectanea Graeca Minora, Notae, p. 7. This construction, though not uncommon, is anomalous in more respects than one. Whether or not it is worthy to form an exception to the rule of same cases, or even to that of possessives, the reader may judge from the observations made on it under the latter. I should rather devise some way to avoid it, if any can be found—and I believe there can; as, "This our Saviour himself was pleased to advance as the strongest proof that he was the promised Messiah."—"But my chief affliction consisted in this, that I was singled out," &c. The story of the mule is, "He seemed to recollect on a sudden that his father was an ass." This is the proper meaning of the Greek text above; but the construction is different, the Greek nouns being genitives in apposition.