fect Participle of Tranfitive and Neuter Verbs; as, It is written; I was arifen; he will be driven, &c.

46. The Verb to be, with a few other Neuter Verbs, is followed by the Nominative Case; as, I am he; it was 1.

47. Who do men fay that I am? Who fay ye that I am? In these fentences who is properly in the Nominative Cafe, agreeing in cafe with the Pronoun I.

48 But when the Infinitive Mood to be follows an Objective Cafe, it requires an Objective Cafe after it; as, Did you fuppofe him to be me. As him is in the Objective Cafe after the Verb suppose, the Verb to be is followed by the Objective Cafe me.

49. Whom do they think me to be? Whom do you fuppofe me to be? In thefe fentences whom is properly in the Objective Cafe agreeing in Cafe with me.

50. The Prefent and Imperfect Tenfes of the Verb to be are often followed by the Present Tense of the Infinitive Mood, denoting a future event; as, He is to tranfact the business. The ship was to fail.

51. Do, and its Imperfect Tenfe did, are borrowed from the complete Verb to do, and ferve to mark the action or time of the Verb with greater force and precifion; as, I do affure you it is true. He certainly did die. They are allo used in interrogative and negative fentences; as, Do you hear me? He did not fall.

52. Shall is ufed to mark a future time, but varies in its fignification in the different perfons. In the firft perfon it fimply foretells; as, I fhall be wet, if I walk in the rain. In the fecond and third perfons it promifes, commands, or threatens; as, He shall be punished. You fhall not go, because you are naughty.

53. Should, when it expreffes regularly the past time of hall, resembles shall in the different meanings it takes in the different perfons. In the first perfon it foretells fomething happening in confequence of a fuppofition; as, Were that to happen, I Jhould be a fufferer. In the fecond and third perfons it threatens or enforces fome command after a suppofition; as, Were it my pleasure, you should go, and he fhould stay at home.

54. Should, in its other fignifications, does not feem to change its meaning in the different perfons. It is frequently ufed to denote what ought to be; as, Men fhould be what they feem. We should love our Neighbor as ourselves.

55. When Jhould follows if, or any word expreffing uncertainty, it fignifies that fomething may poffibly happen; as, Iftayed left they should offer him violence. I wonder how he should forget me. How should Profpero be living.

56. The Auxiliary Verb will ought to be carefully diftinguithed from the Regular Verb to will, which is a Complete Verb; as, will, willed, willed. It must be owned, however, that these two Verbs on some occafions approach fo nearly in fignification, that it is difficult to mark the exact boundaries between them.

57. Will denotes a future time, but changes in its fignification in the different perfons. In the first perfon it denotes inclination; as, I will do as I like in this bufinefs. In the fecond and third perfons it simply foretells; as, I am afraid you will repent it. He will do himfelf harm in that affair.

58. Would, when it regularly expreffes the Past Time of will, differs alfo in fignification in the different perfons. In the first perfon it implies inclination; as, I would go, if I could. In the fecond and third perfons it foretells; as, I thought you would not fucceed. I fufpected he would fall. I wish it would rain.

59. Would frequently occurs in different fenfes without any regular refpect to time, and without any difference of fignification in the perfons. It is fometimes used as a pathetic form of withing: as, Would you were indeed my mother! Would he had been there! 60. Can and could denote power.、

61. May fometimes expreffes liberty; as, I may do what I pleafe; permiffion; as,You may play a prayer or with; as, Mayft thou, Father of mercies, keep our fouls from evil or poffibility; as, It may rain. The fame may be obferved of its paft time might..

62. Let in the Imperative Mood is borrowed from

the Complete Verb to let. See muft in the lift of-irregular Verbs.

63. The Auxiliary may often stand at a distance from the Participle to which it belongs; as,

Twilight grey

Had in her fober livery all things clad.

In this example the Participle clad is feparated by feveral intermediate words from its Auxiliary bad.

64. ACTIVE VERBS. A Verb Active is known by its having an object or Subftantive after it; as, I love oranges. Here love is an Active Verb, because it has the Subftantive oranges after it.

65. NEUTER VERBS. Neuter Verbs are known by their not having an object after them; as, I fleep; be travelled. The Verbs fleep and travelled, are Neuter Verbs, because they have no object after

them.

66. The Perfect Participles of Neuter Verbs are often used as Adjectives; as, a fallen tree; a departed friend; and as fuch are joined to the Verb to be; as, be is arifen; they are fallen.*

67. Moft Neuter Verbs, when a Prepofition is added to them,become Active and require an object after them; as,he winked at his brother's crimes. To wink is a Verb Neuter, and cannot have an object after it; but by the addition of the Prepofition at, it becomes an Active Verb, and requires an object after it. See Prepofitions 23, &c.

68. Several Verbs may be used either in a Neuter or Active fignification, the construction alone deter

* As a proof, that the Perfect Participles of Neuter Verbs are used merely as Adjectives, we may observe, that when there is an Adjective expreffing the idea of the Neuter Verb, the Participle of the Neuter Verb is never ufed after the Verb to be as an Adjective. Thus, we fay, be was awake all the time; when we mean to express the mere circumstance of being awake; but when we use the Verb in a paffive fenfe, we then employ the Participle, and fay, he was awaked by the noise you made.

This remark explains an idiom which a celebrated grammarian looks upon as an abufe of language; for, in the fentence, you are too much mißtaken in ibis king, the word miftaken is ufed merely as an Adjective, without any reference to time, and may dmit comparison; as, you are more mistaken than I am in this king. When used in a P five fente, it is followed by an agent; as, the affair was miftaken by you.

mining in what fenfe they are taken; as, Birds Jeparate when affrighted. Here feparate is a Neuter Verb because it has no object after it. He will feparate the chaff from the corn. Here feparate is an Active Verb, because it has an object after it, which is chaff.

69. In the definite form of conjugation, feveral Active Verbs are often ufed in a Neuter fignification; as, A houfe is building. Here the Verb is building is ufed in a Neuter fignification, as it has no object after it. He is building a houfe. Here is building continues an Active Verb,because it has an object after it.

70. In familiar converfation, the article a is fometimes used before these Verbs; as, the houses are a building. It is better omitted.

71. Neuter Verbs fhould never be used in an Active fignification. In the fentence, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, the Neuter Verb flee is improperly followed by the object thee. It ought to be, go, flee away into the land of Judah. To vie charities, ought to be, to vie in charities, because to vie is a Neuter Verb. To agree facred with profane cronology, ought to be, to connect facred with profane chronology. To rife corn, ought to be, to raise corn.

72. NOMINATIVE CASE. Every Verb has its NominativeCafe, which is known by asking the queftion who or what in the Verb. The word answering the question is the Nominative Cafe. Thus in the fentence, Samfon flew a lion, we need only afk the question, Who flew a lion ? and the answer is, Samfon, which is therefore the Nominative Cafe to the Verb flew.

73. The Verb muft agree with its NominativeCafe in number and perfon; as, I am; am is the firft perfon fingular, agreeing with its Nominative Cafe I. You were; were is the fecond perfon plural, agreeing with its NominativeCafe you. George the Third reigns; reigns is the third perfon fingular, agreeing with its Nominative Cafe George.

74. Two or more Nominative Cafes, united by Conjunctions,require the Verb in the plural number; as, Socrates and Plato were wife. The Verb were is

in the plural number, agreeing with its two Nominative Cafes Socrates and Plato.

75. Verbs and Pronouns may be either in the fingular or plural number, when they agree with a Noun of Multitude; as, The clergy is, or are, a large body of men.

76. A Noun or a Pronoun, joined to a Participle, and having no Verb to agree with it, becomes a Nominative Cafe abfolute; as,Very few of the Roman writers, he excepted, ever made a great progress in philofophy. As he has no Verb agreeing with it, but is joined to the Participle excepted, they both form a Nominative Cafe abfolute.

77. Sometimes an Infinitive Meod, or a part of a fentence, ferves as Nominative Cafe to a Verb in the third perfon fingular; it likewife ferves as an Antecedent to a relative; as, to murder is a great crime; to murder is the NominativeCafe to the Verb is. To be difcontented in the fate we are in, argues a high degree of folly; to be difcontented in the ftate we are in, ferves as Nominative Cafe to the Verb argues. Such Nominative Cafes may in general follow the Verb, if the neuter pronoun it be fet before the Verb as its Nominative Cafe. Ex. It is a great crime to murder. It argues a high degree of folly, to be difcontented in the State we are in.

78. It is fometimes ufed as the Nominative Cafe to the Prefent and Imperfect Tenfes of the Verb to be, to mark an affertion with greater emphafis; Ex. It was you that did fo,is a more forcible expreffion than you did fo.*

79. It is used as a Nominative Cafe to certainNeuter Verbs called Imperfonal Verbs; as, It thunders. it rains, it freezes. They are called Imperfonal Verbs, because they are used only in the third perfon fingular.t

In this example it is not a relative, for there is no antecedent either expr ffed or und flood to which it may refer, U'e alone, which has determined the propriety of the phrafe, has invariably appropriated this Neuter Pronoun to ferve as Nominative Cafe to the Verb to be, when employed to give emph fis to a fentence.

The nature of thefe Verbs is perhaps the fame in all languages. The reafon of this feems to be,that in the different phenomena of nature, ex