Isrt 6 / ** : ^t I -* HISTORICAL OUTLINES ENGLISH SYNTAX HISTORICAL OUTLINES ENGLISH SYNTAX BY LEON KELLNER PH.DR. LECTURER ON ENGLISH PHILOLOGY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF VIENNA EDITOR OF CAXTON'S "BLANCHARDYN AND EGLANTINE" o n & o n MACMILLAN AND CO. AND NEW YORK 1892 'J he Right of Translation and Reproduction is Reserved RICHARD CLAY AND SONS, LIMITED, LONDON AND BUNGAY. Annex TO THE REV. RICHARD MORRIS, M.A., LL.D. AUTHOR OF " HISTORICAL OUTLINES OF ENGLISH ACCIDENCP.,' r.DiTOR OF HAMPOLE'S "PRICKE OF CONSCIENCE," "EARLY ENGLISH ALLITERATIVE POEMS" " THE STORY OF GENESIS AND EXODUS " "THE AYENBITE OF INWYT" ETC., ETC. SOMETIME PRESIDENT OF THE PHILOLOGICAL SOCIETY te Sooh ti SrtJteatrtl PREFACE THE present volume is intended to accompany the Historical Outlines of English Accidence by Dr. Morris. But for this, I should have preferred to call it Lessons in English Syntax, implying thereby that I do not pretend to (or aim at) completeness of detail, but have rather contented myself with giving principles of English Syntax, and with picking out from among the infinity of syntactical facts, those that seemed most interesting and worthy of note. I selected first those idioms which struck me as out of the common in old and modern texts, and from these I chose such as seemed noteworthy from the standpoints of psychology, historical development, and comparative grammar. I did not think it advisable to swell the book by giving detailed accounts of every preposition and conjunction ; both these parts of speech are fully dealt with in the Dictionaries, and in the well-known works of Matzner, Koch, Dr. Abbott, Einenkel, and Mr. T. L. Kington Oliphant. viii PREFACE Altogether I am at one with Chaucer's Man of Law : " Me lust not of the caf ne of the stree Make so long a talc, as of the corn." I must say a few words with regard to the arrangement of the Syntax. Many English scholars and students might prefer what is known as " Becker's system " (strictly observed in Matzner's grand work). It would have been very easy for me to adopt this arrangement, and follow in Matzner's track. But it was precisely Matzner's example which warned me against adopting Becker's system in all its consequences. If Matzner had been less systematic his work would have been more generally appreciated, and English syntax better known. I thought it, therefore, best to sacrifice system to usefulness, and to deal with the " Syntax of the Parts of Speech " fully and separately, starting with the sentence, the creator of syntax, and then working through its component parts. In the "Syntax of the Sentence " I have adopted Mr. Mason's arrangement (English Grammar, including Grammatical Analysis, by C. P. Mason, B.A., F.C.P. Thirty-second edition. London, 1890), which has, apart from its internal merits, the advantage of being well known to English students. This book being, in the first place, intended for students, I had to avoid as much as possible the discussion of PREFACE ix doubtful points, reference to other languages, and super- fluity of instances. In the large edition which I am pre paring I shall give full accounts of other people's opinions, make constant use of what Comparative Grammar offers to explain English Syntax, and show clearly the development of every idiom, by giving instances from all the periods of English, at intervals of fifty years. I gratefully acknowledge my obligations to several eminent English scholars for repeated advice and valuable suggestions. Of these, Dr. Ftirnivall has the greatest claim on my gratitude. It was he who suggested to me the idea of working into their present English shape the materials which he knew I had been collecting for years, and it is through his help and untiring kindness that I have been able to overcome the many difficulties which naturally stood in my way. The quotations in my book will show what it owes to the Early English Text Society, a Society which has at last made possible a real study of the history of English, a Society which has earned the right to ten times the support it gets from English-speaking folk. L. KELLNER. BRITISH MUSEUM, August 1892. CONTENTS INTRODUCTION PAGE The Object of Syntax Division of Syntax ( l) 3 Syntax closely connected with and dependent on Phonetics and Accidence (2) 3 Syntnx and Accidence dealt with separately (3) 4 The Three Parts of Syntax (4) 4 Specimen of Old English Syntax (5) 4 Its Want of Proportion in general ( 6) 7 And in particular (7) 8 Absence of Proportion and Unity characteristic of Early English (8) 9 Psychology (9) 9 Popular Talk ( 10) 10 And History must be consulted in the Study of Syntax ( 1 1) 1 1 Instances: "'These kind of knaves" ($ 12) n " Who is to prevent me marrying ?" ( (13) 12 Some Principles of Syntax Difficulty of bringing Syntax under strict Laws ( 14) ... 14 Analogy Syntactical Groups (15) 14 Common Use ( 16) 14 ' Irregular' Combinations in consequence of Analogy ( 17) . 15 Mixed Construction ( 18) 16 Decay of formal Endings (19) 17 Concrete Combinations supplanted by Abstract ones ( 20) Instances : Plural of Abstract Substantives ( 21 ) 18 Absolute Participle ( 22) 18 " Pardon my doing so and so "( 23) 1 8 Redundant Object (24) 18 Anacoluthic Expression ( 25) 19 Economy (Ellipsis) ( 26) Origin of Ellipsis (27) 20 xii CONTENTS PAGE Continued (28^ 21 Instances (29) 21 Tautology, the Reverse of Ellipsis ( 30) Tautology the natural vehicle of Emphatic Speech (31* . . 21 Tautology frequent in Older Periods ( 32) 21 Double Genitive (33) 22 PART I SYNTAX OF THE SEXTEX Relation of Words Three Syntactic Relations (34) 27 Predicative Relation (35) 27 Attributive Relation The Adjective (36) 28 The Noun in Apposition ( 37) 28 Its wanting an Article in former Periods ( 38) 28 Its tending to supplant the Partitive Genitive ( 39) .... 28 Want of Concord between a Noun and its Apposition ( 40) . 29 Continued (41) 30 Place of the Apposition (42) 30 A Substantive in the Possessive Case ( 43) 30 A Substantive preceded by a Preposition ( 44) 30 An Adverb used as an Adjective, following the Noun (45) . 30 Preceding the Noun ( 46) 31 An Adjective Clause ( 47) 31 The Adverbial Relation The Object ( 48) 31 The Adverb ( 49) 31 The Noun in the Oblique Case ( 50) 31 Genitive Case (51) 32 Dative (Instrumental) Case ( 52) . . ' 32 Adverbial Adjuncts in the Genitive and Dative Case (needs, whilom) (53) 32 The Cognate Accusative ( 54) 33 A Substantive preceded by a Preposition ( 55) 33 A Substantive or Pronoun with the Participle Absolute ( 56) 33 Origin of the Absolute Participle ( 57) 34 An Adverbial Clause (58) 35 Subject and Predicate The Subject The Subject in an Oblique Case ( 59) 35 Simple, Compound and Complex Subject ( 60) Simple Subject A Single Substantive ( 61) . . . 35 CONTENTS xiii PACE A Pronoun Subject omitted ( 62) 36 A Substantive Subject omitted (63) 36 Adjectives used Substantively ( 64) 37 An Infinitive Mood or Gerund ( 65) 37 Any Word made the Subject of Discourse ( 66) 37 Compound Subject ( 67) Complex Subject ( 68) A Substantive Clause as Subject ( 69) 38 A Substantive or Pronoun with the Infinitive as Subject ( 70) 38 "for" + Substantive (Pronoun) + Infinitive as Subject (71) 39 Reduplication of the Subject Repetition of the Subject making special stress ( 72) . ... 40 Reduplication of the Subject by means of a Personal Pronoun (73) 40 Repetition of the Subject after an extensive member of the Sentence ( 74) 41 Omission of the Subject Personal Pronoun omitted (75) 41 The Predicate Simple Predicate ( 76) Complex Predicate ( 77) Complement of the Predicate (78) 42 " // is me " ( 79) 42 Discrepancy between Grammatical and Psychological Predi- cate ( 80) 43 Ellipsis of the Copula "to be" ( 81) 44 Omission of the Predicate ( 82) 45 Omission of the Infinitive after "shall" and " will" ( 83) . 45 Concord (%%4) Collective Nouns with Predicates in the Plural ( 85) . . . . 46 Plural Nouns with a Singular in the Predicate. The Verb precedes the Noun ( 86) 47 The Subject is determined by Numerals ( 87) 47 The distance between the Subject and Predicate accounts for the inaccuracy of the expression ( 88) 48 The Endings -es and -eth, is and was used both in the Singular and Plural (89) 48 Concord of the Predicate with several Subjects ( 90) .... 49 Concord of the Copula. The Copula agrees in Number with the Subject (91) 49 The Copula agrees in Number with the Predicate ( 92) . . 50 Object The Substantive Clause as Object (94) 50 The Substantive with Infinitive as Object ( 95) 51 Complex Sentences Awkward Structure of Sentences in Old English ( 96) ... 51 The Complex Sentence in shape of two Co-ordinate Senten- ces (97) 51 PAGE Coordination or Parataxis ( 98) 52 Subordination or Hypotaxis ( 99) 52 Instances ( 100) 53 The Independent Sentence introduced by a Particle ( 101) . 54 Independent and Dependent Sentence introduced by the same Particle ( 102) 55 Dependent Sentence alone introduced by the Particle ( 103) 56 Tlie Substantive Clause Its four Stages ( 104) 56 Stage II. still kept ( 105) 57 Explanation and Instances ( 106) 57 Direct and Indirect Speech ( 107) 59 Change of Direct and Indirect Speech ( 108) 60 The Adjective Clause Omission of the Relative ( 109) 6l Explanation ( no) 62 Instances ( in) . . . 63 Development of the Adjective Clause ( 112) 65 The Older Construction consistent with psychical facts ( 113) 65 The Relative is in the Nominative Case ( 1 14) 66 The Relative is an Oblique Case ( 115) 66 The Correlative always appears in the Nominative Case ( 116) 67 The Correlative is the Subject ( 117) 68 The Correlative is the Object of the Sentence ( 118) . . . . 68 The Relative Sentence precedes its Correlative ( 1 19) ... 69 Noun Clause and Adjective Clause intermixed ( 120) ... 69 " '/'hat" introducing the Noun Clause is dropped ( 121) . . 70 Relative Subordination instead of Demonstrative Co-ordination ( 122) 71 77ie Adverbial Clauses ( 123) Adverbial Clause relating to Place ( 124) 72 To Time (125) 72 Adverbial Clauses used to denote Causal, Conditional, and Adversative Relations (126) 72 Adverbial Clauses relating to Manner and Degree ( 127) . . 73 Adverbial Clauses used in a Concessive Sense ( 128) .... 74 Adverbial Clauses relating to Cause ( 129) 74 To Purpose and Consequence (130) 75 To Condition ( 131) 75 Imperative Sentences used in a Conditional Sense ( 132) . . 76 The Relative Sentence used for the Conditional one ( 133) . 76 CONTENTS xv PART II SYNTAX OF THE TARTS OF SPEECH PAGE The Substantive Substantives used as Adjectives ( 134 136) 79 Classes of Noitns interchanged Abstracts and Concretes interchanged (137) 81 Abstract Nouns used in a Concrete Sense ( 138) 82 Concrete Nouns used in an Abstract Sense ( 139) 84 Collective Nouns used as Class Nouns ( 140) 84 Proper Names used as Common Names ( 141) .' 85 Singular and Plural of Substantives Subjective Character of the Number ( 142) 86 Number of Abstracts ( 143) 87 Pluralis Majestaticus ( 144) 89 Plural of Proper Names ( 145) . . . 89 Plural of Material Names ( 146) ...*.. 90 Number of Common Nouns ( 147) 90 Cases " Of" and " To" in Middle and Modem Engli-h, make up for the Lost Endings ( 148) 91 The Nominative Case Functions of the Nominative ( 149) 92 Nominative after " hdtan " ( 150) 92 Nominative instead of the Oblique Case in Old Impersonal Verbs ( 151) 93 Nominative instead of the Dative in Passive Constructions ( 152) 93 The Nominative Absolute ( 153) 94 " With " in connection with the Participle ( 154) 95 The Nominative with the Infinitive ( 155) 95 Nominative in Apposition ( 156) 96 The Nominative supplanted by the Oblique Case ( 157) . . 96 The Genitive Case Signification of the Genitive ( 158) 96 The Genitive denotes Birth and Relation ( 159) 97 The Genitive denotes Rule or Power ( 160) ....... 98 The Genitive denotes Possession ( 161) 98 Abstract Substantive instead of an Adjective ( 162) .... 98 The Genitive Superlative ( 163) 99 The Objective Genitive (164) 100 The Objective Genitive replaced by "over," "towards," "against" ( 165) 101 The Qualifying Genitive ( 166) 102 Some Peculiarities of the Qualitative Genitive " Worms of every kind" = all sorts of worms " ( 167) . . 103 xvi CONTENTS I'AGE " Alles cunnes ivurmes" = all sorts of worms ( 168) . . . . 104 " Alle kinne sinne" = all sorts of sins ( 169) 105 " Three manne rs of freedom " ( 1 70) 107 " Ten mane re zennes" = ten sorts of sins ( 171) 107 " These sort of things" (172) 108 The Partitive Genitive ( 173) .108 Juxtaposition instead of the Partitive Genitive ( 174) . . . . 109 " Three the noblest rivers" ( 175) no " One the (test knyghts " ( 1 76) "I The Elliptic Genitive (177) 112 The Pseudo-Partitive Genitive Development of the idiom " a friend of mine" ( 178-180) 113 Genitive instead of Apposition ( 181) 116 Genitive governed by Verbs and Adjectives ( 182) 117 The Genitive denoting Origin, Cause and Reference ( 183) . 118 The Genitive used adverbially^ Denoting Space ( 184) 119 Time( 185) 119 Manner ( 186) 120 The Dative Case General Remark ( 187) 121 The Dative after Verbs and Adjectives ( 188) 121 After "iveorftan" ( 189) ; 121 "Dativus Commodi et Incommodi" ( 190) 121 The Ethic Dative ( 191-192) 122 The Dative represents the Instrumental Case ( 193-194) . 123 The Dative instead of the Genitive ( 195) 124 The Dative Absolute ( 196) 125 The Accusative Case Signification of the Accusative Case ( 197) 126 The Accusative as the Object of Transitive Verbs ( 198) . 126 The Accusative governed by Intransitive Verbs ( 199) . . . 127 The Cognate Accusative ( 200) I2 7 Double Object ( 201-202) ' i 2 8 Accusative as Adverb denoting Place (203) I28 Time (204) ... 129 Manner (205) I2 o The Objective Absolute ( 206) .129 Interchange of the Cases I. Nominative instead of the Oblique Case The Nominative after " but " and " save " ( 207) i - o Nominatfve after "fidtan" (208) Mi Anacoluthic Nominative ( 209) \ 131 Nominative with Verbs once Impersonal, and in Passive Con- ' structions ( 210) j,. The Absolute Pronoun in the Oblique Case ( 211) " Kw " supplanted " K* "( 213-213) ','.'.','. 133 CONTENTS xvii PAGE -.]/<; "for "/"(2I4) 135 "All them" = all they ( 215) 135 The Article General Remark ( 216) 136 The Definite Article ( 217) Names of Persons with the Definite Article ( 218-219) . . 136 Nouns preceded by Possessive Pronouns with the Definite Article ( 220-222) 138 Nouns in the Vocative Case with the Definite Article ( 223) 139 The Definite Article before Numerals ( 224) 139 The Indefinite Article ( 225) " A " before Numerals ( 226) 140 The Indefinite Article used pleonastically ( 227) 141 Omission of the Article ( 228-235) 142 7'ie Adjective Adjectives used as Substantives ( 236) 144 Substantives named after Quality (237) 144 Ellipsis of the Noun ( 238 241) 145 Present Participles used as Substantives ( 242) 148 Adjectives denoting Nations and Tribes ( 143) 149 Adjectives referring to Things ( 244) 149 Abstract Neuters in Old English ( 245) 150 Abstract Neuters in Middle English ( 246) 151 Adjectives for Colours and Languages ( 247) 152 Abstract Neuters in Modern English ( 248) 152 " Voice " of the Adjectives ( 249) 154 Adjectives with Active and Passive Meaning ( 250) .... 154 Adjectives with Transitive and Causative Meaning ( 251) . 155 Adjectives instead of Substantives in the Genitive Case ( 252) 157 " Half the day" "Double the sum" ( 253) 159 Comparison of the Adjective Double Comparison ( 254) 159 The Comparative and Superlative used absolutely ( 255) . 160 Adjectives followed by " One " ( 256) 161 The Numerals Cardinals Cardinals used Substantively ( 257) 162 "A" Hundred, "A" Thousand (258) 162 "'A' Jive men " ( 259) . . . . 162 " One." "One" = Alone ( 260) 163 The Personal Pronoun with " One" ( 261) 163 " One " following Substantives and Adjectives ( 262) . . . 165 "One" = A Certain ( 263) 165 Cardinals instead of Ordinals ( 264) 165 Cardinals instead of Multiplicatives ( 265) 166 Ordinals Fractional Numerals ( 266) 166 sviii CONTENTS PAGE Ordinals followed by " Some " ( 267) 167 The Pronouns Personal Pronouns 167 Omission of the Pronoun ( 268) The Imperative ( 269) 167 The Pronoun must be supplied from the Context ( 270) . . 168 The Pronoun omitted in the Second of Two Co-ordinate Sentences ( 271) 168 The Pronoun omitted in the Subordinate Sentence ($ 272) . 170 The Pronoun supplied from the Oblique Case ( 273) ... 171 " I pray to God me graunt this bone " ( 274) 172 The Object Pronoun omitted ( 275) 173 Use of " We" instead of "/" ( 276) 173 " Thou " and " You " ( 277278) 174 Use of "//"'( 279) 176 " It" is used as predicate of any Gender or Person with the Verb "/0A?"(28o) 176 "//"instead of "There" (281) 178 " It is" emphasizing Nouns and Sentences ( 282) 178 "//" used redundantly ( 283) 179 Pleonastic Use of the Personal Pronoun ( 284) The Pronoun precedes the Noun ( 285) 180 The Pronoun follows the Noun ( 286) 181 The Personal Pronoun used redundantly in Complex Sentences ( 287-289). The Emphatic Pronoun The Personal Pronoun strengthened by " Self" ( 290) ... 183 'Self" used appositively ( 291) 183 ' Self in Connection with the Dative ( 292) 183 ' Self" as a Subject ( 293294) 184 ' Himself" as Subject ( 295) 185 ' Afyself" ( 296) 186 'Seff' in Connection with a Pronoun as Object (297 298) 187 The Reflexive Pronoun ( 299300) 1 88 The Possessive Pronoun " The fall of 'Him'" (301) 189 Relative referring to a Possessive Pronoun ( 302) 189 " Both their hope) " ( 303) 190 The Possessive Pronoun before Substantival Adjectives ( 304) 190 The Possessive Pronoun preceded by a Demonstrative one ( 3<>5) 191 " My Lord " ( 306) 191 The Possessive Pronoun used indefinitely ( 307) 191 " His " instead of the Genitive Case ( 308) 192 " I did it in my defending " ( 309) 193 The Possessive Pronoun emphasized (310) 193 "Of Mine" (3U) 194 CONTENTS xix PAGE The Possessive Pronoun used Substantively ( 312) . . . .194 The Dative of the Personal Pronoun instead of the Possessive Pronoun (313) 196 The Demonstrative Pronoun General Remark ( 314) 196 An" (one) used as a Demonstrative ( 315) 196 Sum " used in a Demonstrative Sense (316) 1 196 These Seven Years " ( 3 1 7) .... 197 Ere this" (318) 197 This" and " That" (319) 197 That" = " 77/e " ( 320) 198 That ' in Connection with the Genitive ( 321) 198 Such " as a Demonstrative Pronoun ( 322) 199 The Same " instead of the Personal Pronoun ( 323) . . . 200 The Interrogative Pronoun What " used Substantively ( 324) 200 What" Referring to Persons ( 325) 201 What" used Adjectively ( 326) 202 What " as an Exclamation ( 327) 202 Who is Who " ( 328) 203 The Relative Pronoun Origin ( 329) 203 The Demonstrative Pronoun ( 330-332) 204 "Swd" (333) 205 " Swilc " = Such ( 334) 206 Interrogative Pronouns used as Relatives ( 335-336) . . . 207 The Verb- Impersonal Verbs ( 337-338) 208 Intransitive, Transitive and Reflexive Verbs ( 339) 209 Transitive and Intransitive Verbs Interchanged (340-344) . 211 Transitive Verbs used in a Reflexive and Passive Sense ( 345-346) 216 Auxiliary Verbs Functions of the Auxiliary Verbs ( 347) 218 A" (348) 218 1 Have" (349) 219 ' "'///" (350) 220 Z^"(35i) 220 '-00 "(352-354) 221 'Stand" (355) 222 ' Shall" and " Will" used Elliptically ( 356) 222 ' Shall" and " IVill" forming the Future Tense ( 357) . . 222 ' Should" with Infinitive instead of the Subjunctive Preterite (358) 223 ".May "(359) 223 Voice Relation between Reflexive and Passive ( 360-362^ .... 224 Passive of Verbs with a Double Object ( 363) 225 xx CONTENTS PAGE Passive of the Infinitive ( 364-365) 226 Tense The Present Tense ( 366-367) 228 The Historical Present ( 368) 229 " 1 have got" = I have ( 369) 229 The Preterite and the Perfect Tenses ( 370) 230 Sequence of the Tenses ("consecutio temporum ") (371) . . 230 The Present instead of the Preterite Tense ( 372) 230 The Preterite instead of the Past Perfect Tense ( 373) ... 231 Past instead of the Present Tense (374-375) 232 Mood Development of Mood ( 376) 234 The Preterite instead of the Present ( 377-379) 234 Clauses implying Unreality ( 377) 234 Noun Clauses dependent on Impersonal Verbs ( 578) . . . 235 Noun Clauses after Verbs expressing Wish ( 379) 235 The Decay of the Subjunctive Mood( 380 391) The Subjunctive in Principal Sentences ( 381) 236 The Subjunctive in Dependent Clauses ( 382 391) . . . 237 The Subjunctive in Noun Clauses (especially Indirect Asser- tion, Oratio Obliqua) ( 382) 237 The Subjunctive in Clauses expressing Wish or Command (3,83) 238 T he Subjunctive in (Indefinite) Adjective Clauses ( 384) . . 239 The Subjunctive in Adverbial Clauses ( 385 391) .... 240 Clauses of Place ( 385) 240 Clauses of Time especially in a Future and Indefinite Sense ( 386) 241 Clauses of Manner (with a Sense of Reality) ( 387) .... 242 Clauses of Manner (with a Sense of Unreality) ( 388) . . . 243 Clauses of Condition (supposed as unreal) ( 389) 244 Concessive Clauses (supposed as real) ( 390) 245 Final Clauses (391) 246 The Infinitive The Simple and Gerundial Infinitive ( 392393) .... 247 " To " after Auxiliaries ( 394) 248 For to ( 395) 248 Functions of the Infinitive General Remark ( 396) 249 Infinitive instead of the (modern) Gerund ( 397) 249 Infinitive used instead of a whole Clause ( 398) 250 The Absolute Infinitive ( 399400) 250 The Accusative with the Infinitive ( 401 405) 253 The Nominative with the Infinitive ( 406) 255 The Participles Voice of the Participles ( 407408) 256 The Absolute Participle ( 409412) 257 The Verbal Noun Functions of the Verbal Noun ( 413) 259 CONTENTS xxi PAGE The Verbal Noun used Substantively (414) 260 The Verbal disguised as a Predicate (4151 260 The Verbal Noun preceded by Prepositions (>j 416 417) . 261 Verbal Noun interchanged with the Present Participle ( 418419) 262 The Verbal Noun in Compounds ( 420) 264 The Adverb Relation between Adjective and Adverb (421) 265 Adverbs used in the form of Adjectives ( 422 423). . . . 266 Adverbs used as Adjectives ( 424) 266 The Prepositions Close Relations between Prepositions and Conjunctions ( 425) 268 Development from Local to Temporal and Modal Meaning ( 426) 269 The Prepositions make up for the Case-ending; ( 427-432) . 270 "Of" replacing the Genitive ( 428) 270 " To " replacing the Objective Genitive ( 429) 271 " To " replacing ; the Dative ( 430) 271 " With" replacing the Instrumental Case ( 431 432) . . 272 Prepositions introducing the Agent( in Passive Constructions) (433435) 273 "for" + Accusative and Infinitive ( 436) 275 " With" in Connection with Participles ( 437) 276 Prepositions omitted ? ( 438442) 276 Dependent Prepositions ( 443) 278 The Conjunction^ Development from the Concrete to the Abstract ( 444) . . . 279 Relation between Preposition and Conjunction ( 445) . . . 279 " A nd" used redundantly (446) 280 " That" used redundantly ( 447) 281 " That " used as a Substitute for other Conjunctions ( 448) . 281 PART III ORDER OF WORDS General Remarks ( 449) 285 Subject and Predicate ( 450) 286 Inversion ( 451-458) 286 Place of the Verb in Clauses ( 459) . 290 Position of the Object (460-461) ... 291 Place of the Attributive Determinant Place of the Article ( 462) . 293 Place of the Numerals ( 463) 293 xx:i CONTENTS PAGE Place of the Adjective (464-465) 294 Adjectives separated from their Adverbial Determinants ( 466) 295 Place of the Possessive Pronoun ( 467) 296 Place of the Preposition ( 468) 296 Apposition ( 469) 298 Place of the Adverbial Determinants ( 470) 299 Arrangement of Words in Contracted Sentences General Remark (471) 300 Two Adjectives and one Noun ( 472) 300 Two Subjects and one Predicate ( 473) 301 One Verb and two Objects ( 474) 301 One Object governed by two Verbs ( 475) 302 Chiastic Arrangement of Words ( 476) 302 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION. PERIODS OF ENGLISH SYNTAX. Internal Development of Syntax ( 477) 303 External Influence ( 478) 304 Latin Influence ( 479) 306 French Influence ( 480) 307 Periods of English Syntax ( 481) 310 Old English ( 482) 311 Middle English ( 483) 312 Modern English ( 484) 315 HISTORICAL OUTLINES ENGLISH SYNTAX INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION THE OBJECT OF SYNTAX i. SYNTAX is divided into three parts : i, Syntax of the sentence. 2, Syntax of the parts of speech. 3, Order of words. 2. Phonetics deal for the most part with the physical and physiological side of human speech ; they show how sounds, the primitive elements of every language, are from time to time modified by various causes. Accidence and syntax have but little to do with physical facts only so far as changes of sounds exercise influence on them. The proper department of accidence and syntax is to study psychical processes as they reveal themselves in the structure of human speech. A strictly scientific treatment of grammar would not deal with accidence and syntax separately, but would treat them as one subject as a whole. All gramma- tical forms are the outcome of syntactic relations, and every syntactical fact is most closely connected and interwoven with the elements of inflexion. Thus, for instance, every case-ending expresses a certain syntactic relation, every finite verbal form represents syntactic constructions. On the other hand, every loss in the department of accidence, that is, every falling away of inflexion, is followed by some new syntactical formation, as for instance, the decay B 2 4 ENGLISH SYNTAX of mood-endings brought in the use of auxiliaries as their substitute. 3. At present, however, there is no hope of this model of a scientific grammar being realised. As it is, we must be satisfied with two separate divisions of grammar (accidence and syntax). In accidence we deal simply with grammatical forms, while in syntax we treat of the functions and relations of those forms, and show how, when these forms decay, new syntactical relations replace them. This is by far the most important part of syntax. 4. But the parts of speech and their grammatical functions are always dependent on the place which they occupy in the sentence. Thus a substantive is often turned into an ad- jective, and vice versa, e.g. exerdtus victor (Livy), the traitour servant = the treacherous servant (Gesta Romanorum, p. 316); "and when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake " (Matthew, ix. 33). It is, therefore, from the sentence and its growth that we must start in studying the history of English syntax, and the subject will be treated accordingly in the following divisions : I. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE. II. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH. III. ORDER OF WORDS. THE STUDY OF SYNTAX 5. The historical study of English syntax is of so recent a date, and so little has been done in this department of grammar, that we must give several pages to what would be considered superfluous in any other branch of philology, namely, to the explanation of the method followed in this book. INTROD UC 77OJV 5 For this purpose, and as we shall have frequent occasion to refer to old English as opposed to modern English, we start from King Alfred's introduction to his translation of Gregory's Pastoral Care. Alfred kyning hateS gretan King Alfred bids greet bishop Wser- WcerferS biscep his wordum luflice ferth with his words lovingly and with & freondlice ; friendship ; & Se kyCan hate pact mecomsuiSe 4 and I let it be known to thee that it oft on gemynd, has very often come into my mind, hwelce wutan gio waeron geond what wise men there formerly were Angelcynn, segSer ge godcundra throughout England, both of sacred hada ge woruldcundra ; Sand secular orders ; & hu gesseliglica tida J)a waaron and how happy times there were then geond Angelcynn ; throughout England ; & hu pa kyningas ]>e Cone anwald and how the kings who had the power hsefdon tSaes folces Code & his 12 over the nation obeyed God and his aerendwrecum hirsumedon ; ministers ; & hu hi aegSer ge hiora sibbe ge and how they preserved peace, moral - hiora sido ge hiora anwald innan- ity, and order at home, bordes gehioldon, & eac ut hiora 1 6 and at the same time enlarged their oeSel rymdon ; territory abroad ; & hu him Sa speow asgSer ge mid and how they prospered both with wige ge mid wisdome ; war and with wisdom ; & eac $a godcundan hadas hu ge-aoand also the sacred orders how zeal- orne hie waeron aegSer ge ymb ous they were both in teaching and lare ge ymb leornunga, & ymb learning, and in all the services they ealle pa Ceowutdomas pe hie Gode owed to God ; don sceoldon ; 24 & hu mon utanbordes wisdom & and how foreigners came to this land lare hider on lond sohte, & hu we in search of wisdom and instruction, hi nu sceoldon ute begietan gif and how we should now have to get we hie habban sceoldon. 28 them from abroad if we were to have them. Swa claene hio waes oSfeallenu on So general was its decay in England Angelkynne Ssette swiSe feawe that there were very few on this side waeron behionan Humbre pe hiora of the Humber who could understand Senunga cuSen understandan on 32 their rituals in English, or even trans- Englisc, oftSe furSum an asrend- late a letter from Latin into English ; gewrit of Laedene on Englisc areccan ; & ic wene Saette nauht monige 36 and I believe that there were not many begeondan Humbre naaren. beyond the Humber. Swa feawe hiora wseron Saette ic There were so few of them that I can- furSum anne anlepne ne maeg ge- not remember even a single one south ftencean besuSan Temese fta Sa4Oof the Thames when I came to the ic to rice feng. throne. 6 ENGLISH SYNTAX Code aelmiehtegum si Sonc Saette Thanks be to God Almighty that we we nu aenigne onstal habbaS have any supply of teachers among us lareowa. 44 now. ForSam ic Se bebeode Saet Su And therefore I command thee to do doo swa ic gelife Saet Su wille, as I believe thou art willing, to dis- Saet Su Se Jdssa woruldSinga to engage thyself from worldly matters \>xm geaemettige swa Su oftost 48 as often as thou canst, that thou may- maege, Saet Su Sone wisdom j>e Se est apply the wisdom which God has God sealde Saer Saer Su hine be- given thee wherever thou canst. frestan maege, befaeste. GeSenc hwelc witu us ):a becomon5 2 Consider what punishments came for Sisse worulde, ^a );a we hit upon us on account of this world, nohwasSer ne selfe ne lufedon ne when we neither loved it ourselves eac oSrum monnum ne lifdon : nor suffered other men to love it : Sone naman anne we haefdon 56 we had the name only of Christians, Saette we Cristene waeron, & swiSe and very few of the virtues. feawe J>a Seawas. Sa ic j>a Sis call gemunde Sa ge- When I considered all this, I remem- munde ic eac hu ic geseah, aer-6obered also how I saw, before it had J>aemJ>e hit call forheregod waere been all ravaged and burnt, & forbaemed, hu ]>& cirican geond call Angel- how the churches throughout the kynn stodon maSma and boca 64 whole of England stood filled with gefylda treasures and books, & eac micel menigu Codes Seowa and there was also a great multitude & J>a swiSe lytle feorme 3ara boca of God's servants, but they had very wiston, for {jaem^e hie heora nan 68 little benefit from the books, for wuht ongietan ne meahton, for they could not understand anything of )>aemj)e hie naeron on hiora aegen them, because they were not written geSeode awritene. in their own language. Swelce hie cwaeden : " Ure ieldran, 72 As if they had said: "Our fore- Sa ]>e Sas stowa aer hioldon, hie fathers, who formerly held these places, lufedon wisdom & Surh Sone hi loved wisdom, and through it they ob- begeaton welan & us laefdon. tained wealth and bequeathed it to us. Her mon maeg giet gesion hiora 76 In this we can still see their tracks, swaeS, ac we him ne cunnon aefter- but we cannot follow them, there- spyrigan, forSaem we habbatJ nu fore we have lost both the wealth aegSer forlaeten ge )>one welan ge and the wisdom, because we would J>one wisdom, for&amfe we noldon 80 not incline our hearts after their ex- to tfaem spore mid ure mode on- ample." lutan." Sa ic )>a Sis call gemunde, j^ wun- When I considered all this, I won- drode ic swiSe swiSe )>ara godena 84 dered extremely that the good and witena J>e giu waeron geond An- wise men who were formerly all over gelcynn & }>a bee befullan ealla England, and had perfectly learnt all geleornod haefdon, J.aet hi hiora J>a the books, did not wish to translate nanne dael noldon on hiora segen 88 them into their own language. geSiode wendan. Ac ic ))a sona eft me selfum and- But again I soon answered myself and INTRODUCTION wyrde cwasS : " Hie ne wendon J}ette sefre men sceoldon swa rec- 92 celease weorSan & sio lar swa oS- feallan ; for Ssere wilnunga hi hit forleton, & woldon 8ast her ]>y mara wisdom on londe wsere Sy 96 we ma geSioda cufton." Sa gemunde ic hu sio as wass serest on Ebreisc geSiode funden, & eft, j/a jia hie Crecas geleornodon, )>a 100 wendon hi hie on hiora segen geSi- ode ealle, & eac ealle oSre bee. And eft Laedenware swa same, si$$an hi hie geleornodon, hi hie 104 wendon ealla Surh wise wealh- stodas on hiora agen geSeode. & eac ealla oftra Cristena Sioda sumne dsel hiora on hiora agen 108 geSiode wendon, ForSy me SyncSbetre, gif iow swa SyncS, J>aet we eac suma bee, $a ]>e nidbeSyrfesta sien eallum monnum 112 to witanne, |>aet we pa on Sset ge- Seode wenden )>e we ealle gecnaw- an msegen... said : ' ' They did not think that men would ever be so careless, and that learning would so decay ; through that desire they abstained from it, and they wished that the wisdom in this land might increase with our knowledge of languages." Then I remembered how the law was first known in Hebrew, and again, when the Greeks had learnt it, they translated the whole of it into their own language, and all other books besides. And again the Romans when they had learnt it, they translated the whole of it through learned interpre- ters into their own language. And also all other Christian nations translated a part of them into their own language. Therefore it seems better to me, if ye think so, for us also to translate some books which are most needful for all men to know into the language which we can all understand... King Alfreds West-Saxon Version of Gregory's "Pastoral Care" (ed. Sweet). E. E. Text Soc. 1871, pp. 1-6. The general impression which this piece of original Old English prose produces on the modern reader is that of clumsiness, or even slipshod English. But which are the elements that make this impression ? 6. First of all it is the structure of the sentences, a certain disproportion between the phrases and the ideas which they serve to convey. The first thought which struck Alfred, and which he wants to express, is the contrast between what had been before and what was in his time. Now, Alfred makes it rather difficult for his reader to find out that this is the idea he wants to convey, for after describing England's welfare and learning of former times in seven subsequent clauses dependent on one principal sentence (me com on 8 ENGLISH SYNTAX gemynd), all of a sudden the drift of the sentence is changed, and the eighth and last clause (and hu we hi nu sceoldon tite begietan), though syntactically running shoulder to shoulder with the preceding clauses, is intended abruptly to introduce the reader to the decay of the later periods. 7. Looking at the whole of the introduction we are struck by a similar absence of proportion. Alfred wants to explain how he came to translate the Pastoral Care. First he remembered the glorious past (lines 1-26), and was sorry for the decay of his own times (lines 2741) ; secondly, he was astonished that the scholars of the former ages had not cared to translate the works of learning from foreign languages into the vernacular (lines 8388), but accounted for it by the fact that learning had been so common in England at that time that the scholars did not think of the possibility of such an utter decay (lines 89-97) ; lastly, he remembered that the Holy Bible itself is but a translation (lines 98-109) ; and thus he feels encouraged and authorised to venture the attempt at turning into English this work of Gregory's (lines 110114). But the flow of these simple ideas is checked by interruptions with- out any outward marks (conjunctions), to show whether the connection between the phrases be that of cause, consequence, contrast, &c. Again, how easily one con- struction, even within the same sentence, is given up for another ! Look at the very first lines : Alfred begins by speaking of himself as of a third person (Alfred greteft, &c.) ; but even in line 3 the construction is changed : if, &c. (lines 3, 4) ; cf. also line 98 : the con- struction begins as a clause (hu sio a, &c., lines 98, 99), dependent on e ealne Sone wisdom Saera uferrena gasta oferstigt? & ser worlde ricsode on hefonum, hit is awrilen on Seem godspelle, Judeas comon & woldon hine don nidenga to kyninge. (He who surpasses all the wisdom of the higher spirits, and reigned in heaven before the world was, it is written in the Gospel, the Jews came and wished to make him king by force). Gregory's Pastoral Care, p. 32. )>a cuaedon hie J>set hie hie J>ses ne onmunden ]>on ma J;e eowre geferan J>e mid j>am cyninge ofslsegene wserun. ( They said moreover that they should mind that [offer] " no more than &id.your mates who were slain with the king." Chronicle, a. 755. 9. Hitherto we have dealt merely with the philological facts. But how are we to account for them in a psycho- logical way ? The syntax of older periods is natural, na'if, that is, it follows much more closely the drift of the ideas, of mental images ; the diction, therefore, looks as if it were extemporised, as if written on the spur of the moment, while modern syntax, fettered by logic, is artificial, the result of literary tradition, and therefore far from being a true mirror of what is going on in the mind. Alfred changes his construction in consequence of every change going on in his mind, while in a modern author the flow of the ideas is checked by the ready pattern of the syntactical constructior io ENGLISH SYNTAX The same psychological law of development from natural to artificial expression is seen in the constant procession from the concrete to the abstract, or, as Mr. Earle has it, ' from the more to the less material, palpable, or sensible ; towards that which is remoter from the senses and more re- presentative of mental operations.' 1 Striking instances of this change are offered by the deve- lopment of the articles a (an), and the, from what was originally a numeral and a demonstrative pronoun. For other instances see below, p. 18. In the study of syntax psychology must be consulted throughout. io. Another help which the students of syntax cannot do without is popular talk, It is obvious to every close observer of vulgar and colloquial talk that there is the greatest resemblance be- tween the syntax of the older periods and that of the " people " of our own days. In old English as well as in modern rustic talk the syntax is natural, while the literary language of modern times is an artificial, and, to a certain extent, a foreign plant. From this point of view, in the study of English syntax, the vulgar talk cannot be overlooked, nay, but for the difficulty of getting trust- worthy materials, we ought, in discussing the evolution of syntax, to start from the rustic talk, just as a botanist in dealing with the evolution of the strawberry, will not take the artificial fruit, but the wild strawberry of the wood as the starting point of his study. What, therefore, is the only course open before us ? ii. In studying the evolution of English syntax, our first object must be to find out what was the original form of syntactical combination, when sentences came fresh from the mind as images of psychical operations, and then to 1 English Prose, its Elements, History, and Usage. London, 1890. INTRODUCTION n learn by what circumstances they became what they are now. In solving these difficulties we must call in the aid of psychology, history, and popular talk. 12. A few instances will show how these three aids may be used in explaining syntactical facts. " These kind of knaves I know, which in this plainness Harbour more craft and more corrupter ends Than twenty silly ducking observants That stretch their duties nicely. " Lear, ii. 2, 107. How is the plural these in the passage quoted to be ex- plained? It admits of no logical explication. One feels tempted to consider " kind " as a collective noun so that it would rightly be connected with an attributive in the plural. There are, however, no other instances of such an irregularity ; it is only the verb predicate which is constructed Kara (rwecriv (according to the sense), e.g. the family were assembled ; but " these family " would be absolutely incorrect. In fact, the phrase as it stands by itself can hardly be explained. Now, if we turn to Old and Middle English Literature, we find quite a different expression. The phrase " all kinds of man " went through the following stages : 1. A lies cynnes men (omnis generis homines), (Old and Middle English). But the genitive-endings of adjectives became disused es in alles was dropped, or it was no longer understood. Hence we have : 2. A lie kynnes men, or alle skynnes men. Chaucer, House of Fame, 440. Then the English cyn was replaced by the Romance maner, and then the expression became : 3. All maner men, and lastly, 4. All maner of men. 12 ENGLISH SYNTAX So far history helps us. But how are we to account for the unexpected appearance of the preposition of? Here history fails us, and psychology comes to our assistance. The new expression is the result of a new psychical process. In Old English as well as in Old Norse, the conception with regard to this expression was quite different from what it is now. Whenever people were thinking about a certain class of things, it was the things which were prominent in their minds, while the class to which the things belonged came after as an accessory quality, as an attribute. If, therefore, they wanted to say " all sorts of worms," they put it in a different and more concrete way than we do; they said "worms of every kind," alles cunnes wormes. The more abstract expression, however, came in as early as the thirteenth century, so that both conceptions were in use at the same time; but, later on, the modern one prevailed, but still without wholly supplanting the older use. The concrete conception never wholly disappeared, and we are not at all astonished that it should re-occur in Shakspere, though in a somewhat modern and altered garb. It is only the plural of these which shows that Shakspere's conception was just as concrete as that of the Old English alles cynnes men, or the Latin omnis generis homines. 13. We will take another example ' ' I should like to know who is to prevent me marrying Lady Anne Newcome's daughter?" THACKERAY, The New comes, ii. 249. Orthodox grammarians, no doubt, will condemn this expression as vulgar, but there is the authority of Thackeray and other writers to recommend it, and the tyrant "Usage" seems to favour it more and more now. INTRODUCTION 13 Who is right, the grammarian who calls it vulgar, or the tyrant Usage? If ancestors make nobility, the expression is certainly not vulgar, for there are several unmistakable instances of it in Caxton. But how do we account for the change of idiom from me to my? It is psychology again which supplies us with the explanation. In the older periods of English, writers and speakers looked upon the person or thing acting as a real subject of perception, feeling, or thought, and not upon the abstract action or state. We find in the Old English Miscellanies as well as in Wyclif, "against the rising sun " = at sunrise ; " after the sunne goyng down " = after sunset, just as we have in Latin Augusta regnante = during Augustus' reign. This conception, in fact, kept on for a long time, and has not quite disappeared. Hence the following expressions : "They set him free, without his ransom paid." I Henry VI. iii. 3, 72. " Nor delay'd the winged Saint After his charge received." MILTON, Paradise Lost, v. 248. But while this usage was the rule in the older periods, and is still a favourite among common people and poets, in literary language it soon began to decay, and the verbal noun took the place of the old present participle. Thus Purvey alters the instance quoted above, to " aftir the going down of the sunne." Cf. Exod. xxii. 26, Deuteronomy xi. 30. From this point of view we can satisfactorily explain the syntactical doublets of me and my in connection with verbal forms in -ing. The former is certainly the older expression and more natural, the latter is abstract and, in fact, more consistent with los;ic. 14 ENGLISH SYNTAX SOME PRINCIPLES OF SYNTAX. 14. We have seen that psychical or mental processes are the chief causes of growth and change of all syntax. There are then the same difficulties in regard to syntax as to psychology, but great light has been thrown upon syntax by the admirable results of modern psychology. Innumerable and recondite are the causes which are at work in creating and destroying syntactical formations, and it will scarcely ever be possible to bring syntax under strict laws. But from the many facts, which are furnished by historical and comparative grammar, we are able to deduce at least a few leading principles. 15. Analogy. It is one of the fundamental laws of psy- chology that every word, as well as every ending, and every combination of words, is connected in our minds with other words. All the store of our linguistic acquirements is thus divided into groups. Hence, every word we learn associates itself with some group according to certain psychological laws of similarity, contrast, &c. Thus the verbs bind, find, wind, are associated in our mind as one group, the link being the same gradation of vowels in the conjugation (ablaut] ; the words young and old, poor and rich, good and bad call up one another in the memory on account of the contrast existing between them. Now, there are not only groups of words, but also groups of combinations, syntactical groups. Thus every transitive verb is associated with the idea of an object, e.g. to write a letter, so all transitive verbs form the group "verb -f object." A genitive usually requires an- other substantive ; every subject is followed by a predicate, &c. These are syntactical groups. 1 6. The growth and decline of all syntax is influenced more or less by means of these groups. Every syntactic INTRODUCTION 15 combination must belong to one or other of them, just as every word must associate itself with a formal and significant group. Now there are certain groups fixed by ancient usage, as : 1. Subject + predicate. 2. Singular subject + singular predicate. 3. Plural subject -f plural predicate. 4. Adjective -f substantive. 5. Adverb + verb. 6. Transitive verb + object, &c., and if a new combination is in accordance with any one of them, we say that it agrees with the common use, 17. But a combination may differ from one of the traditional syntactical groups, as for instance in the phrase 'I am friends with him,' a strange deviation from the group "singular subject + singular predicate." How do we account for this irregularity ? In this case, as in many others, the irregular combination proved stronger than the regular and grammatical group, and the new and free combination took the place of the common phrase, "/ and he cire friends" without which the ungram- matical expression " I am friends with him " would not have arisen. English syntax exhibits a great many instances of such deviations from the ordinary grammatical groups. A tivo-penny loaf, a two-foot rule, a three-shilling novel, are gross sins against one of the first rules of concord, but the analogy of the unit, viz. " a penny-loaf, a shilling-novel," and the analogy of such expressions as "two foot six," "five fathom," " a thousand pound," proved of greater force than the general rule. The phrase " in his heart of hearts " is from a logical point of view nonsensical, but it is the analogy of the superlative 1 6 ENGLISH SYNTAX genitive which accounts for the expression. We say "the song of songs," " the heaven of heavens," " the king of kings," meaning to express by it the highest quality ; hence " in his heart of hearts " = in his very heart. There is only one opinion among grammarians with re- gard to hisself (" He may make hisself easy." Dickens, Pick- wick ii. 55). They all condemn it as utterly vulgar. Here again the common talk is, psychologically, quite accurate. Analogy is no doubt in favour of hisself and theirselves. In fact several attempts were made in Middle English to follow the analogy of myself throughout, and Roger Ascham uses theirselfe. But the modern themselves, which is of later origin (sixteenth century), and is neither logically nor psychologic- ally right, prevails. For a full account of this, see 290-298. 1 8. Another effect of analogy is mixed construction, that is, an expression vacillating between the analogies of two groups, and showing the influence of both. The following passages exhibit an instructive instance of such construction. ' ' But of all Fraunce I am one of the best and truest knyght that be in it." CAXTON, Aymon, 272/23. This odd expression is the result of two constructions : One the best knyght ; One of the best knyghtes. Result : One of the best knyght. Thus we find also in the Romance of Melusine (about 1500) : ''how they had to name" (p. 120), made up of the two constructions : How they were called ; What they had to name. As a more modern instance we may take the phrase : "A child of three years old " (a child of three years + a child three years old). INTRODUCTION \} The expression " these kind of knaves " (Lear), which was explained above, 12, is in a manner also the result of two different combinations. 1 9. A second factor, of great weight, is the decay of formal endings ; apart from the well-known fact that the great im- portance of prepositions and auxiliaries in Modern English is due to the decay of case and verbal endings. The above- quoted text of King Alfred's exhibits several instances of this sort. "His wordum" for instance, is an instrumental case ; in Modern English we must say with his words. "Freondlice " is an adverb by virtue of the final -e, but this having disappeared in Modern English, we must render it by saying " in a friendly way," or (as Dr. Sweet does) "with friendship." In addition to this there are many other instances that illustrate the close relation between changes in the department of accidence and syntactical expression. A striking instance of this kind is the passive of intransitive verbs. An expression like " I was answered" would have been impossible in Old English, and it is unknown in Modern German. In English it was brought about by the decay of the case-ending. The -e of the dative being dropped, the dative was no longer distinguished from the accusative ; and the object governed by verbs like answer, command was consequently looked upon as an accusative case, and treated as such, so that it became capable of the passive construction. Another outcome of the same decay was the decrease of impersonal verbs. We are so used to expressions like " as I please," that their gram- matical irregularity escapes notice altogether. We are sur- prised at such a p*hrase as " I am woe," = woe is me (Chaucer, Shakspere), which arises out of the same construction as the expression "as I please " = it pleases me. Both originated with the decay of the dative-ending. In such instances as " Wo was this king " (Chaucer), an indirect object was mis- taken for the nominative case. See Nominative, 151. C 1 8 ENGLISH S YNTAX 20. Concrete combinations supplanted by abstract ones. The constant transition from the concrete to the abstract, accounts for many changes in the department of syntax. 21. The plural of abstract substantives, even when no more than one person was referred to, which was very fre- quent in older periods, becomes rare in modern English. We cannot say mights, strengths, which were quite common in Old- and Middle-English. This change of usage is ac- counted for by the fact that abstract nouns were not quite the same thing in the older periods as they are now. In the Gothic instance " mahtins mikilos gatavidedum " (we did powerful things, Matth. vii. 22), mahts is not exactly power, but something powerful. 22. The so-called absolute participle was by no means felt as such in Old Teutonic times, nor was it appre- hended as an isolated expression by the early Romans ; for then the concrete active subject was present in the mind of the speaker, not action itself as an abstract. Hence Latin post urbem conditam instead of post urbis conditionem, hence in Old English him lifigendum (he living) instead of "in his lifetime." Cf. below, 409-412. 23. The change of the older expression "pardon me doing so and so," into the modern " pardon my doing," is explained by the same principle. The use of the adjective instead of the adverb in such phrases as " slow and sure comes up the golden year " (Tennyson) is in all probability due to the same conception, language preferring to qualify the concrete substantive rather than the abstract verb. Cf. 423- 24. What was formerly called prolepsis, or redundant object, is simply an interesting remnant of the old concrete way of forming noun-clauses. We now say " he saw that the work was good," the noun-clause being apprehended as INTRODUCTION 19 abstract ; but the biblical expression "he saw the work that it was good," is psychologically the only correct one. Cf. 94- 25. Anacoluthic expression, i.e. a sentence begun in one way and finished in another not syntactically accord- ant ( 9) is frequently met with in the older periods of English. We have seen above ( 9) that language cannot follow the swiftness of thought, or (to use Herbert Spencer's metaphor) that there are frictions which the vehicle of thought, that is, human speech, has to overcome. And out of these frictions come all anacoluthic or incoherent ex- pressions. In good prose we avoid anacolutha by con- sciously stopping the swift flow of thought, but in a state of excitement, when reflection gives way to unconsciousness, or when we are overwhelmed by new ideas, we lose the control over our minds, and then we speak in an incoherent anacoluthic way, one thought following another before any of them is quite completed. In fact, the history of syntax shows that the anacoluthon is peculiar to the older periods of the language, to common unreflecting talk, and last but not least to poetry. The following instances will illustrate this use. The author of the Ancren Riwle (A.D. 1200- 1220), telling her readers of the martyrdom of Christ, says : "Auh perof nimeS 5eme, mine leoue sustren, pet ower deorewurfte spus, pe luuewurSe lauerd & helinde of heouene, Jesu, Codes sune, pe weldinde of the worlde, J>eo he was pus ileten blod, understonde'S hwuc was his diete pet dei." (But take heed of this, my dear sisters, that your dear spouse, the loveworthy lord and saviour of heaven, Jesus, the son of God, the ruler of the world, though he was thus let blood understand what was his diet that day.) p. 1 1 2. The Gesta Romanorum (A.D. 1440) has the following passage : " So aftirward whenne the knyght was on his bed, and grete labour pat he hadde on the day afore made him to slepe hard, and alle pe tyme C 2 20 ENGLISH SYNTAX J>e tode had folowed him after. And whenne the knyght was aslepe, }>e toode enteryd into his bed " (p. 5). The older construction of the adjective clause is an in- structive instance of anacoluthon in older periods. See 112-119. 26. Economy (Ellipsis). Ellipsis is a kind of compensa- tion for the slowness of speech, a kind of economy in the use of linguistic elements. The term ellipsis, which has played such an important part in old descriptive grammars, has led to so many absurdities and abuses, that a very strong feeling against it prevails among scholars who follow the modern historical study of speech, or have been trained in the modern science of language. They are inclined to deny elliptic expressions altogether. But in this they are certainly wrong. Not only psychology and daily speech, but also historical syntax proves the existence of ellipsis. When one is asking for a railway ticket at the booking-office and says "Brixton, second, single" who would hesitate to call this an omission of several words, that is, an ellipsis ? Of course the omission is not always so evident as in the example we have quoted, and there may be sometimes other psychological influences at work in ellip- tical expressions where we are tempted to use economy of speech, as for instance in the omission of the copula ("omnia pradara rara" " first come first served ") ; but the example cited above clearly proves the existence of ellipsis in the department of syntax, just as in the formation of words. 27. Psychologically, ellipsis arises in two different ways ; first, as the spoken words are too slow to follow thought, we often omit a word or phrase, when it can be done without injury to the meaning of what we want to say, and some- times even when the word or phrase cannot well be spared, when we are too preoccupied by our ideas to have regard for the hearer. It is just the same as omitting or abbreviat- ing words in writing, a fact which everybody will admit. INTRODUCTION 21 28. Secondly, it often arises from anxiety to secure the hearer's or reader's attention. We know by experience that brevity is not only the soul of wit, but also one of the principal means of drawing attention to what we say or write, and we endeavour therefore to make the recipient follow us with the least possible expenditure of words. 29. The syntax of English speech offers many examples of ellipsis. A few instances will suffice. The so-called elliptic genitive, "he is at a friend's," (sc. house) is of a comparatively recent date. But there are parallel expressions in Latin and Old Norse. Cf. ad Martis (sc. templum\ ex Apollodori (sc. libra). At Heimis (in the house of Heimir), at Aegis, &c. (Edda). It is also ellipsis which causes adjectives to become sub- stantives, cf. the rich and poor, the Almighty, &c. Verbs which were usually transitive, may become intransi- tive through ellipsis. Thus drive rnay become intransitive by omitting the object horse, as, " he drives slowly." Cf. appello (sc. naveni) = to land. 30. Tautology. Tautology, though the reverse of eco- nomy, is a principle of no less importance in the historical treatment of syntax. Of course, the same individual will never indulge in economy and tautology at one and the same time, but there are some occasions for omission, and there are others for tautology. 31. The first condition of ellipsis is, as we have seen, a certain degree of mutual understanding between the speaker and hearer. Tautology, on the contrary, usually occurs when the speaker is" not quite sure of his hearer's capacity or willingness to apprehend what he says ; then he empha- sizes his words by repeating them again and again. Tauto- logy is the natural vehicle of emphatic speech. 32. Old English poetry is full of tautology. Cf. "cyning wses aYyrhted, egsan geaclad :> (the king was afraid, terrified 22 ENGLISH SYNTAX with fear). Elene, 56, 57. Tautology of this kind is, of course, familiar to all. But apart from this tautology which is naturally found in every language and at every period, English speech is very rich in tautological expressions which have a different origin. The fact of two languages existing along with each other in the same country at the same time namely, of French and English, made tautology in Middle English a necessity. Often, when the author of the Ayenbite of Inwyt (A.D. 1340) used a French expression, and was not quite sure whether his readers would understand his meaning, he took care either to add an English word to the French, or to paraphrase the French word by several English terms when he could not find one that exactly conveyed the meaning of the French. The same method was followed by all the translators of Middle English, from Trevisa down to Caxton and Malory. During this period, authors as well as the reading public got so ac- customed to periphrastic expressions, that tautology became a fashion. What had been a sheer necessity at first, now became an ornament of speech. This is best seen by the fact that Pecock in his Represser, an original work, and Caxton in his own Prologues and Epilogues, indulge as much in unnecessary tautology as the translators who preceded them. Cf. Caxton's " as nyghe as I can or may" Blades, 139; "ended and fynished," ibid. 131; "new and late mad," 139; "faithful trewe servant," 133; "to bylde and edifye their habitation and dwelling" 184. 33. This fashion exercised its influence upon the syntax as well as upon the vocabulary of English speech. The double comparative, for instance, is due to tautology. It occurs very early, and was in use after the Elizabethan period. Cf. 254. The double use of the preposition, before and after the substantive, is due to the same principle. Cf. " in what array that I was inne " (Chaucer). In this instance INTRODUCTION 23 we are inclined to see a preposition in the first (in), and an adverb in the second (inne) ; but many instances with of prove that it is simply a tautology. Seeing how common this usage is, we are not surprised to find a double Genitive, of which we have unmistakable proofs. We find in the Story of Genesis and Exodus the following passage : "If his breSere of Hues ben," 2834. At a later period we find : " And the remnant for to kepe to the use of the husbondvs, of the seyde Isabell," Early English Wills, p. 103. "The Church re }>e noblest ryueres of al Europe." Trevisa, Higden's Polychronicon, i. 199. Caxton : " Other her gentyllwomen." Blanchardyn, 76, 31- SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 29 In modern English apposition has yielded much of its domain to the genitive, as in Old English ; but still it has held its ground in many cases when Old English required the genitive : "mcfSma fela" (many treasures). Beowulf, 36. Cf. below, 173-176. 40. c. In the following instances there is a striking want of concord between a noun and its apposition. "In his capacity as a justice." FIELDING, J. Andrews, ii. 3. According to the strict grammatical rule we should expect "as a justice's." But the want of concord which appears in this instance does not stand alone. In Latin we find such constructions as : " Sempronius causa ipse pro se dicta damnatur " ; " flumen Albim transcendit, longius penetrata Germania quam quisquam priorum " (Tacitus). This want of concord is universal in similar cases : " The assemblies of the senate displayed the abilities of Julian as an orator, and his maxims as a republican." GIBBON, Decline and Fall, xv. "Owen, whose probity and skill. ..rendered his services invaluable as ahandderk. SCOTT, Rob Roy, i. A still more striking inaccuracy is that exhibited in the following instances : " His top was dockud lik a preest biforn." CHAUCER, Canterbury Tales, Prologue, 590. " Hys necke he made lyke no man." Guy of Wanvick, I, 8054. Cf. Gower, Confessio Amantis, i. 261 ; Berners' Jfuon, 568, 22. "Mine (scil. opinions) as an honest man." MRS. WARD, Robert Elsmere, ii. 175. 30 ENGLISH SYNTAX " My work as a clergyman has suffered." Ibid. ii. 222. 41. The nominative instead of the dative occurs pretty often. ' ' To whom the loncl was attendant As he which heir was apparant." GOWER, Confessio Amanlis, i. 214. Another striking want of concord in the personal pronoun used appositively is recorded below, 156 and 209. " Sith that mine honour cowardly was stole by caitiff^." GEORGE PEELE (?), Sir Ciyomon and Sir Clamydes, p. 497, a. 42. d. The place of the apposition in Old and Middle English, is remarkable. Old English. " For Saxulfes luuen J>es abbodes " (for the love of the abbots). Chronicle, 656. Middle English. "Jurh daviftes muS J;e prophete" (through the mouth of David the prophet). Old English Horn. i. 139. 43. 3. A substantive in the possessive case, as " Milton's works." 44. 4. A substantive preceded by a preposition, as "the trees in the garden." This use is not frequent in the earlier periods. Old English. " Jjset synd )>a leohtan steorran on \am heofonlican rodore" (there are the bright stars in the sky). BASIL, ffexameron, 7. Middle English. " Bi j>cere sae stronde biside Scottlonde" (by the sea-strand near Scotland). LAYAM. ii. 94. 45. The use of an adverb instead of an adjective may be traced back to Middle English, but then the adverb always follows the noun. " My saulle lufes my lord abuf." T&wnley Myst. p. 82. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 31 46. But the adverb preceding the noun is of recent date and probably due to the influence of Greek. " The seed of the then world." BYRON, Cain, \. i. 47. 5. An adjective clause, as 'All things that offend.' Matth. xiii. 41. For the development of the adjective clause see 112-119. III. The Adverbial Relation. A. The Object. 48. The objective relation in modern English is perhaps the most striking instance of the influence exercised by the decay of inflexion on the department of syntax. There is in Modern English practically no barrier between the direct and indirect object, between the dative and the- accusative case, and this is the result of the decay of the old endings -e and -um, which first became -e and then were dropped altogether. It is only in certain cases, where both the direct and indirect object occur in the same phrase, that the indirect object is preceded by to. The syntactical consequences of this amalgamation are dealt with in their proper place. Change of the cases, 210. Impersonal verbs, 338. Passive Construction, 363. B. Other Adverbial Adjuncts. 49. i. The Adverb. 50. 2. The Noun in the oblique (objective) case is used to denote space, time, manner. In Old English these adverbial qualifications were for the most part expressed by the genitive, dative, and instru- mental cases. 32 ENGLISH SYNTAX 51. Genitive Case. Old English. " Ongan )>a drihtnes dagcs and nyhtes georne cySan " (began to preach the Lord's law by day and night). Elene, 198. " Wendon him ]>a ctSres wegcs ham weard " (they returned homeward by another way). Chronicle, 1006. " }>is wres feorSes geares" (this was in the fourth year). TfoV. 47. Middle English. " Fure ]>e neuer ne apeostrede wintercs ne sumeres " (fire that never became dark, neither in summer nor in winter). LAYAM. i. 121. "Gif ]m agultest wi<5 ))ine efennexta unSonkes, bet hit Jrin )>onkes hu se )>u mint" (if thou sinnest against thy neighbour unwillingly, make amends for it willingly whatsoever way thou canst). Old Engl. Horn. \. 17. Cf. Genitive, 184-186. 52. Dative (Instrumental) Case. Old English. " hie heora yfelum Jmrhwunedon " (they remained in their evils). Blickling Horn. 79, 8. ' ' Hz&lend com syx dagum zbr eastrum to Bethania " (the Saviour came six days before Easter to B.). Ibid. 71, 24. " for]>an ic hine sweorde swebban nelle" (I will not kill him with sword). Beow. 680. 53. In Modern English there are only a few traces of adverbial adjuncts in the genitive and dative case as needs, noways, whilom (Old English hwilutn) ; but on the whole the simple adverbial noun is restricted to what we may call the objective case, as in the following instances : Space. "Th' other way Satan went down." MILTON, Parad. Lout, x. 414. "The Duke will not draw back a single inch." COLERIDGE, Piccolomini I, I. Time. "Nine days they fell." MILTON, Paradise L. vi. 871. " Her fate is fixed this very hour." BYRON, Bride of Abydos. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 33 Manner. "Their residence, both in reputation and profit, was better both ways." Hamlet, ii. 2, 345. ' ' He will every 'May be mocked. " Merry Wives, v. 3, 20. " I am so many ways obliged to you." DRYDEN (Globe ed.), p. 37. 54. 3. The so-called cognate accusative may also be looked upon as an adverbial adjunct. Old English. " Gefeoht gefuhton " (they fought a fight). Chronicle, 887. Middle English. " He J>am suit sli seating sea u " (he should show them such a vision). Cursor Mundi, 10707. Modern English. "Well hast thou fought the better fight." MILTON, Paradise L. vi. 29. 55. 4. A substantive preceded by a preposition, as " he hopes for success." In the early periods of English this sort of adverbial ad- junct was much rarer than nowadays ; the case-endings expressed then what is now the function of the preposition. Cf. the following instances : ' ' paer mihten deaplice men gyrnan Jrara uplicra burhwara & ];ses e"cean geferscipes " (so that mortal men might there yearn for the citizens on high and for the everlasting fellowship). Blickling Horn. 197- " Ne )>earf he J>ser nsefre leohtes wenan" (there need be never hope for any light). Ibid. i. 63. ' ' Ar wses on ofoste eft-siSes georn " (the messenger was in haste yearning for the return). Beowulf, 2784. " godes greedig " (greedy after wealth). Salomon and Saturn, 344. 56. 5. A substantive or pronoun (accompanied by some attributive adjunct) with the participle absolute ; as, " This done, he retired." In earlier periods, and even as late as Milton, the sub- stantive appeared in the dative case. D 34 ENGLISH SYNTAX Old English. " Jja so)>lice him swa wependum, J>a com )>ara sacerda ealdorman J>e Petrus him tosende" (and then, indeed, they thus weeping, came the ruler of the priests whom Peter had sent to them). Blickling Horn. 153. " )>a him swa sittendum J>a com J>aer semninga ure Drihten mid myccle mengeo engla " (and suddenly while they were thus sitting, our Lord came there with a great company of angels). Ibid. 155. Middle English. "And si)) petir was sathanas for he wolde haue lettid cristis dej> & saluacion of mannus soule, him wnivyttynge ; moche more fes prelatis ben sathanas . . ." (and since Peter was Satan, because he wanted to prevent Christ's death and the salvation of man's soul, he not knowing [unconsciously] ; the more are thes prelates Satans . . .}. Unprintcd English Works of ]Vyclif, ed. Matthew, p. 56. " And ]>er-fore in J>e popis lawe decrees & decretals symonyis gener- ally clepid heresie, & orible peynes ordeyned a5enst men pat don symonye on ony manere bi hem self or o)>ere mene persones, bi here wille consent, & in sum cas hem vnivyttyngc" Ibid. p. 68. Modern English. " At least our envious foe hath failed, who thought All like himself rebellious ; by whose aid This inaccessible high strength, the seat Of Deity supreme, us dispossessed, He trusted to have seized ..." MILTON, Paradise Lost, vii. 139. " For only in destroying I find ease To my relentless thoughts ; and him destroyed, Or won to what may work his utter loss, For whom all this was made, all this will soon Follow, as to him linked in weal or woe. " Ibid. ix. 129. 57. It is doubtful, whether the Absolute Participle in Old English and in the other Teutonic dialects is akin to the similar constructions in Latin and Greek and thus of Aryan origin, or whether it is only borrowed from Latin ; but it is obvious that both Wyclif and Milton were under the in- fluence of the ablativus absolutus when they tried to in- troduce again the old English construction. As a fact, this had dropped out of use as early as the fourteenth cen- SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 35 tury. Cf. Nominative Absolute, 153. Participle Abso- lute, 409-412. 58. 6. An adverbial clause, as " The star stood over where the young child was." Alatth. ii. 9. See Complex Sentences, 124. SUBJECT AND PREDICATE. The Subject. 59. The subject of a finite verb is put in the nominative case. This elementary rule of syntax has never been trespassed upon ; l only the area of the subject is, in Modern English, much wider than it was in earlier periods. The objects oj many impersonal and transitive verbs have been turned into subjects. Instead of the Old English "me licaft," we say "I like ; " instead of " me latiga?)" " I long ; " and as early as the time of the " Ancren Riwle" (thirteenth century) we meet with the construction " I am given gall to drink," instead of what would be in Old English, " Me is given gall to drink." Cf. Interchange of Cases, 210. 60. The subject of a sentence may be i. Simple. 2. Compound. 3. Complex. 6 1. i. The subject of a sentence is simple when it is 1 It is only in the Vulgar talk that me, him (her), us, them, occur instead of /, he, she, we, they. " What a sermon ! Me and Julia cried so up in the organ-loft." THACKERAY, The Newcomes, ii. 73. "We'll have a spree, my boy, you and me together." BESANT, When the Ship comes Home, 307. ' ' He laughed, miss, not me. " Ibid. 322. I* 36 ENGLISH SYNTAX (a) A single substantive (noun or pronoun), as " Men are mortal;" "I love truth, "or an adjective used substan- tively. 62. In Early English (as nowadays in colloquial speech) the pronoun was often omitted. Old English. ". . . . modsorge wasg Romwara cyning, rices ne wende for werodleste : hsefde wigena to lyt " (sorrowful thought the king of the Romans, [he] did not hope to reign for want of people, [he] had too few warriors). Elene, 61-63. Middle English. " Swiche teres schedde ure drihten pa he iseh Martham and Mariam Magdalena ]?e sustren wepe for hore broSer detJ, and ure drihten |mrh rouSe et he efde of horn, schedde of his halie e5ene hate teres, and hore brotJer arerde, and (scil. heo, they) weren stille of hore wope." (Such tears shed our Lord when he saw the sisters Martha and Mary Magdalene weep for their brother's death ; and our Lord, in compassion for them, shed hot tears from his holy eyes, and raised their brother, so that they ceased their weeping.) Old English Horn. i. 157. Tudor English. '' Thyssayde the false traitour, by cause he desyred no thyng elles, but one of the sonnes of duke Seuyn myght sley Chariot, wherby he thought shukl be dystroyed in acusynge them of murder, wherby he myght come to his dampnable intent." BERNERS' ffuon, 19, II. (i.e. they should be destroyed.) Cf. Personal pronouns, 268-274. 63. A substantive subject omitted. It is commonly the name of God which is dropped. Middle English instances are scarcely to be met with. Modern English. "Save his majesty." SHAKSP. Tempest, ii. i, 168'). " Bless you, sir." Merry Wives, ii. 2, 160. "Give you good night." Hamlet, i. I, 16. Cf. " God give you good morrow, sir." PEELE, The Old Wives' Tale, p. 455, b. NOTE. " The guilt, say what I will, I cannot roll off from me." COLERIDGE, Piccolomini, iv. 4. "Do all we can, women will believe us." GAY, Beggars' Opera, ii. 2. 1 The Glo"be edition has : " Cod save his majesty." SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 37 Some grammarians find omission of the subject in these instances. " In the singular as well as in the plural, an omission of the subject occurs with all personal forms, when- ever a concessive sentence is followed by a collateral sen- tence containing the subject belonging also to the preceding sentence." (Matzner). I am inclined to look upon these expressions as formed in analogy of sentences of the second person, in which the personal pronoun was never the rule. Try what you will is quite correct, and it was on this type that all the other sentences were modelled : "try what he will," "try what I will." 64. Adjectives used substantively were much more frequent in Old and Middle English. Old English. " Sc ]>e underfehS rihtwisne on rihtwises naman, he onfehS rihtwises mede " (he that receiveth a righteous [man] in the name of a righteous [man] shall receive a righteous [man]'s reward). Matthew x. 41. Middle English. " Al )>at 505 Jjat semly syked in hert, & sayde so)>ly al same segges til oj>er, Carande for ]>at comly . . ." (All that saw that fair one sighed in their heart, and said truly one man to the other, out of care for that comely one.) Sir Gawayne, 672-4. Cf. Adjectives, 236-247. 65. (/>) An Infinitive Mood or Gerund, as " To be, contents his natural desire." POPE, Essay on Man, i. 109, "Your being Sir Anthony's son, Captain, would itself be a sufficient accommodation." SHERIDAN, Rivals, iii. 3. 66. (c) Any word which is itself made the subject of discourse. " A bitter and perplexed ' What shall I do ? ' Is worse to man than worst necessity." COLERIDGE, Picrolomini, 5. 2. 67. 2. The subject of a sentence is compound when it consists of two or more substantives coupled together by the 38 ENGLISH SYNTAX conjunction and, as "Abraham and his wife Sarah went home." This is a contraction of two sentences : A. went home, and S. went home ; and, in fact, primitive tribes say " the father came, and the son came." In Early English, and here and there also in modern times, we find a construction which keeps the middle course between the primeval repe- tition and the modern contraction. Old English. "ond oefter pam Hengest feng to rice and Aesc his sunu " (after that Hengest succeeded to the kingdom and Aesc his son) Chronicle, 455. Middle English "He suanc and swet and cue his wif " (he worked and sweated and Eve his wife). Cursor Mundi, 1047. Cf. Order of words, 473. 68. 3. The subject of a sentence is complex when it consists of an infinitive or gerundive phrase, of a substantive clause, or of a quotation. It is only the substantive clause which shows a note- worthy development. 69. (a) In Early English substantive clauses with "that" are well known, only the predicate always precedes. Old English. " Selre is \nrt we hine syllon to ceape Ismahelitum " (it is better that we should sell him to the Ishmeelites). Gen. xxxvii. 27. Middle English. "The first statute was that thei sholde beleeven and obeyen in God immortalle." MAUNDEVILLE, p. 225. But in Modern English the substantive clause with " that " often takes the usual place of the subject, namely at the head of the sentence. " That there should have been such a It&eness is not strange." MACAULAY, History, i. 27. 70. (b) Instead of the substantive clause as the subject of a verb, we find in Older English the substantive or pronoun with the infinitive after impersonal expressions. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 39 " Sor was nogt wune on and on Sat orf 5or to water gon." (It was not the custom for the cattle to go to water one by one.) Story of Genesis and Exodus, 1640. "No wondur is, a tovid man to ruste" CHAUCER, Cant. Tales, Prol. 502. " (This folke) putte hem self vpon their enmyes, so that it was force the polonyens to recule abak." BLANCHARDYN, 107, 18. " Thow to lye by our moder, is to muche shame for vs to suffre." Morte d 1 Arthur, 453, 4. Elisabethan English. "A heavier task could not have ben im- posed, than / to speak my griefs unspeakable." SHAKSP. Comedy of Errors, i. I, 33. 71. As early as 1474 the preposition "for" preceding the substantive came into use, and in this shape the old construction has come down to our days. "It is an evil thing for a man to have suspecion." CAXTON, Game of the Chesse, p. 90. "It is better for a synner to suflfre trybulacyon." English Works of John Fisher, ed. Mayor (E. E. T. S.), p. 41, 1. 9. "for Coriolanus neither to care whether they love or hate him manifests the true knowledge he has." SHAKSP. Coriol. ii. 2, 13. " The Lilliputians think nothing can be more unjust than for people ... to bring children into the world, and leave the burden of support- ing them upon the public." SWIFT, Gulliver's Travels, vi. "There is nothing so rare as for a man to ride his hobby without molestation." W. IRVING, Bracebridge Hall, ii. 22. Reduplication of the Subject. " Andfeact, O Virtue ! peace is all thy own." POPE. ' ' She early left her sleepless bed, The fairest maid of Teviotdale. SCOTT. " Your husband he is gone to save far off, Whilst others come to make him lose at home." SHAKSPERE. 4 o ENGLISH SYNTAX 72. i. The repetition of the subject by one and the same word as marking special stress, is very common in elliptic phrases, e.g., a thief ! a thief ! but as a conscious rhetorical means it is of modern date, and restricted to literary language. 73. 2. Another sort of reduplication of the subject is that of repeating the subject by means of a personal pronoun (as exhibited in the above instances). These instances illustrate two different psychological processes, and accordingly two different constructions. In the first case the subject is foremost in the conscious- ness of the speaker, and the other idea connected with it, viz., the predicate, is dimmed for a moment, so that it takes the speaker some time to catch hold of it again. In the second case the speaker is so much under the im- pression of what he is going to predicate, that he forgets for a moment to tell the person addressed what he is predicat- ing about, and it takes some time until he finds out his mistake. In both cases there is a distinct pause between the two expressions for the same subject, in both cases the hearer lias the impression that there is some emotion at work in the mind of the speaker. Both these circumstances make the expression a favourite figure of speech. For instances see personal pronoun, 284-289. NOTE. It is the same psychological process which brings forth sentences like the following, the so-called anacoluthic sentences. Old English. "Swie sc lice, ];onne he on untiman lacnaS wunde, hie wyrmseS ond rotatJ " (so the physician, when he doctors a wound at the wrong time, it corrupts and putrifies). Cnra Pastoralis, 152, 2. Middle English. " He that saieth a pater noster, and thinkith of worldly thinges, his prayers profiteth not. Knight of la Tour Land ry, P- 7- SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 41 The principle is the same, the only difference consisting in the case. 74. Another sort of repetition is that of the subject after an extensive member of a sentence or collateral sentence, where the only aim is to recall the more remote subject to re- collection. "Manetho also, who lived about the time of Nebuchadon-Asser, Asser being a Syriac word usually applied as a surname to the kings of that country, as Teglat-Phael- Asser, Nabon-Asser, he, I say, formed a conjecture equally absurd." GOLDSMITH, Vicar of IVakefield, 14. The same principle probably accounts for the pleonastic use of the personal noun following relative sentences. " The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he has declared him." -John i. 18. Cf. Relative Sentences below, 217. Omission of the Subject. Personal Pronoun omitted. " Thank you, Sir." 75. What is wanted in this instance is not the psycho- logical, but the grammatical subject, the former being im- plied in the verbal form. Cf. Pronouns, 268, and above, 62. A Substantive Subject omitted. Cf. 63 . The Predicate. The predicate of a sentence may be i. Simple. 2. Complex. Simple Predicate. 76. The predicate of a sentence is simple when the notion to be conveyed is expressed by a single finite verb, as " The moon shines," " We come." 42 ENGLISH SYNTAX Complex Predicate. 77. Many verbs do not make complete sense by them- selves, but require some other word to be used with them to make the sense complete. Of this kind are the intransitive verbs " be, become, seem, can, do, shall, will," &c, and such transitive verbs as " make, call" Besides these there are other verbs which are only occasionally incomplete, as in the instances : " I will live a bachelor." Much Ado, i. I, 248. ''How stand you affected to his wish?" The Two Gentlemen of Verona, i. iii. 60. "I stood engaged." All's Well that Ends Well, v. iii. 96. " Wouldst thou remain a beast with the beasts ?" Timon of Athens, iv. iii. 326. In these cases it is not the verb which is prominent in the mind of the speaker, but the adjective or noun, and accord- ingly these are the predicates, and the verbs must be looked upon as mere auxiliary ones, like be. It is, therefore, quite correct to say, "Slow and sure comes up the golden year " (Tennyson), " we live happy," slow and happy being adjectives used predicatively, not adverbs qualifying the verbs. 78. In Early English the complement of the predicate, when a noun, was often used in the dative preceded by " to." Old English. "CweS, J>aet J>as stanas to hlafe geweorfton " (com- mand that these stones be made bread). Matthew, iv. 3. Middle English. "He warrjj till atell defell off sher.e enngell" (of a bright angel he became a dreadful devil). Orm. 13679. 79. The expression " /'/ is me " which is constantly gaining ground, is of comparatively recent date. The historical de- velopment of this construction is shown in the following instances. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 43 Old English. " HabbaS geleafan, ic hyt com" (have belief, I it am). Mattheiv, xiv. 27. "Gyf }>u hyt eart" (if thou it be). Ibid. 28. Middle English. " Jhesus heom to seyde, 'lo ich hit em'" (Jesus said to them, 'Lo ! it is I '). Old English Miscell. 42, 184. Later on, a slight change takes place. "Forsothe it am nat I." CHAUCER, The Knightes Tale, 602. "It is not he that slewe the man, hit is I." Gcsta Romanorum, 201. Modern English. "She would not speak of the occasion of those words, which was me." RICHARDSON, Pamela, 43, b. Discrepancy betu>een grammatical and psychological Predicate. 80. The psychological predicate is far from being the same as the grammatical one. In the sentence " I did it, not you," there can be no doubt from the grammarian's point of view, that / is the subject of the sentence ; but psychologi- cally speaking, he is certainly wrong, the psychological con- struction being " the person who did it was /, not you." To avoid this discrepancy between grammatical and psychological predicate, the periphrastic expression with " it is " was introduced. Old English. "J>et waes on J.one monandseg sefter Marianmaesse Jjset Godwine becom" (it was on Monday after M. that G. came). Chronicle, 1052. Cf. Use of //, 280. Middle English. " It is I that dede him kylle." Coventry Mys- teries, p. 291. "// is 1>at quykenej). " WYCLIFF, John, vi. 36. Modern English instances abound. 44 ENGLISH SYNTAX Ellipsis of the Copula " to be." "No one so deaf as he that will not hear." LONGFELLOW. 8 1. It is quite consistent with the psychological facts, as well as with the science of language, that the simple juxtapo- sition of subject and predicate is anterior to the connection by means of a copula. The original state is still kept in proverbs and similar expressions : "first come, first served," &c. Cf. Latin, Quot homines, tot sententia. Omnia pra- dara rara. Summum jus, summa injuria. The absence of this omission in Old English is probably due to the fact that there are no sufficient remains of popular literature for such expressions to turn up. We meet, however, with a few examples in Middle English. * Wexen boden ysaac sunes, And Shogen, and adden sundri wunes ; Esau wilde man huntere, And Jacob tame man tiliere." (Isaac's sons grew up and throve and had different occupations. Esau [was] a hunter, and Jacob a husbandman.) Story of Genesis and Exodus, 1481. = Esau was wilde man huntere. " San coren wantede in oSer lond, iSo ynug [was] vnder his hond. " (There was want of corn in other lands, while there was enough under his hand. ). Ibid. 2156. " jif mennus soulis gon to helle bi brekynge of goddis commande- mentis, no -warde, so )>at ]>e peny come faste to fille here hondis it coffris" (no warde = no matter). WYCLIF, Unprinted Works, ed. Matthew, p. 72. " Goddis forbade y schulde be so lewde for to so seie." PF.COCK, The Represser, p. 25 ; ibid. 98, 99, 228, 253, 537. Cf. Goddis forbode be it. Ibid. 537. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 45 Omission of the Predicate. " Lights there ! " 82. The absence of the predicative verb in such expres- sions is common in all periods of the language. Then, as in the above instances, the predicate has to be gathered by the person addressed from what he sees, if he follows the direction to which the attention is called, or can read the meaning of gestures. Middle English. " nu ut quoo' strenSe farlac ne schaltu na lengere Jeuen in ure ende" ("Now, Fear, [go] out," quoth Strength, "thoushalt no longer remain in our quarters"). SAWLES WARDE in Old English Homilies, \. 265. " Now to schyp, on and olhir ! " Richard Cceur de Lion, 6649. Modern English. "To horse ! to horse ! urge doubts to them that fear." Richard II. ii. I, 299. 83. NOTE. It is in the same way that we account for verbs of movement being omitted in the infinitive mood after auxiliary verbs, especially after "shall" and "will." Old English. " Ic him sefter sceal" (I shall [go] after him). Beowulf, 2817. "Sa he him from wolde Sa gefeng he hine" (when he would [depart] from him, he seized him). Cura Pastoralis, 35, 19. Middle English. " Bot I wyl to |>e chapel, for chaunce )>at may falle." Sir Gaioayne, 2132. Modern English. "I must to the Jew." MARLOWE, Jew of Malta, ed. ^Yagner, 1. 1459. " Let him to our sister." Lear, i. 3, 14. "She will not from my memory." BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER, The Scornful Lady, 98, a. " Like will to like." 46 ENGLISH SYNTAX Concord. 84. The first rule of every syntax, namely, that a finite verb agrees with its subject in number, is very often sinned against in all periods of English. Collective Nouns with Predicates in the plural. "All the world are good in your eyes." JANE AUSTEN, Pride and Prejudice, 15. 85. Of this concession made by grammar to psychology, there are instances from Old English down to our own day. Old English. " }>set folc sat . . . and arisen" (people sat down and arose). Exodus xxxii. 6. ' ' se here swor paet hie woldon " (the army swore that they would . . . ). Chronicle, 921. " ))i'n ofspring sceal agan heora feonda gata" (thy offspring shall own their enemies' gates). Genesis xxii. 17. Middle English. " J>at israelisshe folc was walkende toward ierusa- lem on swinche, and on drede, and on wanrede, and )>o wile was hersum godes hese. Ac efter |>an pe hie -weren wuniende in ierusalem . . . J)o hie forletcn godes lore." (The Israelitish folk were walking towards Jerusalem, in toil, in dread, and in affliction, and were at that time obedient to God's behests. But after that they were dwelling in Jeru- salem . . . then they forsook God's love.) Old English Homilies, ii. 5'. " Sis wird of engeles metten him " (this host of angels met him). Story of Gen. and Exodus, 1 790. In Modern English this irregularity has become the rule. Plural Nouns with a Singular Predicate. "There is no more such Caesars." SHAKSPERE. "Here is twenty angels." GREENE. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 47 86. Plural nouns often take a singular predicate. Of this striking irregularity which is found very early, and is very frequent in the fifteenth century and in the time of Shak- spere, three different sorts can be distinguished : i. The verb precedes the noun, and the sentence is introduced by here (there). This answers accurately to the French expression : /'/ arrive des revolutions, il est (il y a) des gens ; German : es gibt noch ehrliche Leute. Old English. "On ])oem selfan hrsegle wa naman Sara twelf heahfsedra " (on the same robe were also written the names of the 12 patriarchs). Cura Pastorates, 6, 15. Middle English. "Here is grete merveylles." CAXTON, Aymon, 444. 3 1 - Tudor English. "There is more nobler portes in England. "- ANDREW BOORDE, Introduction and Dyetary, p. 120. "There is at Bath certain waters." Ibid. "There was many Dukes, Erles, and barons." LORD BERNERS' Huon, 2, 22. "What shooting is, how many kindes there is of it is tolde."- ASCHAM, Toxophilus, 31. 87. 2. The subject of the sentence is determined by numerals. In this case the singular of the predicate is ex- plained by the old substantival collective nature of numerals. Cf. a thousand, a hundred. See Numerals, 257. Old English instances are rare. Middle English. " Seue maistres is her come." Seuyn Sages, 2397- "The 80 mark )>e which is in Thomas Harwodes hand." Early English Wills, 44, 12. 48 ENGLISH SYNTAX Tudor English. "XVIII Scottish pens is worth an Englysshe grote." ANDREW BOORDE, Introduction and Dyetary, p. 137. "There is five trumps besides the queen." Gammer Gurton, 193. " Here is four angels for you." GREENE, Looking Glass, 125, a. 88. 3. In the third group it is the distance between the subject and predicate which accounts for the inaccuracy of the expression. " Our neighbours, that were woont to quake And tremble at the Persean Monarkes name, Now sits and laughs our regiment to skorne." MARLOWE, Tambitrlaine, 115. " Fortune's blows, When most struck home, being gently wounded, craves A noble cunning." Coriolanus, iv. I, 7. 89. NOTE. Most of the irregularities turning up in Middle English, and even in the sixteenth century, may be simply accounted for by the fact that not only the endings ~es and -eth, but also is and was were used both in the singular and in the plural. Instances of unmistakable character abound. "Alle his wundres )>at he do]), is jmrch )>ene vend (fiend)." The Passion of our Lord, 60 (Old E. Miscellany, 49). "Alle his wunders )>at he do|>, is Jmrch J>ene quede (evil one)."- Ibid. 250. " out tak the forsayd matyns bokys that is bequethe to Thomas my sone." Early E. Wills, v. 14. " )>is es the dettis J>at es [hjowynge to me." Ibid, xxxix. 34. " Sor -was sundri speches risen." Story of Genesis and Exodus, 668. " On the finger was wretyn wordis : 'percute hie.' " Gesta Roman- orum, p. 7. Cf. Zupitza, note to Guy of Warwick, /. 298. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 49 Concord of the Predicate with several Subjects. " Her joye and life is gone." Gammer Gurton. " My purse, my coffer, and myself is thine." MARLOWK. ' ' The grape, the rose, renew The juice nectareous, and the balmy dew." POPE. 90. As a rule, several subjects which stand to one another in a copulative relation, require a predicate in the plural ; but in this, more than in any other department of concord, the subjective point of view decides as to the number. Thus synonymous nouns are easily conceived as one notion and one subject, e.%., "I applaud the sound, right sense, and love of virtue, which appears through your whole letter." CHATHAM, Letters, 3 ; or one of the subject-nouns is prominent in the mind of the speaker at the moment when he is going to utter the predicate, e.g. " Lo ! Burns and Blomfield, nay, a greater far, Gifford was born beneath an adverse star. " BYRON, English. Bards and Scotch Reviewers. Concord of the Copula. " Our fraught is Grecians, Turks, and Africk Moors." MARLOWE. paces of the vilest earth " But now, two pace f\ f) I s room enough." SHAKSPERE. 91. As a rule, the copula agrees in number with the subject. Accordingly, we say : 50 ENGLISH SYNTAX " The rugged mountain's scanty cloak Was dwarfish shrubs of birch and oak." SCOTT, Lady of the Lake, v. 3. "His pay is just ten sterling pounds per sheet." BYRON, English, Bards and Scotch Reviavers. 92. But the predicate is very frequently of greater weight than the subject, especially when it is in the plural, and accord- ingly intrudes its number on the copula. Hence the follow- . ing expressions. German : das sind zwei verschiedene Dinge ; French : ce sont la des vertus de roi. Old English. " Gyf J>aet leoht )>e on )>e ys, synt )>ystru, hu mycle beoft |>a )>ystru " (if therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is the darkness !). Matthe-a, vi. 23. Middle English. "Bretons was ]>e verste folc J>at to engelonde com." Rob. of Gloucester, 57. " The schon that sal be your feet upon, Is not ellys but exawnpyl of vertuis levyng." Coventry Mysteries, p. 273. Object. 93. While there has scarcely been any change in the construction of the simple object, that of the complex object, consisting i. of a substantive clause, 2. of a substantive accompanied by an indefinite mood, is different now from what it was in earlier periods. 94. i. The substantive clause when used as an object was formerly more concrete. Expressions like " The Egyptians beheld the woman that she was beautiful " (Gen. xii. 14) are now restricted to the Bible ; but in the early periods of English this construction was quite common. Middle English. "Gif jm hine iseje )>et he wulle asottie to )>es deofles hond and to his werkes, )>et }m hine lettest." (If when thou sawest him about to fall foolishly into the devil's hand, and to his works, thou checkest him . . .) Old English. Homilies, \. 17. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 51 " And ]>is man wat we wel >at he es al wit-uten plight " (and we know well this man that he is without sin). Cursor Mundi, 16729. Tudor English. "Whan Huon herd the kyng, how he toke his wordes, he slept forthe and said." BERXERS' Huon, 27/21. 95. 2. The substantive accompanied by an infinitive (aecusativus cum infinitive) as an object is recorded in the earliest periods of English, but is of limited range. See Infinitive, 401-404. But it becomes quite common in the Elizabethan time. II. COMPLEX SENTENCES. 96. After examining Alfred's Introduction to his Trans- lation of the Pastoral Care, we noticed as the most striking feature of Old English syntax, the awkward structure of the sentence, and the combination of sentences. See Introduction, p. 8. In fact, Old English, as well as the other Teutonic languages, was far behind the wonderful elasticity of Greek and Latin prose-diction. If we may keep the old metaphor which calls language the garb of thought, we should be inclined to say that the Teutonic dialects were, from a syntactical point of view, heavy steel armour, permitting the mind to move, but very awkwardly, while the Latin was, at a very early date, like a supple soft dress, splendidly adapted to follow every brisk movement of thought. The Complex Sentence in shape of two Co-ordinate Sentences. " Sow well, reap well." 97. The complex sentence of Greek and Latin, with its admirable expressiveness was, in the time of Alfred the Great, E 2 52 ENGLISH SYNTAX just beginning to grow on English and German soil. While in Latin and Greek the complex sentence, as a combination of independent and dependent sentences, expressed precisely the inward connection existing between the principal and accessory thought, the simple sentences in the Teutonic dialects showed a mere heap of phrases running parallel with each other, the reader being free to make out what was the intended connection. Compare the following instances : "unte ni galei}>i]> imma in hairto, ak in vamba, jah in urrunsa usgaggij), gahraineij) allans matins." (Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purgeth all meats.) Mark, vii. 19. ' ' Hit waes after Moyses foro'si'o'e, Drihten spraec to Josue " (it was after the death of Moses [that] the Lord spake to Joshua). -Joshua, i. i. This is the oldest way of syntactic combination, and in this respect Old Teutonic very much resembles the Hebrew, which never attained to a higher stage of development. "And there came two angels to Sodom at even ; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom ; and Lot saw them and rose up to meet them ; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground." Genesis, xix. i. Thus the original text ; the authorised version alters into " and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them." 98. We call this sort of combination which indiscrim- inately places sentences of different syntactic value one by the side of the other, paratactic (trapa.rd.-rru)) combination, para- taxis or coordination. The absence of connecting particles is a characteristic feature of this combination, and thus the sentences look as if there were no connection whatever between them, as if they were independent of each other. 99. But what seems to be parataxis, mere coordination in this connection, is only apparent ; in fact we find that a para- taxis with complete independence of the sentences nowhere occurs ; that it is scarcely possible to connect sentences to- gether without a certain kind of hypotaxis or subordination. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 53 The mere fact that two sentences are put paratactically to each other proves that there is a logical connection between them, that is, that one sentence in some way modifies the other. In short, what was formally a paratactic connection, is logically hypotaxis or subordination. Thus, in the sentences "sow well, reap well," there is parataxis formally only, each sentence being independent of the other ; but logically the first serves to determine the meaning of the second, and the construction, therefore, is hypotactic Kara crvvto-iv (ac- cording to the sense) "if you sow well, you will reap well." 100. This first stage of development, which is very common in all the Aryan languages, is found in Old English poetry, and has not yet disappeared. Considering the im- portance of the subject, some examples are necessary. Latin. "et sensi, hie sonitum fecerunt fores." PLAUTUS, Mil. 1377- " audivi, Archills, Lesbiam adduci jubes." TER. Andr. 228. "non potest sine malo fateri, video." un. 714. " magis jam /a.r0 mira dices." PLAUTUS, Amph. 1107. Gothic. "in urrunsa usgaggith, gahraineith allans matins" (it goeth out into the draught, purgeth all meats). Mark, vii. 19. "galaith than in ain thize skipe, thatei vas Seimonis, haihait ina aftiuhan fairra statha leitil " (and he entered into one of the boats, which was Simon's, asked him to put out a little from the land). v. 3. Old High German translations prove that asyndetic co- ordination was consciously felt as equivalent to Latin sub- ordination. The following instances will serve to prove this fact : " (scalhes) Tarawa infenc, wortan wardh kahoric untaz za tode " (he took the shape of a servant, remained obedient until death) "for- mam servi accipiens effectus est obediens usque ad mortem." "sine jungirun ouh warun hungrage, bigunnun raufan diu ahar" (his disciples were hungry, began to pluck ears)= " discipuli autem ejus esurientes cceperant vellere spicas." 54 ENGLISH SYNTAX " argengun do uz pharisara, worahtun garati " (there the Pharisees went, they held council) " exeuntes pharisei consilium faciebant." "er anlwurta, quat im " (he answered, said to them) = et respondens ad eos dixit." l Old English. " J>is earme wif me gesohte, s&de J>ret ic mihte hyre to )>e ge))ingian " (this poor woman sought me, saidlhat I could intercede for her to thee). /ELFRIC, Lives of Saints, 60, 174. Cf. Cura Pasto- ralis, 1 1 8, 21 ; 218, 23. " Ic wat, inc waldend god abolgen wyrS" (I know with you two the Almighty God will be wroth). C/EDMON, Genesis, 551. "Simon . . . ssegde hy dryas wseron " (Simon said they were sorcerers). -Juliana, 301. Middle English. "al ich am well ipaied euerichon sigge |>et hire best bereft on heorte " (I am very well pleased (that) everyone (should) say . . .), &c. Ajtcren Riwle, 44. " Se olde lage we ogen tu sunen Ce newe we hauen moten." (The old law we ought to shun, [since] we have the new.) Old English Miscellanies, 10. " Hit bifel J>er afturward swythe longe yno5 Out of ]>e lond of Scitie other folk Jnder dn>3. Rob. of Gloucester, 953. " Ebrauk his sone was of age, Had J>is lond in heritage. " ROBERT DE BRUNNE, Story of England, 2149. Modern English. Fast bind, fast find. Merchant of Venice, ii. 5, 54. Live thou, live I. Ibid. iii. 2, 61. The Independent Sentence is introduced by a Particle (originally a Demonstrative). " I heard a voice whisper him ; I knew the voice, and then they both went out by the back way ; so I stole down, and went out and listened." BULWER. 101. The first step towards the development of gram- matical subordination was the use of a pronoun or a de- monstrative adverb connecting the two sentences, e.g., He 1 Ger mania, vol. xxiv. p. 168. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 55 always talks of himself; that makes me despise him; or, it is going to rain, so we had better go. The use of though in Modern English offers an interesting illustration of the second stage of development. While commonly used to introduce the dependent sentence, it has at the same time kept its old place in the principal sentence, as in the following instance: " A foolish coxcomb," "Ay! let him alone though" Coleridge, Piccolomini, i. 6 = Though he is a foolish coxcomb, let him alone. German : er ist ein thorichter Geek, dock lasst ihn gehen. This function of " though " answers to that of many other particles in Old Teutonic dialects. Both the Independent and the Dependent Sentence are introduced by the same Particle (Correlation). " Then Gerames saw how the shipp was commynge to that porte, then he sayd to his company, syrs, lett vs go." BERNERS' Huon. 102. The next step was to introduce both sentences by the same particle, this sort of parallelism serving to express the correlation existing between the two sentences. Many in- stances in Old High German, Old English and Middle English bear witness of this third stage of development. Old High German. " ml thu thaz arunti so harto bist formonanti nu wirdu (wird thu) stummer sar " (now thou art despising the message so strongly, thou wilt be dumb). Olfrid, i. 4, 65. " nu er then tod suachit . . . . nu simes garawe alle mil imo zi themo falle" (now he seeks death, let us be all prepared with him for the fall). Ibid. iii. 23, 59. Old English. " \ar J>ast gemynd biS, \a carman and |>a untruman sint to retanne " (and we can also understand that the poor and weak are to be cheered). Cura Pastoralis, 180, 20. Middle English. " Thei seyn 5it, that and he had ben crucyfied, that God had don a5en his rihtewisnesse." MAUNDEVILLE, p. 134. In all the instances quoted, editors put the comma before the first that ; but originally that belongs to the principal sentence. IV. You know that he is a clever man (particle in the dependent sentence). 105. But though the last stage of development was reached even in Old English, the psychological principle which brought about stages II. and III., was long after at work (as, in fact, it is still), so that the expression II. or a very similar one, was kept even in modern times. 1 06. A sentence, as a whole, is always an abstract. Now, the imagination is not very fond of abstracts; hence the modern way of expressing noun clauses, as in the following instance, is grammatically quite correct, but psychologically hard to conceive. In the phrase " You see that I am composed," the object clause is understood to be the object of the verb see; but psychologically speaking you cannot very well apprehend an abstract clause as the object of see. In fact, the old expression of stage II. is psychologically much easier to understand. The verb in the principal sentence gets as its object the pronoun that, which is the indefinite expression, as it were, a dim image, of the clause following. 58 ENGLISH SYNTAX The same principle accounts for the similar, but still more concrete construction of noun clauses, which is not unfre- quent in Greek. Compare the two following sentences : "And God saw the light, [and saw] that it was good," " And God saw that the light was good." l Logically speaking, the two constructions are equivalent ; but psychologically, how different is the idea which they re- present ! In the first case the sentence expresses an abstract result ; in the second, the verb " see " has a concrete object, in which a certain attribute is perceived. Old English. " WenS, gif he hit him iewe, &et he ////// nylle geoafian fcet he hiene snioe " (he thinks that if he show it him, he will not allow him to cut him. Cura Pastoralis, 184, 26. Middle English. " Gif Jm hine ise5e J>et he wulle asottie to J>es deofles hond, end to his werkes, )>et Jm hine lettest." (If, when thou sawcst him about to fall foolishly into the devil's hand, and to his works, thou checkest him...). O. . Homilies, i. 17. "he seal sooTeste men setten him to irefen, and for godes eie libban his lif rihtliche, and beon on erfeo'nesse anred an edmod on stilnesse, and his of springe ne tyaitie \et hi beon unrightwise. " ( He shall appoint him trustworthy men for sheriffs, and for the fear of God lead a good life, and be unmoved in tribulation and meek in peace [prosperity], and shall not suffer his offspring to be unrighteous.) Ibid. i. 115. " ful wel Jm me iseie, }>auh Jm stille were, Hwar ich was and hwat i dude, J>auh Jm me ouerbere. " (Thou sawst me full well, though thou wert still, where I was and what I did...). On God Ureisun of tire Lefdi (Old Engl. Miscellany), 105, 106. " (They) louen more here folye avowis to fulfille hem J>an to fulfille goddis hestis." WYCLIF, Unpr. Works, ed. Matthew, p. 103. " When the emperowre harde telle All \at case, how hyt felle, That Saddok was so slayne, Therof was he nothyng fayne. Guy of Warwick, ed. Zupitza, 1498. 1 Cf. also: "The Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair." Gen. xii. 14. "And Lot. ..beheld all the plain of Jordan that it was well watered everywhere." Ibid. xiii. 10. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 59 Tudor English. "Whan Huon herd the kyng how he take his \vordes, lie slept forthe and said." BERNERS' Huon, 27, 21. " Whan Gerame vnderstode \e company e how they thought they were skapyd fro the dwarfe, he began too smyle. " Ibid. 69, 15. " Let me (my Lord) disclose unto your grace This Jutinous tah, what mischief it contains." Gorboduc, 627. "To see fair Bettris how bright she is of blee." GREENE, George- A- Greene, p. 264, b. "I know you what you are." Lear, i. I, 272. For the construction of the object noun clauses, which are at the same time adjectival ones, see below, 120. Direct and Indirect Speech. 107. Both the direct and the indirect speech (oratio recta, oratio obliqua) may be apprehended as substantive sentences. The former is anterior to the latter, and there is a construc- tion which may perhaps be looked upon as a remnant of the stage of transition from direct to indirect speech by means of that added to the principal sentence. "He sayd full angerly to the sty ward, that to an euyll owre hath your lady ben so madde as to mary her self to a ladde, a straunger." CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 184, 9. " Merlyn late wryte balyns name on the tombe with letters of gold, that here lyeth balyn le Saueage." Morte d'Arthtir, 98, 35. ' ' / said THAT ' all the years invent ; Were this not well to bide mine hour Tho' watching from a ruined tower How grows the day of human power? ' " TENNYSON, The Two Voices. There are other instances in the Bible, but these are probably faithfully copied from the Greek original. Gothic. " QuiJ>andans \atei praufetus mikils urrais in unsis " (saying, A great prophet is arisen among us). Luke, vii. 16. 60 ENGLISH SYNTAX Old English. " And cwsedon, J)?et m?ere witega on us aras." (Same verse. ) Cf. Old French. " Quant Joseph ha ce entendu, Mout liez et mout joianz en fu Et dist que ' ce n'est pas a moi Meis au seigneur en cui je croi.' " (When Joseph has heard that, he was very glad and joyful therefore and said that "it is not to me but to the Lord in whom I believe "). Saint Graal, 2321. Change of Direct and Indirect Speech. "(Huon) embrassyd hym and sayde how often tymes he had sene Guyer, his brother the prouost, wepe for you, and whan / departyd fro Burdeux I delyveryd to him all my londes to gouerne." LORD BERNERS' Huon, 62, 31, 32. " They told him that they were poor pilgrims going to Zion, but were led out of their way by a black man, clothed in white, who bid us, they said, follow him." BUNYAN, Pilgrim s Progress, 133. 1 08. The indirect speech, though it may be traced back to the oldest periods, is something artificial, and was always felt as such. In poetry and popular writings we notice a certain struggle against the constraint; hence the many examples of sudden transition from the indirect to the more natural direct speech. Latin. " Diogenes censet, si voluptas aut si bona valetudo sit in bonis, divitias quoque in bonis esse ponendas ; at si sapientia bonum sit, non sequi, ut etiam divitias bonum esse dicamus. Neque ab ulla re, quse non sit in bonis, id, quod sit in bonis, nulla ars divitiis contineri potest." C. Fin. iii. 15, 49. "Videmusne nullum ab iis, qui in certamen descendant, devitari dolorem ? Apud quos autem venandi et equitandi laus viget, qui hanc petessunt, nullum fugiunt dolorem." Tusc. ii. 26, 62. Old Saxon. "quaS, that im neriandas ginist ginahid wari ; ' nu is the helago Krist kuman ' " (quoth, that the Saviour's salvation was near; " now is Holy Christ come "). HELIAND, 521. Old English. " ]>a cusedon hie }aet hie hie J>ses ne onmunden )>on ma J>e eowre geferan J>e mid J>am cyninge ofslasgene wserun " (they said moreover that they should mind that [offer] "no more than did your mates who were slain with the king." Chronicle, 755. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 61 "Sa cwaeS se cyng. Sset -mihte beon geboden him wiS clsenum legere. ac ic hsebbe ealle Sa spaece to Aelfhege laeten " (then said the king, that that might be offered him, in consideration of a grave in consecrated ground : "but I have given over the whole discussion to Aelfheah "). EARLE, Handbook to Land Charters, p. 201. (EARLE, English Prose, p. 379.) Middle English. " Wex derke, Sis coren is gon, Jacob eft bit hem faren agon, Oc he ne duren Se weie cumen in, 'but go wiS us senden beniamin.' " (It became dark [dearth?], the corn is gone, Jacob bade them go again, But they durst not go the way, "but_>' send with us Benjamin.") Story of Genesis and Exodus, 2240. " The dewke depyed Gye there And bad, yf hys wylle were, That Harrawde schulde haue wyth hym eche dell Fyve hundurde knyghtys armed well And wende forthe, wythowte fayle, Boldely them for to assayle, ' And ye, syr Gye, a thousande Bolde men and wele bydande ' ". Guy of Wanvick, ed. Zupitza, 1785. THE ADJECTIVE CLA.USF. The Oldest Stage of the Adjecthv Clause (Omission of the Relative Pronouti). " I know a charm shall make thee meek and tame." SHELLEY. 109. The oldest shape of the adjective clause was also that of two sentences put together without any outward mark of connection (conjunction). "Heron )>is geare gefor Aelfred wses set BaSum gerefa." (In this year went hence Alfred [who] was count in Bath.) Chronicle, 906 (Parker MS.). But while the other clauses, e.g., those determining time, look in appearance like independent co-ordinate sentences, and may be apprehended as such, it is quite different with the adjective clause. In the following instance, " Se feeder 62 ENGLISH SYNTAX hire sealde ane \ebwene Bala hatte " (the father gave her a servant [who] was called Bala), Genesis, xxix. 29, the clause Bala hdtte may perhaps be looked upon as an in- dependent sentence, but the following passage cannot be in- terpreted in the same way. " ])is is anlicnes engelcynna ]>xs bremestan, mid )>am burgwarum in )>aere ceastre is " (this is a true image of the most famous of the hosts of angels [who] is in the hall with the inhabitants of the castle). ANDREAS, 717. 1 10. In fact, the adjective clauses are felt from the very outset as subordinate to the principal sentence, and the whole construction may be apprehended as a sentence with one subject and two predicates. + This is the so-called construction cbro Koti/o>. The starting point was afforded by sentences of the type exhibited in the following instances : " In war was never lion [that] raged more fierce." Richard II. ii. I. 173- "There be some sports are painful." Tempest, iii. i, i. "There is a devil haunts thee." I Henry IV. ii. 4, 492. where the common subject of the two sentences stands in the middle. The next step was to use the same construction also with an object in the middle, as in the following examples : "I have a brother [who] is condemned to die." Measure for Measure, ii. 2, 33. "I have a mind [which] presages." Merchant, i. i, 175. "And sue a friend [who] 'came debtor for my sake." Sonnets, 139. Later on, there came in also constructions, in which the common clause takes precedence, or is inserted between the first predicate and its qualification. In this use it may serve as subject, or as object, or as any other kind of ad- SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 63 verbial qualification ; and further, it need not necessarily bear the same relation to both predicates. Cf. the following passages : " What wreck discern you in me [that] Deserves your pity ? " Cymbeline, \. 6, 84. " You are one of those [who] Would have him wed again." Winters Tale, v. i, 23. " Declare the cause [for which] My father, Earl of Cambridge, lost his head." I Henry VI. ii. 6, 86. in. The construction dro KoivoSj'is not a construction peculiar to the Teutonic or Indo-European languages ; it is founded on a common psychological principle, and we may safely say that it has sprung spontaneously into existence at several epochs and in different languages independent of and without connection with one another. Old High German. " thaz selba sie imo sagetun, sie hiar bifora zelitun " (they said the same thing to him that they had said before). OTFRID, iv. 16, 46. "wer ist, thes hiar thenke?" (who is here that could think such a thing?). Ibid. iii. 16, 30. "nist man nihein in worolti, thaz saman al irsageti " (there is no one in the world who could tell all that together). Ibid. i. 17, i. Old English. " Mid heora cyningum, Reedgota and Eallerica waron hatene, Romane burig abrrtcon " (with their kings [who] were called Radagisus and Alaric they stormed the city). BOETH. I. Similar instances with the verb hdtan are frequent. " Her on |>ys geare gefor Aelfred wses aet BaSum gerefa." (In this year died Alfred [who] was gerefa in Bath. ) Chronicle, 907. " Ac forcfon monige seondon on OngolSeode, [J>a )>e] )>issum maan- fullum gesinscipum wa-ron gemengde saegde ac heo beon to monienne, \>xt heo ahebban heo from swylcum unrihtum " (but as there are many in England [who] were said to have been united in this sinful wedlock, so they are to be warned to abstain from such unrighteousness). Beda, i. 27 64 ENGLISH SYNTAX Middle English. " }>a he com to ]>ere dune oliveti is ihaten " (when he came to the hill which is called Olivetus). Old English Homilies, i. 3 A.D. 1 200. " Sowgte Sis quead, ' hu ma it ben, Adam ben king and cue quuen Of alle Se Singe in werlde ben.' " (The wicked one [Satan] thought : how may it be that Adam is king and Eve queen of all things [which] are in the world.) Story of Genesis and Exodus, 297, A.D. 1250. " Abram, Su fare ut of lond and kin To a lond ic Se sal bringen hin." (Abraham, go thou from this land and thy kin, to a land [that] I shall bring thee to.) Ibid. 738. " Nov ist a water of loolic ble, Men calliS it $e dede se ; lie Sing deieS Sor-inne is driuen." (There is a water of lothly colour, men call it the Dead Sea ; every- thing dies [that] is driven therein.) Ibid. 75 * Cf. also ibid. 3672. ' ' He spoken J>er-offe, and chosen sone A riche man was under mone." (They spoke thereof and soon chose a rich man [that] was under the moon.) HAVELOK, 373, A.D. 1280. "Vor ]>ou art mon of strange londe, and Cristine mon non, and eke |>ei icholde myne barons hit wolde wij>sege echon" (for thou art a stranger, and no Christian, and also they [whom] I hold my barons will gainsay everyone). Robert of Gloucester, 2490. At the end of the thirteenth century the omission of the relative pronoun is quite common, as may be seen from the following figures. The relative pronoun is wanting in the Cursor Mundi, A.D. ab. 1300, lines 82, 240, 2392, 2504, 3186, 3359. 3993. 4892, S 202 5 26 4, 53 02 > 59 J 6, 6976, 7096, 7112, 7188, 7192, 7868, 7873, 8056, 8212, 8561, 8635, 9 62 > 10071, 10285, I0 395> 10552, Io6 77> 10741, 10848, 10899, Iri 87> 11472, 11603, 11666, &c. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 05 Development of the Adjective Clause. 1 1 2. Though the hypotactic (subordinate) adjective clause turns up in the oldest periods of English, a thousand years development elapsed before .it appeared in its modern shape. Only at the end of the fifteenth century do we see the relative clause in its modern garb. There is an essential psychological and grammatical difference be- tween the old construction, which is still met with in col- loquial and vulgar speech, and the concise expression which is the rule in good conversation and literary works. The adjective clause of the older periods is deficient in point of consistency and unity it is pleonastic and anacoluthic the modern one is grammatically correct. " for he that smytes, he shal be smyten." Townley Mysteries, p. 1 88. " Now tourne we unto sire Lamorak that upon a daye/^took a lytel Barget and his wyf . . . " Morte (TArthtir, 330, 24. " The londe that they hold, gyue it to Chariot your sone." BERNERS, Huon, 5, 13. 1 13. As in many other cases, the construction of the older periods is more appropriate to the psychical facts, while the modern one is ruled by logical considerations. In the follow- ing instances " they that were about hym rebell, he dompted and subdewed them " (Caxton, Charles the Crete) ; " he that berethe the diamond upon him, it geueth hym hardynesse and manhode " (Maundeville, p. 159) "they" and "he" are, no doubt, the psychological subjects that is, they are prominent in the mind of the speaker, and it is to them that the predicate is applied. The modern speaker would also think in this case of they and he as subjects, but he is trained to think in whole sentences, therefore he sees before that there are other subjects following which require " them " and "him" as their logical objects, and he would begin accord- ingly with "them " and "him." F 66 ENGLISH SYNTAX There are three principal types of relative constructions : I. The Antecedent or Correlative is a Noun in a Complete Sentence, which is followed by a many-worded Adjective or Relative Clause. "He tires betimes, that spurs too fast betimes." SHAKSPERE. 114. If the relative pronoun is in the nominative case, the construction, as a rule, is as regular as that of the quoted instance. But the older periods exhibit a pleonastic personal pronoun. " Ine pise /en5ej> inoche uolk : ine uele maneres, ase Jnse fole wyf- men, J>et nor a lite wynnynge, hy yuej) ham to zenne." (In this, many people sin in many ways, as these foolish women, that for a little winning they give themselves to sin.) Ayenbite, 45. " A knight there was, and that a worthy man, That, from the tyme that he first began To ryden out, he lovede chyvalrye." CHAUCER, Cant. Tales, Prol. 43 45. "here is a worshipfull knyght sir Lamorak, that for me he shal be lord of this co\intreye."Morte if Arthur, 334, 2. "sir Trystram, that by aduenture he cam . . ." Ibid. 407, 21. The Relative is an Oblique Case. " Mrs. Boffin, .which her father's name was Henry." DICKENS. 115. Then, as a rule, the relatives are used in con- nection with the corresponding preposition, " Of whom, to whom, whom or which," &c. But there are exceptions in this case too. Instead of the simple relatives we find In the genitive : relative + his (her), their. In the dative and accusative : relative + him (her, it), them. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 67 Old English. " Hwset se god \V;XTC, ]>e ])is his bcacen was" (who that god was, whose sign this was). Elate, 162. Middle English. " ]>e pope Gregorie \>\>at pe fende him hadcle wel nei5 icaust " (the pope Gregory whom the fiend had nearly caught). (iir^<>rins t 16, a. "adoughter \>]>at \vi]> hire was hire moder ded" (a daughter with whom her dead mother was). Ibid. 32, a. " tlie whiche thenne, by old age and lyuyngc many yeres, his blood was wexen colde." CAXTON, F.neydos, 14, 21. " of whom may not well be recounted the valyauncc of ' hym." CAXTON, Charles the Crete, 38, 20. This use continued in the sixteenth century. Tudor English. " I know no man lyuyng that I or my brother haue done to hym any dyspleasure." BERNKRS, Hiion, 19, 24. "///6 1 whiche treasure I gaaf part thereof to the kynge." Ibid. 263, 9- ' ' I pray thee, show me what be yonder two prynces, that goth up the stay res, and that so inoch honour is done to them." Ibid. 286, 9. II. The Correlative Sentence is divided into two parts by the Relative Clause. " No man hath seen God at any time ; tlie only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him." John. 1 1 6. In Old and Middle English this type is nearly always a sort of anacoluthon to our modern eyes and ears, and perhaps it was such indeed. The essential point in which this construction differs from the modern use is, that the correlative always appears in the nominative case, without regard to its place in the sentence ; it is only the redundant pronoun, personal or possessive in the second part, which marks the subjective or objective case of the correlative ; e.g-, "and she that was not lerned to receyue suche geestes, sore harde was his acquaintance to her" (Caxton's Blanch., F 2 68 ENGLISH SYNTAX 67, 29, 30). Accordingly we may distinguish two groups of type II. 117. (a) The correlative is the subject of the sentence. Then the redundant personal pronoun appears in the nominative case. This pronoun is very frequent in Old English and Middle English. Perhaps we might say that this is the rule; at least the Old English Homilies seem to suggest such a sup- position. There are in the second series 23 instances of the redundant pronoun, while only six passages omit it. Later Middle English tends to restrict the use of the personal pronoun. 1 1 8. (b} The correlative is, logically, the object (direct or indirect) of the sentence ; then, as a rule, it is in the nominative case, and the redundant personal pronoun is either in the genitive (his, her, their) or dative (accusative) case. Old English. " J*j J>e God secea'5 ne aspringeS him nan god " (they that seek God, no good shall ever fail them). Ps. xxxiii. 10. Middle English. " Alle synfulle men J>e heued-synnes don habbeS, and nelleft ]>erof no shrift nimen he bihat hem eche fur on hellc. " (All sinful men who have done capital sins, and will not take shrift thereof, he threateneth them with eternal fire in hell.) Old E. Horn. ii. 41. etvs me 5itt hungres thaym, and \ey J)at drinkes me, 5itt ]>ristes thaym " (they that eat me, yet they are hungry, and they that drink me, yet they are thirsty). HAMPOLE, Prose Treat, p. 3. "he perceyued a right mighty nauey, wherof they that were come upon lande, he sawe hem in grete nombre." CAXTON, Blanch. 162, 3. 7"iuior English. " With my sworde I so defendyd me, that he that thought to haue slayne me, I haue slayne hym" BERNERS, Huon, 27, 5,6. " He that lieth there deed before you, I slew him in my defence. " Ibid. 34, II. " all the mete that he could get in the towne, he shuld by it." Ibid. 84, 33- SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 69 III. The Relative Sentence precedes its Correlative. " Jl7io alone suffers, suffers most i' the mind." SHAKSPERE. 119. The use of the personal pronoun in the correlative is the same as in type II. In Old and Middle English the pronoun is almost the rule, its omission is quite exceptional. The pleonastic personal pronoun occurs in the sixteenth century as well, and here and there in modern times. "Whosoever that hath not scene the noble citie of Venis, he hath not scene the bewyte and ryches of thys worlde." ANDREW BOORDE, Introduction and Dyetary, p. 181. " whosoeuer wil buylde a mancyon place or a house, he must cytuate it . . ." Ibid. p. 233. Cf. ibid. pp. 236, 238, 242. Shakspere has often what it: ' ' What our contempt doth often hurl from us, We wish it ours again." Antony, i. 2, 127. " What you have spoke, it may be so perchance." Macbeth, iv. 3, 11, Noun-Clause and Adjective-Clause intermixed. "I bring you something, my dear, that (/ believe) will make you smile." -GOLDSMITH. " And in these fits I leave them, while I visit Young Ferdinand whom they suppose is drowned." SHAKSPERE, Tempest, iii. 3, 92. 120. Whenever the object noun-clause is at the same time an adjectival one, we now use a sort of parenthesis in order to avoid the clumsiness and confusion arising out of two clauses interlaced with each other. Thus we say, " The origin of his own practice, which he says was a tendency he never could deviate from " (Lewes) ; or, with a more ac- curate punctuation, " The origin of his own practice, which, 70 ENGLISH SYNTAX he says, was a tendency he never could deviate from." In this instance the noun-clause is replaced by the interpolated principal sentence. But this is not the oldest stage of the construction. In Old and Middle English (and here and there in modern times) the noun-clause was treated as if it were dependent on the preceding adjectival clause. Thus the following instance, ' I am he that thou knowe that dyd doo destroys [whom thou knowest did cause to be destroyed] Rome your cyte, and slewe the Pope and many other, and bare awaye the relyques that I there founde " (Charles the Grete, 52, 30), may be decomposed into three parts : I am he + that thou knowe (adjective-clause) + that dyd doo destroye (noun-clause). Old English. "Eac w?es gesewen on Jsrem wage atifred ealle )>a heargas Israhela folces, & eac sio gitsung \e Sanctus Paulus cwa^S 5Vr/ wa-re hearga & idelnesse gefera" (there were also seen painted on the wall all the idols of the people of Israel, and also the cupidity which St. Paul said was the companion of idols and vanity). Cnra Pastoralis, 156, 5- Ttidor English. "The fayr pucelle and proude in amours myght not seasse nor leue her sorowe therfore that she contynually made for her right dere frende blanchardyn ; that for the loue of her she trmved that he had other be lost or ded." CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 120, II. ' ' And so shull ye haue wel rewarded me of all that ye say that my brother and I haue don for you and for your realme." Mchisine, 153, I- 121. The construction becomes less clear when that introducing the noun-clause is dropped (cf. I know he is good). "and thanne all they that were there bygan to sorrowe and wepe for the pyte they had of the kyng, And also of the sorow that they sawe [that] the virgyne, his daughter, made so pitously." Afelusine, 154, 22. Hence the following expressions : "Of Arthur ivhom they say is killed to-night." King John, iv. 2, 165. " The nobility . . . whom we see have sided." Coriolamts, iv. 2, 2. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 71 Relative Subordination instead of Demonstrative Co-ordination. " Caius Ligarius cloth bear Ccesar hard, ll'/ii> [since he] rated him for speaking well of Pompey." SHAKSPERE. 122. This function of the relative pronoun is due to the influence of the Latin, which favours the subordination in every respect. There are faint beginnings of this imitation in the last centuries of the Middle English period, but they develop into full bloom in Elizabethan times. Middle English. " Sithen the storiyng which Girald makith of this voice is this, It is rad that such voice was in the eir, et caetera, Girald 5ildith him silfin so storiyng that he is not the fundamental storier ther of, but that ther of is an other storie bifore him, fro which he takith his storiyng of the same voice : wherfore if noon other storie be founde eeldir than the storie of Girald, in which eeldir storie mensioun is maad of this same voice ... it folewith that at the leest vnto thilk eelder storiyng be founde, the storiyng of Girald in mater of this voice is not to be bileeued." PKCOCK, depressor, p. 356. Cf. ibid. p. 496. Modern English. ''Archbishop. It was young Hotspur's case at Shrewsbury. Lord Bardolph. It was, my lord : who [for he] lined himself with hope." 2 Hen. IV. i. 3, 27. "A large glass of claret was offered to Mannering, "Mho [= and he] drank it to the health of the reigning prince." SCOTT, Guy ]\[anncring, 36. The Adverbial Clauses. 123. Though the original state of coordination is still kept in Old and Middle English, the modern shape of these clauses, their complete subordination, is found in the oldest stages of English. The development of these clauses consists in the change which the particles, the mood, and the order of words have undergone. 72 ENGLISH SYNTAX Adverbial Clauses relating to Place. " Where a great regular army exists, limited monarchy, such as it was in the middle ages, can exist no longer." MACAULAY, History of England, i. 41. 124. The state of parataxis is marked in Old and Middle English by the correlative use of the same particles : in Modern English there is sometimes correlation, but the par- ticle in the dependent clause is always different from that in the principal sentence, so that the subordination is made perceptible. Old English. " pirr Jn'n goldhord ys, \ar ys Jnn heorte" (where thy treasure is, there is thy heart). Matthew, vi. 21. Middle English. "flfor ther he is, ther wold he be." Coventry Myst. p. 323.' Adverbial Clauses relating to Time. "IWieti Cohimlnts arrived at Cordova, the court was like a military camp." IRVING, Columbus, 2, 3. 125. These keep the correlation of the particles even longer than the clauses relating to place. Old English. " And \a ]>d he slep Jw genam he an ribb of his sidan " (and when he slept, he took a rib out of his side). Genesis, ii. 21. Middle English. " ]>a )>is folc isomed wes . . . J>0 sette )>e kaisere arimen al )>sene here" (when this folk was assembled, the emperor caused all the army to be counted). La--am. iii. 6. "And thenne Beaumayns sawe hym soo well horsed and armed, thenne he alyghte doune and armed hym." Morte if Arthur, 222, 26. Tudor English. " Then Gerames saw how the shipp was commynge to that porte, then he sayd to hys company . . ." LORD BERNERS, Huon, 129, ii. 126. The transition of local into temporal and modal meaning which we shall notice with regard to prepositions and SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 73 conjunctions, takes place in adverbial clauses. Hence local and temporal clauses are sometimes used to denote causal, conditional, and adversative relations. Cf. the following instances. Causa/. " Yet not to Earth's contracted span Thy goodness let me bound, Or think thee Lord alone of Man, When thousand worlds are round." POPE, Universal Prayer. Conditional. " It is never well to put ungenerous constructions, when others, equally plausible and more honorable are ready." LEWES, Goethe's Life, i. 8. Adversative. "IVhen they ivill not give a, doit to relieve a lame beggar, they will lay out ten to see a dead Indian." SHAKSPERE, Tempest, ii. 2, 33. Adverbial Clauses relating to Manner and Degree. " He is just as good as he is wise." 127. In this kind of clause too the correlation is more frequent in Old and Middle English than in modern times. The modal clauses often become causal ones. Old English. " J>u scealt greot etan J>ine Kfdagas, swa Jm laSh'ce wrohte onstealdest." (Thou shall eat dust all the days of thy life, as thou committedest a loathly crime.) C/EDMON, Genesis, 910. Middle English. " Lete me fro this deth fle, As I dede nevyr no trespace." Coventry My st. p. 281. Modern English. " My eldest son George was bred at Oxford, as I intended him for one of the learned professions." GOLDSMITH, Vicar. 74 ENGLISH SYNTAX 128. They are also used in a concessive sense. Old English. " Swa he us ne masg rvnige synne gestctlan, J>ret we him on Jxim lande latf gefremedon, he hoeffius j>eah J>res leohtes bescyrecle. " (Though he cannot accuse us of any sin ... he has robbed us of the light.) C/F.DMON, Genesis, 391. Middle English. "heo makede him sunegen (sin) on hire, so holi king ase he was. " Ancren Riiule, p. 56. " for Longeus that olde kny[gh]t, blynd as he was, A ry[gh]t sharpe spere to Crystes herte shall pythe." Coventry Mysteries, 14. ATodern English. " Fond as we a7~e, and justly fond of faith, Reason, we grant, demands our first regard." YOUNG. Adverbial Clauses relating to Cause. " I thank my God that I believe you not." SHELLEY. " Freely we serve because we freely love." MILTON. 129. The former instance illustrates the close relation between the noun clauses and the causal ones. In fact, every causal clause may be expressed also by an abbreviated subject or object noun clause, e.g. It makes me angry to think of his behaviour = I get angry when I think of his behaviour. For modal clauses turning into causal ones see above, 127- Adverbial Clauses relating to Purpose and Consequence. " Satan has desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat." Luke, xxii. 31. " The roads were so bad that few travellers had ever visited it. " MACAU LAY. SYNTAX OF THE SENTENCE 75 130. There are two noteworthy points in the develop- ment of these clauses. 1. While in Old English the subjunctive is the rule in final clauses, it begins to give way to the indicative in Middle English, and tends to disappear altogether in modern times. See Mood, 380-391. 2 . Instead of a consecutive clause with that, the gerundial infinitive comes in in a double function. (a) When the subject is the same in the principal sentence and clause, as is now used after so, as, such, while in older periods there was no particle at all. As comes in as early as 1429 A.D. " Do me this ease as to Jen (lend) me yor chariott." Letter written by Salisbury, the Kingmaker's father, quoted by Mr. Oliphant : The New English, \. 241. "(I was) at such a distance as never to hear from any part of the world that had the least knowledge of me." DEFOE, Robinson Crusoe, p. 60. (/>) When the subject is not the same, we sometimes find the infinitive with for. ' ' No drinking to find the King's cursed shilling at the bottom of the glass, for thy mother to come crying and pestering." CRAIK, John Halifax, i. 26. " She (the boat) was too low in the water for it to be possible for us to blow her up." LADY BRASSEY, Voyage in the " Sunbeam" i. 20. Adverbial Clauses relating to Condition. " If you have tears, prepare to shed them now." SHAKSPERE. 131. The distinction between conditional clauses im- plying reality, and those expressing a mere conception of the mind, steps more and more to the background in Modern English, as may be seen from the fact, that the subjunctive mood which is characteristic of the latter kind of conditional 76 ENGL ISH S YNTAX clauses, tends to be more and more replaced by the in- dicative. See Mood, 381-391. This clause may also be replaced by the infinitive with for. " I should be glad for you to hear what we are saying." M. EDGE- WORTH, Popular Tales, i. 301. Imperative Sentences are often used in a Conditional Sense. 132. " Suppose he should relent . . . with what eyes could we stand in his presence?" MILTON, Paradise Lost, ii. 237. " Tell me a liar, and I'll tell you a thief." " Live thou, live I." Merchant of Venice, iii. 2, 61. Cf. Latin : eras petito : dabitur (Plautus) ; sint Maecen- ates, non desnnt, Flacce, Marones (Martial). 133. Note. In Middle English the relative clause is often used for the conditional one (Cf. who touches pitch, will be defiled = if somebody, &c.). " Qua has to wenden ani wai God es to go bi light o dai." (Who has to go some way, it is good to go at daylight). Cursor Mtindi, 14194. ' ' He, that seyth, hyt ys any odur, I wyll hyt preue, )K>gh he were my brodur." Guy of Warwick, 669. Tudor English. " And I promyse you, that who shall hange Richarde, I shall goo to Reynawde, and shall put myself in hys pryson." CAXTON, Aymon, 326, 23. " for who that might take them fro the sarasyns, none of them shuld neuer retourne foot, in sury nor in thursy." Melusine, 169, 32. This usage is common in Old and Modern French. Qui prendrait garde de si pres, jamais il ne semerait. Qui se fait brebis, le loup le mange. PART II SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH THE SUBSTANTIVE Substantives used as Adjectives. "The chief cst captain of Mycetes' host." MARLOWE, Tamburlaine, 58. ''I have found thee/ra>/" against all temptation." MILTON. 134. WELL known as are the faults of the customary division of the parts of speech, there is a good foundation in general for the distinction between the substantive and the adjective, the former denoting substance, the latter quality. Occasionally, however, an adjective is converted into a substantive, e.g., the righteous, the poor. Less familiar and more interesting is the converse pro- cess, the transformation of a substantive into an adjective. This comes about through the elimination of some part of its meaning including at least the notion of substance so that only the qualities attaching to the substance remain. This transformation virtually occurs as an occasional use, whenever a substantive is employed as a predicate, or attribute. 1 Cfr. Greek : d^r/p TroXtV^s, prjrwp, ywi) Snrotva, 1 CJ. F. Max Miiller, The Science of Thought, p. 427. 8o ENGLISH SYNTAX TrapBfvos x^P- Latin: " exercitus victor" (Livy) ; " l tirones milites" (Cicero). 135. In Middle and Modern English several Old English substantives became adjectives. First, they were parts of compounds, later on they got separated, and were used in- dependently in an attributive sense. Man in Old English means sin, wickedness ;. but when forming the first part of a compound, it means "wicked," e.g. mdnaft (wicked oath, perjury. German : meineid), m&ndccd (wicked deed). In the Cursor Mundi " man " occurs as an independent adjective. " Bi fals godds suer ye nan, Athes noij^er sothfast ne man." (Swear not by false gods, neither true oaths nor false. ) 6848. On the same principle the following passages may be ex- plained. " For to make Gye to do message To the sowdan, that ys so rage." Guy of Warwick, 3474. In old English yrre means both anger and angry. French il est colere. " A broche go Id and asure." CHAUCER, Troylus and Cryseyde, iii. 321. ' ' The necke and hed that weren golde He said how that betoken sholde." GOWER, Confessio Amantis, i. 25. " Men of levyng ben so outrage, That . . . God wyl be vengyd on us sum way." Coventry Mysteries, p. 41. 136. In Modern English there are several instances of this double function of the substantive, viz., the words cheap, chief, choice, dainty, earnest, proof. Cheap, originally sb. = barter, price (Old E. cedp, Middle E. chep\ The older idiom was ' to buy good cheap ' ; cf. French: bon marche. See below, 194. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 81 As late as the sixteenth century it is used in the same way. " Aquitaine is the most plentifullest country for good bred and wine, consideryng the good chef, that I was ever in." ANDREW BOORDE, Introduction and Dyetary, p. 194. C7//V/was already an independent adjective in Elizabethan times, as may be seen by its being used in the comparative and superlative degrees. 1 Choice, too, is found in the superlative degree. " And heaven consum'd his choicest living fire." MARLOWE, Tambttrlaine, 4642. For dainty, earnest, proof, see the Dictionaries. ; Occasionally substantives are used as adjectives meta- phorically. "She was not thought sufficient fortune for him." RICHARDSON, famela, 136, b. In other instances this use is perhaps due to the omis- sion of a particle. " I had never furnished the people with bread that was not weight." EDGEWORTH, Popular Tales, ii. 15. " She was his own age." W. BESANT, Such a Good Man, p. 20. " Dear me, what a colour you are." J. PAYN, Found Dead, p. 67. CLASSES OF NOUNS INTERCHANGED. Abstracts and Concretes interchanged. 137. Grammarians, following the old system of logic, used to classify nouns with reference to the mode in which they existed into concrete and abstract, collective, proper and individual names. But this classification, though it may J There is, however, one instance as early as 1400. See The New Engl. Diet. s. vv. 82 ENGLISH SYNTAX perhaps be applied to the advanced stages of human speech, when the creative imagination is no longer at work, will not hold good when tested by historical research. The science of language teaches us that all names were orginally both > abstract and general. Every name was formed from one root, every root expressed originally a conception ; if, therefore, anything had to be named, its name, as derived from a root, could predicate one attribute only. Hence, even though the name was meant for an individual object, it was, by necessity, the name of other objects likewise, of all things, in fact, which shared in the same attribute, or, of a class of things, until by the necessities of language, as a means of communication, it was more and more restricted, more and more defined, so that at last it meant one concrete object only. This abstract and general character was innate in every word, and though it became hidden when words were applied to singular and concrete things, it breaks out again at once, as soon as the singular and concrete things vanish more and more from our mental focus, while the name remains what it was from the beginning, abstract and general. 1 Hence the transition of abstracts into concretes, and vice versa is to be met with in the earliest period of English as well as in the poetry and prose of our own day. A few instances will do for our purpose. 138. Abstract Nouns used in a Concrete Sense. " Torment, sweet friend, that base and crooked age, That durst disswade me from thy Lucifer." MARLOWE, Faustus, A, 1348. Old English. Duguft. (i) virtue, valour. "SytJoan ic for dug&um Daeghrefhe wearS to hand-bonan, Huga cempan " (since I, out of valour, became the murderer of D. the warrior of the Hugs). Beoivnlf, 2502. 1 Cf. M. Miiller, I.e. 457 ff SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 83 (2) valiant men, warriors. "Pugu'5 unlytel Dena and Wedera" (many men of the Danes and W.). Ibid. 498. Geoguft. (i) youth, state of youth. " haebbe ic nirertSa fela ongunnen on geogufle " (I began many famous exploits in my youth). Ibid. 409. (2) iff> \iet seb geoguft gewebx (until the youthful men grew) ibid. 66. Fultum. (i) help. (2) army, very often so in the Chronicle and in quotation below. Mcegen. (i) power. (2) army. Cf. also riht (right, and property), wuldor (glory, and the glorious one), \ryrn (power, the powerful one). Middle English. Lyf, life = man. "Some had lyf-lode of here lynage and of no lyf elles. 1 ' Piers Plowman, C. Passus, x. 1. 197. Several times in Piers Plowman. Cf. Skeat's Notes (Early English Text Society), pp. 193, 248, 391. Retynaunce = a suit of retainers. ' ' And al J>e riche retynaunce . . . were bede to ]>at brudale " (all the retainers were invited to the bridal). Ibid. C. Passus, Hi. 55. Message = messenger, Chaucer, Man of Lawes Tale, 333. Modern English. Very frequent in Elizabethan times. Adversity = loathsome fellow. Troilus, v. i, 14; tion = admirable person. All's Well, v. i, 91 ; affliction = afflicted woman. King John, iii. 4, 36; age old man. See G 2 84 ENGLISH SYNTAX above. .-7 ///&#cet he \one stan nime tuft hungres hleb (that he take the stone as protection from hunger), ibid. 6 1 6. It occurs very often as an attribute of princes in Old English epic poetry. Ord. (i) point, sword. (2) beginning. See Grein. Rice, (i) kingdom. (2) power. See Grein. Middle English. Blood = relationship. Skeafs Notes to Piers Plowman, p. 425. Chief = beginning. CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 17, 4. Hede in the same sense. Morte d* Arthur, 144, 8. Modern English. Instances abound, e.g. field = battle, source = origin, top height, etc. 140. Collective Nouns used as Class Nouns. Real collective terms like humanitas (mankind), very easily become what are called secondary abstract terms. M. Miiller, I.e. p. 449. Then, through the medium of ab- straction, they become class nouns. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 85 In this way several Modern English words can be easily explained. Fairy in Middle English means (i) enchantment, (2) fairyland, (3) the people of fairyland. It was not until the sixteenth century that fairy became, from a collective, a common noun = one of the fairy. " The feasts that underground the Faerie did him make, And there how he cnjoy'd the Lady of the Lake." DRAYTON, Polyolbion, iv. 307. Payniin, Old French : paienisme ; Latin : paganismus. See Skeat, s. v. County is often used=count, in the sixteenth century. " Gismuncl, who loves the county Palurin Guiscard, who quites her likings with his love." Tancred and Gismunda, p. 23. Cfr. Greene, Orlando Furioso, p. 90, 91, 92, 94, 95. 141. Proper Names used as Common Names. " You look like a^v/r. " Middle English. A Christofre " (He bar) on his brest of silver schene. " Chaucer, Prologue, u 5 = a figure of St. Christopher, a brooch. A Donet = & grammar, originally Aelius Donatus, the Latin grammarian, often in Middle English literature. See Skeat, Notes to Piers Plowman, p. 119. A Lazar = a leper, from Lazarus. " He knew the taverns wel in every toun, And everych hostiler and tappestere, Bet then a lazar, or a beggestere." CHAUCER, Prol. 242 ; ibid. 245. 86 ENGLISH S YNTAX A mamnet = idol, from Mahomet. As early as Layamon. See Madden's Glossary, and Stratmann. So still in Caxton, Blanchardyn, 137, 27. Modern English. Abigail, nickname given to a female servant. Dunce, a stupid person. A proper name, originally in the phrase " a Dun's man." So Tyndall, Works, p. 88 ; Barnes, Works, p. 232, 272. The word was introduced by the Thomists, or disciples of Thomas Aquinas, in ridi- cule of the Scotists, or disciples of John Duns Scotus, the schoolman, died A.D. 1308. Guy, a dowdy, from the puppets carried about on the fifth of November in memory of Guy Fawkes's conspiracy. Cf. hansom (cab), from the name of the inventor ; pander, a pimp, from Pandarus. For ethnographical and geographical names having become common terms, cf. loinbard=& broker; arras =. tapestry ; bantam, bedlam, bilbo, china, spa. SINGULAR AND PLURAL OF SUBSTANTIVES. Subjective Character of the Number. 142. Number passes into a grammatical category solely by the development of concord. Even in inflexional languages the plural is not in all cases indispensable where a plurality has to be designated. Every plurality may be conceived by the speaker as a unity. And thus there are designations for a definite number which are singular, such as score, dozen, just as originally hundred, thousand. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 87 On the other hand, we often find the plural form where we see no notion of plurality, such as Old English brebst (breast), heofonas (sky, heaven) ; and again there are plurals in Modern English which were singular in older periods, such as gallows (Old English, galgd), c. It is this sub- jective character of the conception of number which accounts for the striking difference not only between different languages, but also between different periods of the same language. Number of Abstracts. " I tell thee, 1'eggy, I will have thy loves," GREENE, Friar Bacon and Ft: B. 143. The older stages of English, as well as the other Teutonic dialects, exhibit many instances of abstracts used in the plural. Golliic. "Frauja, frauja . . niu ]>einamma namin mahtins mikilus gatavidedum ? " (Lord, Lord! did we not many powerful things [liter- ally, power s] in thy name?). Matthew, vii. 22. Old Saxon. meron mahti (more powers), Heliand, 2338. Old High German. thino guati (thy goodnesses), Otfrid, v. 23, 13. Cf. Grimm, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. 285. Old English. "hwar ahangen was. . . rodora waklend tcfsttim |;urh inwit " (where was hanged the lord of the heavens through hates}. EUne, 207. ealluin eaftmedum (in all humilities), ibid. 1088 ; in ermftum (in miseries), ibid. 768 ; mter'Sum and mihtuin (in fame and might), ibid. 15. Cf. Grein, s. vv. ofost, fyostrti, \ryin. 88 ENGLISH SYNTAX Middle English. Here the plural of abstracts denotes either (a) singular repeated actions, (b] different kinds of the same conception, or (c] the unusual force of the conception. (e ilke is to grat ; huanne eche daye ondemangejj )>e gnod- nessts." Ayenbite of hnvyt, p. 18. Cf. Orm, Dedication, 252, 276, &c. (b) " Twa sarincsse beo$, an is J>eos uuele, otter is halwende." Old E. Horn. i. 103. " j>a sarinessen |>issere sterke worlde." Ibid. 105. "J)u dorc stede ifullet of alle drearinesses." Ibid. 253. (c) " J>e guodes of hap byej> he^nesses, richesses, delices, and pros- perites." Ayenbite, p. 24. Cf. mihtcs, Gower i. 140; hevinessis, Gesta Romano ntm, 174; habundances, ibid. 287 ; anguysshes, diseases, CAXTON Blanchardyn, 2, 3, 4. In many instances the plural is due to French influence. Thus, in Dan Michel's Ayenbite of Inwyt (1340 A.D.), and in Caxton's translations of French romances, the plural of abstracts is most frequent. " uor ]>et is ]>e manne )?et alle Jrise Binges make]) zuete, zuynch, zor5es, tyeaers and wepinges, ssames" (original, hontes). Ayenbite, p. 83. (For that is the manna that makes all these things sweet : swink, sornnvs, tears and weepings, shames, &c.) "But i\\e\\corages were neuerthe lesse therfore" (original, couraiges). CAXTON, Aymon, 262, 29. "all mvthis layde apart e " (French, regrets). Ibid. 17, 8 ; 20, 6. In Modern English this use is continued in poetry, and is sometimes to be met with in prose. " In so moche he thought in hymselfe for the grete labours in his wepynges almoost for to haue ben ouercomen."- JOHN FISHER, 17, 19. "All these wretchednesses be rehersed of the prophete Dauyd."- Ibid. 53, 3. Cf. ibid. 59, 16; 64, 21. SYNTAX OF THE PAA'TS OF SPEECH 89 "Dismay thee not for the great poverty* that thou hast sufferyd." LORD BERNERS' Huon, 172, 17. Cf. ibid. 59, 16; 64, 21. ' ' There ariseth in his soul many fears, and doubts, and discouraging apprehensions." BUN VAN, Pilgrim's Progress. "Other weak men, who, meddling ... do suddenly fall into thy distractions. " Ibid. "Your brother's distresses."- SHERIDAN, School for Scandal, i. i. 144. Besides, we find in the second half of the sixteenth century, when the English renaissance was at its highest, a direct imitation of the Latin pluralis majestaticus. "Rid me, and keep a friend worth many loves." GREENE, Friar B. and Friar 7>. , 1 66, a. Cf. ibid. 165, b, 1 66, a, 166, b ; Spenser, Faerie Queene, i. i, 47, i. 2, 3. "To tremble with the terrors of our looks." LODGE, Wounds of Civil War, 128. Cf. fears, Mids. N. Dream, v. 97 ; Meas. for Meets, iv. 2, 207. Love.? and terror.? are modelled on the Latin "amores = amor," Verg. Aen. iv. 28; v. 334, &c. ; "metus," Verg. Aen. i. 463; Ovid. Met. v. 363; x. 466; " timores," Stat. Silv. iii. 2, 80. Plural of Proper Names. 145. Proper names form a plural (a) When they denote a plurality of individuals of the same name. "As I hate hell, all Montagues and thee." SHAKSPERE. (b} If they become names of sorts in a figurative mean- ing. " I demanded who were the present theatrical writers in vogue, who the Drydens and Otivays of the day ? " GOLDSMITH. go ENGLISH SYNTAX Plural of Material Names. 146. Material names appear in the plural, denoting (a) Several kinds of the same materials : oils, silks. (/$) Things made out of that material : coppers, irons. (c) Poetical licence : " White as the snows of heaven. " Instances are very frequent in modern poetry, and are pro- bably due to Latin influence. Number of Common Nouns. 147. With regard to the number of common nouns, the use has, on the whole, undergone no change ; but the so-called pluralia tantum that is, substantives occurring only in the plural, as "bellows," "gallows" are extremely rare in the older periods of the language. In Old English there are words used both in the singular and the plural without any difference of meaning. NOTE. Analogy accounts for the plural in the phrase " I am friends with him," the frequent expression " we are friends," intruding itself, as it were, on the mind of the speaker. "I am friends with thee." MASSINGER, A New Way to Pay Old Debts, 292, b. The following expression is perhaps to be explained in the same way : " My ladyship's woman is much thy betters. " RICHARDSON, Pamela, 181, a. " Master Godefrey, what do you want with me ? You're my elder? and betters, you know." G. ELIOT, Silas Alarner, 20. Breost both singular and plural means breast, though the SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 91 plural prevails. This use was common to all the Teutonic languages. Gothic, "sa motareis . . . sloh in brusts seinos" (the publican beat his breast). (Greek, rb a-rriQos ; Latin, "pectus".) Old Norse, "er maoY eiga skal annars bridstum \ " (which man shall own in another's breast). EDDA, Hdvamdl, 8, 6. But the singular is more frequent than the plural. Old Saxon. Heliand has only the plural. Old High German. Both. See Grimm, p. 287. Old English. Beowulf has the singular, 2177 and 2332; but the plural, 453, 552, 2551. Thus still in Orm. Ded., 220, 226, &c. Heofon too is used in the plural = heaven (like Gothic "himins"). Beowulf has the singular, 3157, 1572, &c. ; the plural, 52, 182, 505. Cf. "rodor," singular, 1573; plural, 310, 1377, 1556. The modern plurals like tongs, scissors, are of recent date. CASES. 148. From the point of view of Accidence only, it would be wrong to speak of cases in Modern English, there being practically no outward mark in the noun to distinguish either nominative, or accusative, or dative. There is, how- ever, good ground to keep the old terms in syntax. First, we have in the possessive case a valuable remnant of the old genitive, and the personal pronouns with their 1 and me, he and //////, still keep alive the difference between the nominative and the accusative case. Secondly, the prepositions of and to which became im- portant as soon as the case -endings began to decay, were from the eleventh or twelfth century down to our times always felt as substitutes for the lost inflexions of the genitive and dative, just the same as de and a in French. In dealing, therefore, with the cases, I shall consider it as understood that the terms of genitive and dative, when used with regard to Middle and Modern English apply only 92 ENGLISH SYNTAX in so far as the prepositions of and to serve to express those functions which were formerly implied in the inflexions of the genitive and dative respectively. THE NOMINATIVE CASE. Functions of the Nominative. 149. In Old English the functions of the nominative case are those of the subject and predicate, and these only. " Ic com weg and so'oTo:stnys and lif" (I am way, and truth, and life). -John, xiv. 6. 150. In one case, however, the nominative is used in Old English, where we expect the accusative case. The verb hdtan (to call) often governs the nominative. " Hine mon scyle on bismer hatan se anscoda " (men shall call him in ignominy the one-shoed). Cura Pastoralis, 45. "Sone beorhtan steorran 'Se we hatao" morgensteorra " (the bright star which we call the morning-star). BOETHIUS, p. 114. The same use occurs in Middle High German. "der nennet sich der riter rot" (he calls himself the red knight). Parzival, 276, 21. "man sol mich ein zage nennen" (men shall call me a coward). Willekalm, 181, 7. For other instances, both in Old English and Middle High German, see Grein, s. v. hatan, nemnan, and Grimm, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. p. 592. This seeming anomaly may be explained as a sort of sudden transition from indirect to direct speech : " hine mon sceal hatan : ' se anscoda ! ' " (men shall call him : " the one-shoed ! "). So far as the logical subject is concerned, there has been no change from Old English down to Modern English times. But the grammatical subject became much more frequent and important than ever it was before. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 93 Nominative instead of the Oblique Case in old Impersonal Verbs. 151. While Old English is very rich in impersonal verbs, there is a tendency in the later periods of Middle English towards the personal expression, that is to say (as Koch puts it), what once appeared as a dark sensation is made to appear as the conscious action of the free mind. Instead of "//// hrebweft, hit sceameft, hit licaft, hit langaft" there appear, "I repent, I am ashamed, I like, I long." This natural development was favoured by two external causes. In such instances as "Wo wes Brutus )>er fore." LAYAMON, i. 14; "Wo was this Kyng." CHAUCER, Man of Lawes Tale, 659; what is an indirect object was mistaken for the nominative case, and secondly, the French model was of great import- ance. Hence the following expressions : "I am ful wo." Coventry Mysteries, p. 396. "I am leuer etc, What is drynk withoute mete ? " Townley Mysteries, p. 89. " he were better his deth to take." Ibid. p. 187. See Impersonal Verbs, 337. Nominative instead of the Dative in Passive Constructions. 152. The second encroachment of the nominative on the dative case took place in the passive constructions of transitive verbs governing an indirect, or both a direct and an indirect object, or in intransitive verbs followed by prepositions. This innovation was brought about first by the dative and accusative cases being confounded. Objects governed by verbs like "command, answer," &c., were 94 ENGLISH SYNTAX consequently looked upon as accusative cases, and were treated as such, so that they became capable of the passive construction. " Jat ~<.et nuihte beon ileten blod." Ancren Rhvle, 112. ]>et is scarcely the dative : nor is " Ure Lauerd " in " Ure Lauerd beo iSonked," ibid. 8, where MS. C has, " beo hit bonked " ; for another passage on p. 1 12 is indisputable : " )>e he was bus ileten blood." See the Passive, 363. The Nominative Absolute. " They failing, I must die much your debtor." Cymbcline, ii. 4, 8. 153. The nominative absolute wholly supplanted the Old English dative, and became much more popular than the apparently learned Old English construction had ever been. Old English. " hys cnihtas comon on nyht, and eow slaependum, |x>ne lychaman forstlaeon " (his disciples came at night, and, you sleep- ing, stole his body). Evang. Nicod. 17. "J>a sona eft Code fultumiendum he mahte gesion and sprecan" (there soon, God helping, he could see and speak). Chronicle, 797- " Gif he sunnan scinendre |>3et deC" (if he does it, the sun shining). Exodtis, xxii. 3. In Middle English the dative is to be met with as late as the time of the Townley Mysteries ; but the nominative is quite common in Chaucer and his contemporaries. " Sche this in blake, lykynge to Troilus, Over alle thinge he stode for to beholde." CHAUCER, Troylus and Cryseyje, i. 309. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 95 " What couthe a stourdy houseboncle more devyse, To prove hir wyfhode and her stedfastnesse, Anil he contynuyng ever in stourdynesse. " CHAUCER, Clerkes Tale, iv. 91. " And whan this Walter saugh hir patience, Hir glade cheer, and no malice at al, And he so oft hadde doon to hir offence, And sche ay sad and constant as a wal, Continuyng ever hir innocence overal, This sturdy marquys gan his herte dresse." Ibid. vi. 109. Tudor English. " Thus when the Kynge and the prynces and barons hade dynyd, the noble Emperour called hys lordys before hym, he syttyng on a benche rychely aperelyd." LORD BERNERS' Hnon, 3, 7. Cf. ibid. 29, 23 ; 39, 5. Modern English. " She failing in her promise, I have been diverting my chagrin." SHERIDAN, Trip to Scarborough, i. I. 154. Along with the absolute construction runs another, which has a certain resemblance to that used in Gothic and Old Norse. "Besides, with the enemy invading our country, it was my duty as the head of our family to go on the campaign." THACKERAY, The Virginians, i. 165. " With its warm breath gushing forth in a light cloud which merrily and gracefully ascended a few feet, then hung about the chimney-corner as its own domestic heaven, it trolled its song with that strong energy of cheerfulness, that its iron body hummed and stirred upon the fire." DICKENS, The Cricket on the Hearth. " There was nothing they wouldn't have cleared away, with old Fezziwig looking on." DlCKEXS, A Christmas Carol. "How could it (ever happen), with everybody against it but poor little me?" Cii. READE, A Terrible Temptation, ii. 255. The Nominative with the Infinitive. 155. Another function of the nominative case was that in connection with the infinitive, e.g. : " The caul was put up in a raffle down in our part of the country, to fifty members at half-a-crown a head, the winner to spend five shillings." DICKENS, David Copperfield, i. 2. For a full account see Infinitive, 399-400. 96 ENGLISH S YNTA X Nominative in Apposition. 156. Quite exceptionally a pronoun referring as apposi- tion to a noun or pronoun in an oblique case appears in the nominative, e.g. : " To whom the lond was attendant As he, which heir was apparant." GOWER, Confessio Amantis, i. 214. See Interchange of Cases, 209. The Nominative supplanted by the Oblique Case. 157. There are, however, two cases in which the nomi- native has been encroached upon by the oblique case. (a) You instead of ye ; see Interchange of Cases, 212. (b) It is me ; see Interchange of Cases, 214. The Genitive Case. Signification of the Genitive. 158. First of all, we must distinguish between the geni- tive governed by verbs, and that connected with substantives. While the first category is rather limited even in older periods of the language, the genitive governed by substan- tives ranges in Old English (as well as in the other Teutonic languages) over a far wider area than in later and modern times, and its applicability was nearly unlimited. We may almost say of the Old English genitive what Professor Sayce states with regard to Accadian, viz. that the genitive was nothing more than an apposition implying some vague idea of a relation between two substantives. 1 1 " Here, then (set/, in Accadian), the relation would seem to be nothing more than what we term 'apposition,' that is, where two SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 97 But numerous though the functions of the Old English genitive were, there is one especially prominent, the attribu- tive one. There is a very close relation between the genitive and the adjective (attribute), as may best be seen by the fact that the possessive pronouns my, thy, his (O.E. min, Sin, his) are nothing else but genitives of the personal pronouns I, thou, he, &C. 1 And still in Middle English nouns in the genitive case are used even predica tively as adjectives : " Right as a Hues creature she semeth," i.e. a live, a living creature. Gower, Confessio Amantis, ii. 14. See below, i66. 2 In Modern English there are but a few remnants of what once was the most important of all the cases. The Genitive denotes Birth and Relation. 159. This signification which gave the case its name (genitivus from gigno), and is most frequent in all periods of the language, is encroached upon by the dative. " My lady Margarete .... Moder unto our nature! and souerayn lorde." CAXTON, Blanchardyn, I, 3. "Blanchardyn, sone vnto the kynge of Fryse." Ibid. I, 27. " Blanchardyn answerd that he was of the lande of Grece, and sone to a kynge." Ibid. 100, I. " She is daughter to this duke." SHAKSP. Tempest, v. 192. "The fair sister to her unhappy brother Claudio." Measure for Measure, i. 4, 2O. individual notions are placed side by side without any further effort being made by the mind to determine their exact relations beyond the mere fact that one precedes the other, and is therefore thought of first." SAYCE. 1 Cf. Greek 6 ircnrip pov instead of & ^uis irarrip: 2 In the Tibetan languages adjectives are formed from substantives by the addition of the sign of the genitive. M. MULLER, Lectures, First Series, p. 106. K 98 ENGLISH SYNTAX 1 60. The Genitive denotes Rule or Power. Gothic. "Quap ]>an sa frauja J>is veinagardis" (quoth then the lord of this vinyard). Luke, xx. 13. Old Norse. " Jjrymr sat a haugi, Jmrsa drottinn" (Th. sat on a hill, the lord of the giants). Edda, \ryin skvffia, 5. Old English. " Aldor Dena " (prinee of the Danes). Beowulf, 668. "Frea Scyldinga" (lord of the Scyldings). Ibid. 291, 351, etc. 1 6 1. The Genitive denotes Possession. Gothic. "In garda Paitraus" (in the house of Peter). Matthew, viii. 14. Old Norse. "Aesirnir toku h'k Baldrs" (the A. took the body of B.). SXORRA, EdJa, 37. Old Saxon. "fagar folk godes" (the fair people of god). Heliand, 412. Old English. " J>ry$sern Dena" (the palace of the Danes). Be6- wulf, 658. "Finnesham" (F.'s house). Ibid. 1157. Abstract Substantive instead of an Adjective. 162. In Old English poetry a concrete noun is often governed by an abstract one, where we should expect noun and adjective. ' ' hie in beor-sele bidan woldon Grendles gu5e mid gryrum ecga." (They would await in the beer-hall G.'s fight with the dreadful sword : literally, with the horrors of the swords. ) Beowulf, 483. Cf. "billes bite" (the biting sword) Ibid. 2061 ; "ga"res fliht" (the flying spear) Ibid. 1766. The Genitive Superlative. " The curse of curses is, our curse to love." YOUNG, Night Thoughts, 2, 42. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 99 163. We may, perhaps not improperly, give this name to that genitive, which elevates the noun governing it to the highest degree. Though this use may be traced back to the old Teutonic dialects, it is not improbable that its sur- vival in Modern English is partly due to the fact that the same use is frequent in the Bible. Cf. The Song of Songs, " canticum canticorum " : servant of servants = the lowest menial. Genesis, ix. 25. The phrase, "in his heart of hearts," is accounted for by the analogy of the other in- stances. Old Norse. " Hvat er ]>at hlym hlymja?" (What is that sound of sounds? = that most loud sound.) Edda, Skirnismdl, 14. " Hverr er sa sveinn sveina, er stendr fyr sundit handan?" (who is the lad of lads that stands on the other side of the strait?) Edda, HarbarftslitiS, I. "Hverr er sa karl karla er kallar um vaginn?" (who is the churl of churls that calls over the strait ?) Ibid. 2. "mi er roekkr rcekkra" (now is dark of darks, deepest darkness). Edda, HytidlnlitfS, I. Old High German. " Kero 45^ translates scurrilitas by skernes skern." GRIMM, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. 726. Old English. " }>a sydtJan waes of rode ahaefen waldend, eallra \rymma ]>rym." (Since was taken from the rood the ruler of heavens, the power of all powers.) Elene, 483. ">a . . . ealles Ie6htes leoht, lifigende aras, )>eoden engla." (There . . . the light of all light arose living, the lord of the angels. ) Ibid. 486. The expressions, " cyninga cyning " (king of kings), " burh ealra worulda worold " (in secula seculorum = for ever and ever), which are very frequent in Old English, are borrowed from the Bible. H 2 ioo ENGLISH SYNTAX Middle English. "Q\\\ est verus samaritanus scilicet cuslos homi- luim. J>at is alre herdene herde and alre lechene leche " (who is the herdsman of all herdsmen, and the physician of all physicians). Old English Homilies, ii. 41. " And alre bitere biterest " (the bitterest of all bitters). Ibid. 99. " Une drihten )>e is alre louerde louerd beih of heuene to mannen" (Our Lord, who is the lord of all lords, stooped from heaven to men). Ibid. 121. "Hie is )>e heuenliches kinges dohter and ec his moder, and alre maiden maide " (she is the daughter of the heavenly kyng and also his mother, and maiden of all maidens). Ibid. 161. "Lauedi (lady) scho es of leuedis (ladies) all." Cursor Mundi, 101. " He is kyng of kynges." Townley Mysteries, p. 141. See also Skeats's Notes to Piers Plowman (Early English Text Society), p. 33. Modern English." That sprightly Scot of Scots, Douglas!" SHAKSP. I Henry IV. ii. 4, 377. "But now to come to your face of faces, or courtier's face. " BEX JoxsoK, Cynthia's Revels, 2, r. 164. The Objective Genitive. 1 Their tempered youth with aged fathers awe." Gorboduc. Gothic. " Jah gaf im valdufni ahmane unhrainjaze" (and gave him the power over impure spirits). Mark, vi. 7. Old Norse. " Solar syn " (the sight of the sun). Edda, Havamdl, 68. " )>ess hot " (improvement of this, amends for it). Edda, Volundar Kvffia, 19. Old Saxon. " than skalt thu eft word sprekan, hebbean thinaro stemna giwald " (then thou shah speak words, have power over thy voice). Heliand, 169 : rf. 238, 1904, 1909. Old English. "for J>sera Judea ege " (for fear of the Jews). -John, vii 13. "fram synna lufan" (from love to sin). BEDA, 4, 24. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 101 " HabbaS Codes triiwan" (have faith in God). Mark, xi. 22. " Wacigende on Codes gebede " (watching in prayer to God). Luke, vi. 12. Middle English. " )>et he nefre ne etc mennisses metes for drihtenes luue" (and never ate human food for God's love). Old English Homilies, i. II. "Of hym that is oure soulis leche." Ttnvnley Mysteries, p. 10. " She bereth in her herte care ynough and dyspleysure for the loue of him." CAXTON'S Blanchardyn, 73, 33. Ibid. 76, 5 ; 77, 25. " For right moche he desyred to shewe hymself, for his ladyes loue." Ibid, 83, 8. 165. This genitive becomes more and more rare the more we approach modern times, when it is represented by over, towards, against, and other prepositions. Modern English, " Whiche perill shal be past, if in your life, Their tempred youthe with aged fathers awe, Be brought in vre of skilfull stayednesse." Gorboditc, 200. Cf. ibid. 485, 571, 602, 613, 985, 1321. " Hath not the only love of her made us raise up our thoughts?" SIDNEY, Arcadia, p. 2. " Hope of life." Ibid. p. 8. "Love of his people." Ibid. p. 9. " Retourning to his bed in torment great, And bitter anguish of his guilty sight, He could not rest." SPENSER, Faerie Ojtcene, I, 2, 6. Cf. ibid, i, 2, 16 ; i, 2, 6 ; i, 3, 13 ; i, 6. 17. Instances with "to" instead of "<>/". " Xor have respect to age, nor yet to kinde." GASCOIGNE, 64. " Because they had respect to cquitie." Ibid. 70. " His unfaynted love to his father." SIDNEY, Arcadia, p. 12. " Hate to me." Ibid. p. 29. 102 ENGLISH SYNTAX 1 66. The Qualifying Genitive ("genitivus qualitatis") " I am not of many words." SHAKSPERE. Gothic. " Dauhtar vintrive tvalibe " (a daughter of twelve years). Luke, viii. 42. Cf, Grimm, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. p. 652. Old Norse. "Byskup gofugs mattar" (a bishop of power). -^Snorra Edda, 185. " hvers ]>eir 'ru kyns er koma" (of what kin are these who come)? Edda, Hdvanidl, 132. Old Saxon. " Giu warun thar aSalies man " (already there were men of nobility). Hfliand, 566. Cf. " en aSales man," 2542 (Cotton Ms.). Old English. "Sine gestreonum faettan goldes" (with treasures of beaten gold). Beowulf, 1093, 4. " waes micelre softfaestnysse wer" (he was a man of great truth- fulness). BEDA, 3, 15. " seo den waes micelre brsedo " (the den was of great breadth). Ibid. 5, 13- I\IidJle English. " Aelc mon nom ane scale of rede golde" (every- body took a scale of red gold). LAYAMON, I. 229. ' ' J>e merminnen beo'S deor of muchele ginnen " (mermaids are beasts of great deceit). Ibid. \. 26. " (he) was a yung mon of J>riti yeren." Ibid. i. 17. " Herode let hhnrn brinngenn to bisshopess off dep lare" (Herod had brought to him two bishops of deep learning). Orm. 7205. " Horrs off fir itt (karrte) droghenn" (horses of fire drew it). Ibid. 8707. "A dogter ich haue of gret prys noble and god also." ROB. OF GLOUCES. 281. In a few cases this genitive is looked upon and, accord- ingly, used as a pure adjective. " Right as a Hues creature She semeth." GOWER, Coufessio Arnaults, ii. 14. CHAUCER, The Knightes Tale, 1537. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 103 Cf. Owl and Nightingale, 1632; cf. Skeat, P. P. Notes, p. 220; R. OF GLOUCESTER, 1144, 3829; Morris, Story of Gen. and Exodus, note to 1. 250 ; " world es thinge " = worldly things, Gower, i. 323. The same in Old Norse. "jjeir er lip eru" (these that are alive). Droplaugarsona Saga, 26. "hann stoS lifs J?a enn i lyftinginni" (he was still standing, alive, on the quarter-deck.) Fornmanna Sogur, x., 394. Cf. Lund, Ordfoinings-lare (Syntax of Old Norse), p. 163. Malory in his Morte d 'A rthur treats the genitive denoting quality just as if it were an adjective: "She is the fairest lady and most of beautie in the world," 357, 23 ; " More of beautie," 358, 13; 358, 18; 360, 33; 450, 13, and fre- quently. Modern English. " His very hair is of the dissembling colour." SHAKSP. As You Like It, III. iv. 7. " A prince of power." Temp. i. 2. 55. Instances abound. Some peculiarities of the Qualitative Genitive. ' ' Right hard it was for wight which did it heare, To read what maner mitsicke that mote be." SPENSER, F. Q. 2, 12, 70. ' ' With the name of Whitefield or Wesley, or some other such great man as a bishop, or those sort of people." FIELDING, Joseph Andrews, i. 17. 167. To the grammarian who tries to explain every ex- pression from the point of view of logic, these constructions must be a great puzzle. It is history, and history alone, which enables us to solve the riddle. In Old English as well as in Old Norse, the conception with regard to this expression 104 ENGLISH SYNTAX was quite different from what it is now. Whenever people were thinking about a certain class of things, it was the things which were prominent in their mind, which they saw with their internal eyes, while the class to which the things belonged came next as an accessory quality, as an attribute. If, therefore, they wanted to say " All sorts of worms," they put it in a different and more concrete way than we do ; they said " Worms of every kind," alles cunnes wurmes. The more abstract expression, however, came in as early as the 1 3th century, so that both conceptions existed at the same time, until, later on, the modern one prevailed, but still without wholly supplanting the old use. In Latin a parallel development may be seen. Livy nearly always has the same construction that is prevalent in Middle English: "omnis generis tormenta," Liv. xxxii. 16, 10 ; "ager cop'ia omnis generis frugum abundans," xxii. 9, 3; "praeda ingens omnis generis," xxvi. 46, 10; "cum alia omnis generis praeda," xxvii. 5, 9; "omnis generis injurias in se commemoravit," xxvii. 17, 12; "navibus omnis generis contractis," xxxiv. 8, 5; "telorum omnis generis vis," xxxviii. 26, 4; "pecora omnis generis," xlii. 56, 10; "eloquentia sacrata scriptis omnis generis/' xxxix. 40, 7 ; " concursus omnis generis hominum," xxi. 12, 8. Caesar afterwards exhibits the same use, but Cicero usually has the later construction omne genus aliatius rd. See Forcellini, s.v. 1 68. The genitive of cun, Old English cynn, was very early used as an adjective, perhaps not without being in- fluenced by the same construction in Old Norse. " \esskonar tolum" (with tales of this sort). Alexanders Saga, II. " nokkurskonar list " (some sort of art). SNORRA, Ecfila, 31. " margskonar J>j6S" (people of many kinds). SNORRA, KMa, 31. Cf. Lund, p. 161. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 105 Old English. " Se arleasa wolde pagyt cunnian anes cynncs wite" (the impious one desired to try one kind of torment). ^LFRIC, Lives of Saints, M2, 400. " Herbeo)>oft numene missenlicra cynna weolcscylle " (here are often caught various kinds of shellfish). BEDA, i. i. Middle English. " Ne nanes kinness shaffte " (no sort of creatures). ORM. Ded. 277. "alles cunnes wilde dor" (all sorts of wild beasts). Old English Homilies, i. 79. "alles cunnes wurmes" (all sorts of worms). Ibid. ' ' alles cunnes pinen " (all sorts of torments). Ibid. 25 1 . "alles cunnes estes" (all kinds of pleasures). Ibid. 257. "(Dalles cunnes )>ing." Old English Miscellany, 46, 229. " nones cunnes dol" (no sort of division). Ibid. 50, 446. " ones kunnes treou" (a sort of tree). Ancrcn Riwle, 150. "ilk kinnes erf" (all sorts of cattle). Story of Gen. and ExoJ. 183 ' "ilk kinnes beste." Ibid. 220. The original meaning of this genitive was, in all prob- ability, misunderstood, as may be seen by the following instances : " any .fkynnes countenaunce." Sir Gawayne and the Greene Knight, 1539- "no jkynnes labour." CHAUCER, House of Fame, 704. "alle .rkynnes condiciouns." Ibid. 440. 169. Moreover, the modern expression, viz., "all kind of condiciouns," and not "condiciouns of all kind," came in very early, so that the old construction soon drew towards its decay. In " fower kinne men," Old English Homilies, ii. 151, we may still see the old genitive plural, kinne = cynna ; but instances like the following evidently prove that the modern construction was used as early as the end of the twelfth or the first half of the thirteenth century. 1 / "yehwelces cynnes yrfe." Chronicle, 910 (Parker MS.). 106 ENGLISH SYNTAX "monie kunnej- men." O*ld English Homilies, \. 151. " alle kunnes sunnen " (sins of all kinds). Ibid. 205. " fure kunnes teres" (four kinds of tears) Ibid. 159. " fuwer kinnes men" (quatuorsunt genera hominum). Ibid. ii. 123. "Crabbe is an manere efface in ]>ere sea." Ibid. i. 51. "feole cunne beoo* of weldede" (there are many sorts of good deeds. Ibid. i. 135. " o}>er manere of cliadliche sinnes" (other sorts of deadly sins). Old English Miscellany, 33. The result was first the indifferent use of kinnes and kmne, and later on manere, both singular and plural not followed by of, e.g. "ten manere zennes." Ayenbite, 70. Instances abound ; only a few can be quoted in this place. " Inn alle kinne sinne." ORM. 2250. "On alle kinne wise." Ibid. 2260, 2574, 2602, 2666. " Onn am'5 kinne wise." Ibid. 2380. "An fower cunne wise mon sulleS his elmesse " (in four ways man sells his alms). Old English Homilies, i. 137. " A ]>re cunne wise he vondi hine begon " (in three ways he began to tempt him). Old English Miscellany, 38, 31. " a fele cunne wise." Ibid. 39, 53 ; 44, 241. " fele kyn fisches." Sir Gaivayne an i the Greene Knight, 890. In the Cursor Mundi " kin " (without s) prevails, though the different MSS. differ in this point. " sumkyn dedis," 165. " sumkyn gest," 207. "in quat kin curs," 230. " alkin things," 385. " over al oj>erkin )>ing," 404. "tuinkyn scaft," 512. "nankin creature," 574. "Kins," in MS. Cotton, occurs 115, 195, 1790, 5208, 5575, 9080, 9486. The proportion of the jnstances ex- hibiting kin to those with kins, in the first 10,000 verses, is 49 : 7 = 7 : i. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 107 170. Instances with Maner. "For menskecl wit tuin maner o scaft" (worshipped by two sorts of creatures). Cursor Aftindi, 425. " Wit al maner o suet spices." Ibid. 1028. "Ne na maner gin of were" (no sort of war-engine). Ibid. 9889. In Dan Michel's Ayenbite only maner occurs; the in- stances with maner ' + of prevail. " ]>ri maneres of yefjjes" (three manners of gifts). 42. " o];re manyeres of zennes" (sins). Ibid. 57. "vif inanere of yelpinges" (five manners of boasting). Ibid. 59. " ech manere of zenne. " Ibid. 70. " |>ri maneres of guode." Ibid. 80. "]>ri maneres of vridom." Ibid. 86. " oj>re inanere of speches. " Ibid. 103. " eche manere of hare kende " (each manner of their kind). Ibid. 104. 171. Instances of ''Maner" not followed by "of." "ten manere zennes." Ibid. 70. " )>ri manere guodes " (French original : " cle biens"). 80. "tuo manere guodes." 91. There are many instances of kyn as well as kynnes in the second half of the fourteenth century. See Skeat, Notes to Piers Plowman, pp. 53 69, and a full report on the con- struction on p. 216. The trace of kin ends about the middle of the fifteenth century. There are instances of it in the Gesta Ro- manoniin : "he shall tcllc you what kynne tydinges that he has brought." 254. " ye wote in what kynne state I am." 258. "what kynnes treson is ]>is?" 316. io8 ENGLISH SYNTAX Caxton no longer uses kin, he always has matter, either with of or without, the former prevailing. Against eighteen instances with of, in Blanchardyn and Eglantyne, there are but three without. See Introduction to Illanchardyn, p. xvii. Modern English. In Elizabethan authors matter and mister without of still occur ; instances, however, are rare. " The Redcrosse Knight toward him crossed fast To weet what mister wight was so dismayd." SPENSER, Faerie Queene, i. ix. 26, 2. " Right hard it was for wight which did it heare, To read what manner musicke that mote be." Ibid. ii. xii. 70, 6. 172. NOTE. Even in quite Modern English, kind, sort, sometimes are found as adjectives, though followed by of, as may be seen by the plural these, those in the following examples : " These kind of knaves." Lear, ii. 2, 107. "With the name of Whitefield or Wesley, or some other such great man as a bishop, or those sort of people." FIELDING, Joseph Andrews, i. 17. "All these sort of things " SHERIDAN, School for Scandal, i. I. "I hoped we had done with these sort of things." -John Halifax, ii. 243. The Partitive Genitive. 173. This genitive is governed by nouns, adjectives in the comparative and superlative degree, numerals, inter- rogative and indefinite pronouns. Gothic. "atta, gif mis, sei undrinnai mik dail aiginis" (father, give me that part of property which belongs to me). Luke, xv. 12. Old Norse. " i |>rifija part veraldar " (in the third part of the world). Stjorn 68. Old Saxon. " Himilrikeas gidel " (part of kingdom of heaven).- Heliand, 2488. Old High German. " faz wines" (a barrel of wine), "leip protes'' (a loaf of bread). See GRIMM, Deutsche Grammatik, 722. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 109 Old English. " WeorSmynda dtel" (a good deal of adornments). Beowulf, 1753. "maSma menigeo" (many treasures). Ilnd. 2144. " folca gedryht " (plenty of people). Elcne, 27. " arleasra sceolu" (the band of the impious). Ibid. 836. Hund and \usend always, the other numerals sometimes govern the genitive. "An seftelinga" (one of the noblemen). Becnvulf, 1294, " up ahof rihtes reniend l>ara roda twa " (the ruler of right raised two rods). Elene, 880. " |>ara sint IIII" (of these are four). Ibid. 744. For the construction dnra gehwylc, see Numerals, 260. " Aenig ymbsittendra " (one of the inhabitants of the neighbour- hood). Beowulf, 2735. "nan giiSbilla" (none of the fighting swords). Ibid. 804. Juxtaposition instead of the Partitive Genitive. 174. In Middle English, especially in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, when of had not yet limited the possessive case, there are many instances of inflexionless substantives governed by nouns denoting quantity. These substantives seem to be nominatives, but they may have been felt still as genitives. On the other hand, from the same decay of the partitive genitive in Old Norse and German we may perhaps conclude that the idea of partition attached to so many words in Old English was about to be supplanted by that of simple apposition. " pe jnydde del my kynedom y geue pe." ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 283. " Jje )>rydde del ys londe." Ibid. 709. "From f>e on ende Cornewayle." Ibid. 177. " A busshel venym." CHAUCER, Troylus and Cryseyde, iii. 976. " No morsel bred." Ibid. The Monkes Tale, 440. "The beste gnloun wyn. " Ibid. Prologue of the Afaunciples Ta/e,2^. r 10 ENGLISH S YNTAX " A peyre schetys." Early English Wills (ed. Furnivall), 4, 16; 5, 8 ; 41, 24 ; 76, 16 ; 101, 18. "A peyre bedes." Ibid. 5, 3. " A pece medowe." Bury Wills (Camden Society), 47. " A peyre spectaclys." Ibid. 15. " A quart wyne." Ibid. 16. " A galon wine." Ibid. 30. 175. But there was a sudden stop in the development towards apposition instead of the genitive, and at the end of the fifteenth century there was a sort of reaction in favour of the Old English use. Expressions like those quoted are not to be met with in Caxton. From the Old English down to the Elizabethan age, indefinites and numerals, followed by adjectives in the superlative degree, appear as attributes, instead of governing a partitive genitive as in Modern English. Old English. " Healfdene for mid sumum am here on Nor)>hym- bre" (H. went with part of his army towards Northumberland.) Chronicle, 875. " J>a for Eadweard cyning mid sumum his fultume on East-Seaxe to Maldune." (King E. marched with part of his army to M.) Ibid. Parker MS. 913. "sum his fultum worhte )>a burg" (part of his army made the castle). Ibid. Cf. OROSIUS 1 8, I ; 140, 2 ; 162, 14, &c. " Mid feawum J>am getrywestum mannum " (with a few of his most faithful men). Apollonius of Tyre, p. 6. " J>jer wseron )>reo }>a betstan ele" (there were three of the best oint- ments, or rather, the very best of all). Blickling Homilies, 73, 21. "hit hsefo" geworht ane J>a mcestan synne and gode J>a laftustan" (it has done a sin, the greatest and most hateful to God). AELFRIC, Exodus, xxxii. 21. Middle English. "This beoth threo the hexte lymes." WRIGHT, Popular Treatise on Science, p. 138. " Oute of )>ilke hilles springe)) ]>re )>e noblest ryueres of al Europe."'' TREVISA, i. 199. " of two }>e firste mathew speke)> in his gospel." WYCLIF, English Works (ed. Matthew), p. 2. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH in "I deuyse to Johane my daughter. . . III. the best pilives after choys of the forseyde Thomas my sone." Early English Wills, 5, 9. " A maide on of this worldc the beste preysed." CHAUCER, Troytus and Cryseyde, v. 1474. "Of hire delite or joies oon the leeste, Were impossibile to my wit to seye." Ibid. iii. 1261. 176. The following passages offer a curious instance of a mixed construction : " Oon of the grettest auctour that men rede" (Five MSS., one has "auctourj "). CHAUCER, The Nonne Prest his Tale, 164. "On of the best farynge man on lyue." Id. The Frankeleynes Tale, 204. " One cf the best enteched creature." Ibid. Troylus and Cryseydc, v- 832. " But of all france I am one of the best and truest knyght that be in it." CAXTON, Aymon, 272, 23. This odd expression is made up of two constructions : One the best knyght. One of the best knyghtes. Result : One of the best knyght. Instances with indefinite pronouns : "Other her gentyll women." CAXTON, Blanchardyn and Eglantine, 76, 31- " Other his prysoners. " Ibid. 121, 25. " Affermyng that I ought rather tenprynte his actes and noble feates than of Godefray of Boloyne or any the eight." CAXTON'S Preface to Morte a" Arthur, 2, I. Elizabethan English. "Enough is, that thy foe doth vanquish! stand Now at thy mercy : Mercy not withstand : For he is one the truest knight aliue." SPENSER, Faerie Queene, i. 3, 37. TI2 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Or who shall not great Nightes children scorne, When two of three her Nephewes are so foule forlorne?" Ibid. i. 5, 23. " His living like sawe never living eye, Ne durst behold ; his stature did exceed The high three the tallest sonnes of mortall seed." Ibid. i. 7, 8. " Was reckoned one the wisest prince that there had reigned." SHAKSP. Henry VIII. ii. 4, 48. Cf. the same use in Old Norse. " fe'llu j>eir men flestir er J>ar varu" (there fell most of the men who were there). Egils Saga, 44. Cf. Lund, p. 158. Latin. "Reperti sunt complures nostri milites, qui in phalangas insilirent." C^s. B. G. I, 52, 5. " Tres suos nactus manipulares." Ibid. 7, 77, 7. " Nostrae naves duse in ancoris constiterunt. "Ibid. 3, 28, I. The Elliptic Genitive. 177. Another partitive genitive is that which may be called the elliptic one, the governing word being omitted. Old English. " Hy clypodon and naes )>ara )>e hig gehlde" (they called and there was none to heal them). Ps. xvii. 39. But commonly we find of followed by the dative, e.g. " SyllaS us of eowrum ele " (gif us of your oil). Matthew, xxv. 8. Middle English. "hwa se euer wule habbe lot wiS }>e of J>i blisse : he mot deale wiS J>e of )>ine pine on eor])e " (whoever wants to par- take of thy bliss, must partake of thy pain on earth). Did English Homilies, L 187. "maneggeo" his negebure to done o$er to speken him harm, o5er s(c)ame, and haueS niS elch witJ offer, and makeo" him to forlese his aihte, oSer of his righte " (some one eggs his neighbour to harm him in word or deed, or to do him shame, and they envy each other, and one makes the other lose his property or his rights). Ibid. ii. 13. "Of smale houndes hadde sche, that sche fedde." CHAUCER } Canterbury Tales, The Prologue, 146. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 113 Modern English. "I wyll ye take of your best frendys." LORD BERNERS, Huon, 5, 25. " this that I haue shewid you is of truth." Ibid. 61, 26. " I requyre you, shewe me of your newes and adventures that ye haue had." Ibid. 566, 12. " Englysh marchauntes do fetch of the erth of Irlonde to caste in their gardens." ANDREW BOORDE, p. 133. " I told him we must not presume to eat of our patron's bread." Robinson Crusoe, 47. Cf. ibid., p. 170, This use is still continued in the Bible, perhaps also in obedience to the original text : "Bring of the fruit of the land." Num. xiii. 21. "She took of the fruit thereof." Gen. iii. 6. The Pseudo- Partitive Genitive. 9 178. There is another sort of genitive, which we may, perhaps, not improperly term pseudo-partitive, viz., that which appears in phrases like "a castle of hers, a knight of Arthur's." It is true, that in many cases we might translate these phrases by "one of her castles, one of Arthur's knights " ; but there are many examples in Middle English which do not admit of such an explanation, and the Modern English use (" that beautiful face of hers ! ") proves that no idea of partition is included in such expressions. After a close examination of the oldest instances met with in the fourteenth century (second half?), we see that they are brought into existence by another necessity. In Old English the possessive pronoun, or, as the French say, "pronominal adjective," expresses only the conception of belonging and possession ; it is a real adjective, and does not convey, as at present, the idea of determination. If, i 1 14 ENGLISH S YNTAX therefore, Old English authors want to make such nouns determinative, they add the definite article : "hasleS mm se leofa" (my dear warrior). Elene, 511. ">u eart dohtor min seo dyreste" (thou art my dearest daughter). Juliana, 193. 1 79. In Middle English the possessive pronoun apparently has a determinative meaning (as in Modern English, Modern German, and Modern French) ; therefore its connection with the definite article is made superfluous, while the indefinite article is quite impossible. Hence arises a certain embarrassment with regard to one case which the language cannot do without. Suppose we want to say "she is in a castle belonging to her," where it is of no importance what- ever, either to the speaker or hearer, to know whether "she" has got more than one castle how could the English of the Middle period put it ? The French of the same age said still " un sien castel," but that was no longer possible in English. , 1 80. We should expect the genitive of the personal pronoun ("of me," &c., as in Modern German) and there may have been a time when this use prevailed but, so far as I know, the language decided in favour of the more complicated construction " of mine, of thine," &c. This was, in all probability, brought about by the analogy of the very numerous cases in which the indeterminative noun connected with mine, &c., had a really partitive sense (cf. the examples below), and, further, by the remembrance of the old construction with the possessive pronoun. I. First, we find the indefinite article (or the equally indefinite words, any, every, no) in connection with of mine, of thine, &c. II. Next, analogy introduces the indefinite article in con- nection with the double genitive of a noun (a knyght of King Arthur's). SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 115 III. Last, we come across definite pronouns (this, that) in connection with of mine ; l and exceptionally the definite article occurs there also in connection with the double genitive of a noun (the knight of King Arthur's). " A friend of his." CHAUCER, Troylus and Cryseyde, i. 548 ; ibid. iii. 747 ; ibid. iv. 1355. "an hors of his. "Ibid. The Sompnoures Tale, 381. "an old felaw of youres." Ibid. The Pardoneres Tale, 210. "eny neghebour of myne. " Ibid. The Prologue of the Monkes Tale, '3- "every knight of his. " Ibid. The Wyf of Bathes Tale, 234. " I will that William ... be paied of their billes for making off a liuery of myn." Early English Wills, 53, 20. " 3if any servaunt of myn haue labord for me . . . " Ibid. 53, 23. (Both instances about 1420 A.D.) "I will that Chace haue a habirion of myne." Ibid. 54, 7. "And more stuff I haue not occupied of hers." Bury Wills (A.D. 1415), p. 23. Gesta Romanonim (about 1440 A.D.) offers instances of II. but not of III. : " I am forrester of the Emperours," 206 ; "a nofere kny$t of the Emperours," 241. In Caxton group I. is represented by numerous instances. "And for this cause departeth now my sayd lady from a castell of hers." Blanch, and Egl. 38, 6. (Original : "dun sien chastel.") " He toke also a grete spere from the hande of a knyght of his." Ibid. 107, 32. Group II. is often met with in the Morte d' Arthur. " A knyghte of the dukes." 37, 7 ; 37, 9. " Syre gawayne, knyghte of kynge Arthurs." Ibid. 146, 30. 1 It is surprising to find the definite article in connection with 'of yours' as early as Ipomadon (about the middle of the I4th century) : "I wille werke after \e wille of yours," 2130 (ed. Kolbing). I 2 1 1 6 ENGLISH S YNTA X " I am a knyghte of kynge Arthurs." Ibid. 153, 32 ; 263, 31 ; 263, 34; 330, 22; 331, 19. "a trusty frende of Sir Tristrams." Ibid. 363, 8. Of group III. there are two instances in Blanchardyn and Eglantine with that, and a few with the definite article in Morte d' Arthur. " As for to wene to haue her, thou haste that berde of thyne ouer whyte therto ; thy face is so mykel wanne, and that olde skynne of thyne ys ouer mykel shronken togyder. " Blanch, and Egl. 186, 22 25. Original : " vous auez la barbe trop grise, la face trop usee, et le cuir trop retrait." Genitive instead of Apposition. 1 8 1. A genitive of comparatively modern date is that denoting apposition, in expressions like "vice of a king," "riddle of a lady," "jewel of a man," &c., probably formed in analogy to the well-known connections, " the Isle of Man," "the land of Canaan," and others. I do not know of older instances than the fifteenth century : "And he was a ryght good knyght of a yonge man." MALORY, Morte tf Arthur, 117, 34. "(Arthur) helde a Ryal feeste and table rounde with his alyes of kynges, prynces, and noble knyghtes." Ibid. 160, 3. Sixteenth Century : "There was in J>e castell a vii. score prisoners of Frenchmen." BERNERS, Htion, 90, 30. "The jewel of life." SHAKSP. King John, v. i. 40. " This frail sepulchre of our flesh. " Richard II. i. 3. 196. "A very little thief of occasion." Coriolamr, ii. I, 32. For this use cf. French : " diable d'homme, diable de femme, fripon de valet." Litire^ s.v. de, 13. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 117 Genitive governed by Verbs and Adjectives. 182. The genitive governed by verbs and adjectives is very common in Old English and the other Teutonic languages, and its range is much the same as in Greek and Latin. The substantive in the genitive is the object exciting mental emotion, the thing remembered (or forgotten), the thing lacking or supplied, &c. ADJECTIVES. wreron s/Ses (they were glad of the journey). Andreas, 1040. He wearS eft swa; ungemetlice gr&dig \(ES godan deaftes (he be- came so immoderately eager for the death of the good one). Cura Pastoralis, 36. VERBS. Hrefn weorces gefeah (the raven rejoiced at the work). -Elate, 1 10. }>a welwillendan sint to manian- ne Sset hie swse fagenien 65erra monna godra iveorca ftset hie eac selfe fiies ilcan lyste (the benevolent are to be admonished so to rejoice in the good works of others as themselves to desire the same). Cura Pastoralis, 228. }>a sint to manianne . . . Sect hie fiara yfcla bisse worulde kiofen (they are to be admonished to lament the evils of this world). Cura Pastoralis, 393. We \a hvrde he hie eac hii hie hie geamftigiatt sceoldon Sfterra weorca (he taught them also how they were to keep themselves free from other occupations). Cura Pastoralis, 130. Ond eac cwseS Salomon Saet fremde ne sceoldon bion gefylde tires niatgencs (Solomon also said that strangers should not be filled with our resources). Ibid. 250. Tohwon syndon 56 \yses weorces swa hefige ? (why are ye so grieved [on account] of this work?) Blickling Homilies, 69. He biS $dra swiSe gemyndig (he is very mindful of them). Cura Pastoralis, 36. On us ne sy gemeted nsenigu stow ametig gastlicra mtzgena (let there be found in us no place de- void of spiritual power). Blickling Horn. 36. Hie wzferon ymb ealle utan mid eagum besett, and eac innane edgena full (they were covered outside with eyes, and also inside full of eyes). Cura Pastoralis, 194. 183. In Middle and Modern English the number of verbs governing the genitive becomes very small, that of adjectives 1 1 8 ENGLISH S YNTAX remains nearly the same as in Old English. Instead of an object in the genitive, we find either the accusative (as after desire, want), or the object preceded by other prepositions than of, as rejoice over, long for, &c. In Middle English it is especially the functions of origin, cause and reference which are still expressed by the genitive. Origin ; " Ye get no more of (= from) me." CHAUCER, Squyeres Tale, ii. 335- "Of many a pilgrym hastow Cristes curs." Ibid., The Cokes Pro- logue, 24. " For eny thing that I have had of the." Ibid., Freres Tale, 334. Of in the passive construction has the same meaning = Modern English by. "I have ben schriven this day of my curate." Ibid., Sompnoures Tale, 395. " But if he wolde be slayn of Symekyn." Ibid., Reeves Tale, 39. In Caxton of still prevails, though by occurs frequently. Cause : " t>att tu dreoris nohht ne beo off nan ear>like unnseollj* " (that thou be not sorry of no earthly misfortune). Orm. 4838. " Off hiss dae}> swi)>e bli]>e" (very glad of his death). Ibid. 8092. " Weoren faein of his scome " (glad of his shame). LAYAMON, i. 327. " Fful hevy here hertys wern of this dede." -Coventry Mysteries, p. 91. " (They) judged hemself right happy of a successoure legytyme."- CAXTON, Blanch, and Egl. 12, 17. Reference as to, in respect of: of goynge" (orig. ambulandi potentissimum). CHAUCER, Boethius, 3280. "mysty of >e herbes" (orig. herbipotens). Ibid. 3484. "he was wys, And of his port as meke as is a mayde." CHAUCER, Canterbury Tales, Prvlogjte, 69. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 119 " Mire keverchefs weren ful fyne of grounde." Ibid. 453. " Bold was hir face, and fair, and reed of hewe." Ibid. "sore troubled of wyttis." CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 45, 8. "nought dommaged of nothing. " Ibid. 48, 31. The Genitive used adverbially. 184. The genitive denotes space ("genitivus loci"). Gothic. "insandida ina haij>jos seinaizos" (he sent him on his estate. Luke, xv. 15. "gaggida landis" (he went into a country). Ibid. xix. 12. Old Norse. "settisk hann mi'Sra fletja" (he sat down in the middle of the floor). Rlgsmal. 3. "gekk han iniSrar brautar" (he went in the middle of the way. Ibid. 2. Old High German. "gang ouh thines sinthes" (go on thy journey, thy way). OTFRID, iii. 4, 28. Old English (not frequent). " wendon him J>a 6'Sres weges ham- weard" (they returned homeward by another way). Chronicle, 1006. 185. It denotes time. Gothic. "gistradagis" (yesterday). " nahts" (at night). Old Norse. "ens hindra dags" (on the next day). Havam. 109. "annars dags." Vohtndarkv. 20. "eins dags." Fornm. i. 67. O!d Saxon. " dages endi nahtes" (by day and night). Hfliand, 515, 2481. Old English (very frequent). "dseges and nihtes" (by day and night). Beowulf, 2269. " J)is waes feorSes geares " (this was on the fourth year). Chronicle, 47. " J>a J)3es ylcan geares for Eadweard to Coluceastre" (in the same year Eadweard marched to Colchester). Ibid. 921. Middle English. " fure, )>e neuer ne aj>eostrede, winteres ne sumeres" (fire that never darkened, neither in summer nor winter). LAYAMON, i. 121. " Heo woklen feden )>one king daeies and nihtes" (they would feed the king by day and night). Ibid. i. 138. 120 ENGLISH SYNTAX Later on the old genitive is represented by of. "For al such witte us yeuen is of birthe." CHAUCER, Prologue of the Wyf of Bathe, 400. " This Pandare that of al the day byforne Ne myght han comen Troilus to see. " Ibid. , Troylus and Cryseyde, v. 282. " I was warished of al my sorwe Of al day after." Ibid., Boke of the Duchesse, 1103. Modern English. "'Tis but early days." SHAK. Troilus, iv. 5, 12. "There sleeps Titania sometimes of the night" Ibid., Midsummer, ". i, 253. "Gerald and I are so hungry of a morning." A. TROLLOPE, The Duke's Children, i. 267. "Not a soul in the Grave House, nights, but Listen." MRS. EDWARDS, Pearl Powder, 57. 1 86. The genitive denoting manner is very frequent in all the periods of the language. " Hi ricsodon, nass Seah mines Nonces." (They reigned, but not by my will.) Cura Pastoralis, 26, 15. Middle English. " Gif )>u agultest wiS }>ine efen-nexta unSonkes ; bet hit J>in {>onkes hu se J>u miht." (If thou sinnest against thy neigh- bour unwillingly, make amends for it willingly by whatsoever way thou canst.) Old English Homilies, \, 17. Cf. ibid. i. 31 ; ii. 63; LAYA- MON, 4501, 7195. " al swa ic ear cweS we ne ma5en alre coste halden crist bibode" (as I have before said, we are unable in any wise to observe Christ's behests). Old English Homilies, I, 21. " ]/u most al gan )>rin, ant al beon bigotten ]>rin, for in ]>e ne mei hit nanesweis neomen in." (Thou must go therein altogether and be altogether possessed therein, for in thee may it in nowise enter.) Ibid. 263. "Willes and woldes" (with will and might). Ancren Riwle, p. 6. " Newes" (anew) Story of Genesis and Exodus, 252. In Modern English this genitive is very frequent. The old s is kept in nee^r, but in other cases 0f, sometimes a has taken the place of the old inflexion : "of course," "of a truth," "of necessity," "anew." SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 121 THE DATIVE CASE. Functions of the Dative. 187. The general function of the dative in Old English and the Teutonic languages is influence or interest (March). But two other cases, viz., the instrumental and locative, having become identical in their endings with the dative, this case represents the functions of three originally different cases. 1 88. It is the indirect object of many verbs and adjectives like gifan (give), lanan (lend), unnan (grant), secgan (say), cfian (announce), \ancian (thank), helpan (help) ; of impersonals : sceamian (shame), langian, (long), &c. ; of adjectives : gehyrsum (obedient), lebf (dear), &c. In Middle and Modern English this function has under- gone no change ; only what was originally a dative is often mistaken for an accusative, so that the dative frequently becomes the subject of a passive construction. See above, 152 and Passive, 363. 189. A substantive predicate, after the verb weor'San, is generally put in the dative. " CweS, J)set }>as stanas to hlafe geweorSon" (command that the stones shall turn into bread). Matthew, iv. 3. 190. The person to whose advantage or disadvan- tage something is done, is put in the dative ("dativus commodi et incommodi "). Gothic. "ni maurnaij) saivalai izvarai, nih leika izvaramma" (do not mourn for your soul, nor for your body). Matthew, vi. 25. Old Saxon.- -"hwo sie lof skoldin wirkean mid iro wordan them the thesa werold giskop " (how they should work praise with their words for him who created this world). Heliand, 810. Old English. "bred him hlafas wyrcan" (bade make loaves for him). Crist and Satan, 673. 122 ENGLISH SYNTAX In Middle English, as well as in Modern English, this use often occurs, though for is preferred. " I'll pluck thee berries." SHAKSP. Tempest, ii. 2, 164. The Ethic Dative. The ethic dative comes under this heading. We may distinguish two groups of it. 191. (a) The dative is a reflexive pronoun, or, rather, looks like it, but it is always connected with intransitive verbs (go, move, &c.). For instances in other Teutonic languages, see Grimm, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. 27 ff. Old English. " wseron him on Cent" (they were for themselves in Kent). Chronicle, 1009. "beoS eow stille" (be still for yourselves). Exod. xiv. 14. 11 Him Beowulf ^anon . . . graesmoldan traed(B. walked hence) " . . . Be6w. 1880. " Ga J> sylfa to ! " (go thou to it). Andreas, 1350. Cf. Chronicle, 1006, 1016. Middle English. " Leopen heom to horsen. " LAYAMOM, ii. 467. " Octa him ut rasd." Ibid. ii. 395. " He . . . swiSe gon him riden." Ibid. ii. 216. ' ' Colgrim . . . flceh him. " Ibid. ii. 423. Modern English. " Sir, step you forth. " SHAKSI*. Cymbeline, v 5. 130- " Come thee on." Ibid. Ant. and Cleop. iv. 7, 16. 192. (b} The dative does not refer to the subject of the verb and this is a transitive one. Middle English. " Hure sinne Su him forgiue" (our sins forgive us for his sake). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 2495. " lie prince me take hise wond, And do we us here in gocles hond. " Ibid. 3821. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 123 "Theise two Jwu most norissh me with thy melke." Gesta Romano- rum, 277. Modern English. "I am not yet of Percy's mind, the Hotspur of the north, he that kills me six or seven dozen of Scots at a breakfast." SHAK. I Henry iv. 2, 4, 115. " He presently . . . Steps me a little higher than his vow made to my father . . . Proceeded further ; cut me off the heads of all the favourites. " Ibid. 4, 3, 75, 85. " One Colonna cuts me the throat of Orsini's baker it is for our good." BULWER, Rienzi, I, 3. 193. The Dative represents the Instrumental Case. Gothic. " niu tvai sparvans assarjau bugjandau" (are not two sparrows bought for a penny ?). Matthew, x. 29. "jah andbahtos lofam slohun ina" (and the servants beat him with their palms). Mark, xiv. 65. Old Norse. " )>ar var Olvir hondum tekinn " (there was O. taken with hands). LUND, p. 127. Old Saxon. " ik hebbiu it so grioliko, quaS he, mines drohtines droru gikopot " (I have it [the silver], said he, dreadfully bought with my lord's blood). Holland, 5155. "ak it firiho barn fotun spumat " (men tread it, viz. the salt, under foot). Ibid. 1372. Old High German. " Noti nimit" (he takes with force). GRIMM, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. 77- "giwatitun inan sinen giwatin" (they clothed him with his clothes). Ibid. Old English. "for]>an ic hine sweorde swebban nelle" (I will not kill him with sword). Beowulf, 680. "Stephanus waes stanum worpod" (Stephen was killed with stones). -Elene, 492. " wseron Romware sona . . . gegearwod wipnum to wigge" (there were the Romans soon armed with weapons for the fight). Ibid. 48. For other instances see Grimm, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. 1 24 ENGLISH S YNTA X 194. In Middle and Modern English the instrumental case is represented by prepositions (by, with) ; there are, however, here and there a few remnants of the old case. " (buggen) deon? cheapo " = to buy dear. Wohunge of lire Lauerd, 281. " (buggen) lihtlio? cheapo" = to buy cheap. Ibid. 273. Besides, what is now looked upon as an accusative in the following instances, was probably long felt as the old dative case: "His owne honde than made he laddres thre." CHAUCER, The Milleres Tale, 438. " He hath with a dedly wounde, Fightend his owne handes, slain Branchus." GOWER, 90. "My brother Reynawd has hanged hym, his owne handes." CAXTON, Aymon, 343, 31. " Whatt gate summ he ganngej>)>" (whatever way he goes). Orm. 8216. " Whatt gate ma55 ice berenn child'' (what way may I bear child. Ibid. 2437. " And wiche wise he was more J>enne ani oSer man of \vifes bosme boren." Old English Homilies, ii. 141. " And hwiche wise to heuene stie." Ibid. 145. But in the same work instances with the preposition a = on are as frequent ; cf. pp. 141, 143, 199 and often. "Sis ebris waxen michil sped" (these Hebrews grow [with] much speed). Ibid. 2548. " )>ei sclaundren here parischenys many weies." WYCLIFE, Un- printed Works, 145. Cf. ibid. 171, 233. " To lyue }>e beste manere." Ibid. 252. 195. NOTE i. Here and there the dative appears where we expect the genitive. " Nefde he nane neode to us ac we hefden to muchele neode to him " (he had no need of us, but we had of him). Old English Homilies, SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 125 " to speken him harm." Ibid. ii. 1 1. "Ac ]>e ilke )>et zuere)> hidousliche be god . . . and zayj> him sclondres " (but he that swears hideously by God and speaks slanders of him). Ayenbite, 6. " To him he had envie." Guy of Warwick, 600. The Dative Absolute. 196. A substantive and participle in the dative may make an adverbial clause of time, cause or coexistence. This too seems to have been a common Teutonic use. Gothic. " fairraimma visandin " (avrov iropfxe) (he being far). Luke, xiv. 32. " usgaggandin hnma" (he going out). Mark, x. 17. Very frequent. Old Norse. Only with at. See Participles below, 409- 412. Old Saxon. " helpandemo usemo drohtine" (our Lord helping). GRIMM, Deutsche Grammatik, p. 905. Old High German. "sunnun danne uf stiganteru" (sole autem prto) ; "im uz farantem" (egredientibus illis). GRIMM, Ibid., 901. Very frequent. Old English. "Him sprecendum, hig comon" (they came while he was speaking). Mark, v. 35. " jnnre dura belocenre, bide" (thy door having been locked, pray). Mattheiv, vi. 6. For other instances see Grimm, p. 905. For an explanation of this so-called absolute construction, see Participles below, 409-412. The inflexion having decayed, the dative was mistaken for the nominative, hence such constructions as those quoted above, 153. There are, however, instances of the dative as late as the fourteenth century. 1 26 ENGLISH S YNTAX " Hym spekynge t>is |>ingis, manye bileueden into him." WYCLIFFE, John viii. 30. "And si)> petir was sathanas, for he wolde haue lettid cristis de)> and saluacion of mannus soule, him unwytyngge." WYCLIF, Unprinted Works, p. 56. "And ]>er-fore in J>e popis lawe decrees & decretals, symony is generaly elepid heresie, & orible peynes ordeyned a5engst men )>at don symonye on ony manere bi hem self or o}>ere mene persones, bi here wille & consent, & in some cas hem vnwyttynge." Ibid. p. 68. ' ' The son wax marke, alle me seand, when he died on the tree. "- Toumley Mysteries, p. 287. Cf. Syntax of the Sentence, 56. The Accusative Case. Signification of the Accusative Case. 197. The relation of the accusative to its governing verb is analogous to that of the genitive to its governing substantive. With regard to its use in the older stages of the language, we may almost say that it denotes generally every conceivable kind of relation which a substantive can bear to a verb, except that of a subject to its predicate. Besides the functions of this case when governed by verbs, it is used from the earliest times down to our days for the designation of what extends over space and time. The Accusative as the object of Transitive Verbs. 198. On the whole, the dominion of this accusative has, in Middle and Modern English, very considerably in- creased. Most of the verbs which, in Old English, governed the genitive, are now, and were even in Middle English, followed by the accusative, e.g., ondrkdan (fear), gyrnan (desire), wyscan (wish), missan (miss), costian (try), &c. But there are a few verbs which, in Middle English, were still followed by the accusative, while now they are used only in connection with prepositions. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 127 " I pray to god so gif my body care Yifever .... Herd I a miller better set a werke." CHAUCER, The Cokes Prologue, 12. " Hastow nought herd . The sorwe of Noe with his felaschipe ?" Ibid., Millers Tale, 353. 199. Sometimes the accusative seems to be governed by intransitive verbs. Old English. " Hsefden sumne dxl weges gefaren " (they had walked part of the way) Genesis, xliv. 4. Muidle English. " They gone the downes and the dales With weping and with wofull tales. '' GOWER, ii. p. 54. "Code sir, quod Gawayn, wolde5 ]>ou go myn ernde, To ]?e he5 lorde of J)is hous, herber to craue ? " Sir Gawayne, 811. But in such instances the accusative comes perhaps under the following heading. The Cognate Accusative, 200. Which repeats more specifically the notion of the verb (March), is frequent in all the periods of the language. Old English. "Jj(i leofodon heora lif sefter scs Benedictus regule" (they lived their life after St. Benet's rule). Chronicle, 1087. " J>eet gewin J>e he won wiS Harold eorl " (the battle that he won against Harold). Ibid. 1063. Middle English. " Aelc his sa5e saeide" (each said his saw). LAYAMON, iii. 47. " Sonde he sende sone." Ibid. ii. 562 : cf. iii. 4. " )>a bed he his bod." Ibid. ii. 561. "He had bled so mychel blood." Alisaundre, 5863; cf. Octavian, 515 ; Coventry Myst. p. 163. Modern English. "I would fain die a dry death." SHAKSPERE, Temfest, i. i, 72. 128 ENGLISH SYNTAX " We have dreamt a dream." Genesis, xl. 8. i( Well hast thou fought the better fight." MILTON, Par. L. vi. 29. For the accusative in such constructions as "I am banished the court," see Passive, 363. Double Object. 20 1. i. Some verbs of asking and teaching may have two accusatives, one of a person and the other of a thing. " Ne meahton we gelseran leofne J>e6den rices hyrde raed snigne" (we could not teach the dear lord, the shepheard of the realm, any counsel). Behuiilf, 3080. " hwcet heo hine baxle " (whatever she might ask him). Matthew, xiv. 17. This construction, however, is rare in Old English ; we find the accusative of person + the genitive of thing, or the accusative of thing + the dative of person. 202. 2. Some verbs of making, naming, regarding, may- have two accusatives of the same person or thing. " He his englas deS aeftele gastas" (he makes noble souls his angels). Psalms, ciii. 5. " seo ea, \z. weras Eufraten nemnao"' (the river, which men name Euphrates). C/EDMO.v, Genesis, 234. For the nominative governed by hdtan, see above, 150. There is no considerable change of this construction in Middle and Modern English. Accusative with Infinitive. See Infinitive, 401-404. Accusative as Adverb denoting : 203. i. Place. Old English. " Haefdon sumne dael weges gefaren" (they had gone home part of the way). Genesis xliv. 4. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 129 Middle English. " Salad yn was ten myle thenne." Rich. Caw de Lii'ii^ 2974. "Apon a crose bataile of Troie, J>at laste fele 5er." ROBERT OF GLOUC. 208. " This seven daies I n'el newt speke." Seuyn Sages, 377. Especially noteworthy are the expressions "never his life," "term of his life," and "tyme enough " = in time. " Imeneus, that god of weddyng is, Seigh neuer his life so merya weddid man." CHAUCER, Marchaundes Tale, 487. "Many a wighte hath loued thynge he neuer saugh his lyue." Id. Troylus and Cryseyde, v. 165. " Neuer the days of her lyflf she sholde wedde paynem nor no man infidele." CAXTON, Blanchardyn and Eglantine, 65, 15. "(He) wend neuer to haue come tyme enough " (French : a tans [temps], Ibid. 158, 4. Cf. ibid. 170, 5; CAXTON, Aymon, 265, 19; 343, 5. " Neuer his lif. " MALORY, Morte tf 'Arthur, 127, 23. Cf. ibid. 228, 24; BERNERS, Huon, 332, 8; 334, 10. 205. 3. Manner. Cf. above, Instntmental, 193-194. 206. The Objective Absolute. . VJ/flT " All loose her negligent attire, All loose her golden hair, Hung Margaret o'er her slaughter'd sire. " W. SCOTT. 1 30 ENGLISH SYNTAX This use is scarcely to be traced back to the prehistoric Teutonic times, though it occurs in Old Norse, and is common in Modern German. It occurs too in Old French, and this probably influenced the Middle English, where it becomes frequent in the four- teenth century. "Ilii . . . To him come . . . vnhosed and barevot, & vngurt al so, Hor armes to the elbowe naked, hor heued bar perto." ROBERT OF GLOUC. 10827. " Thei ben aboute the Souldan with swerdes drawen and gysarmez and axes, her armes lift up in highe with the wepenes." MAUNDE- VILLE, p. 40. " Upon an amblere esely sche sat, Wymplid ful wel, and on hire head an hat As brood as is a bocler or a targe, A footmantel aboute hire hupes large, And on hire feet a paire of spores scharpe." CHAUCER, Canterbury Tales, Prol., 470. " High on hors he sat, Uppon his heed a fiaundrish bever hat." find. 272. Modern English. " Thence more at ease their minds, and somewhat raised By false presumptuous hope, the ranged Powers Disband." MILTON, Par. Lost, ii. 521. " She started up : the thought of Listen in her heart, and Dr. Blair on the carpet." MRS. EDWARDS, Pearl Powder, p. 279. Interchange of the Cases. I. Nominative instead of the Oblique Case. The Nominative after "but" and "save" 207. i. The prepositions "but" and "save" are some- times followed by the nominative ; but then they must rather be looked upon as conjunctions, and the whole expression as an elliptic one. Old English. " NzEfo" he nan Jring J>e ne si on uninum anwealde buton pii" = but it, be thou." Genesis, xxxix. 9. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 131 Middle English. "Alle shalle be slain but ooncly ive" Townley ftfy>t:ries, p. 281. " Noon but I have seen it." CAXTON, Blanchardyn and Eglantine, 43, 32. " Al be ded sauf I." CAXTON, Charles the Crete, 1 02, 31. In Old French, fors too is often followed by the nomina- tive. " Un celier fit faire soutil Sous terre, u nus n'aloit fors il" (a cellar he caused to be made underground where nobody went but he. Le Roman de Mahomet, 51. Modern English. " Earth up has swallowed all my hopes but s/ie." SHAK. Romeo, i. 2, 14. " What made thee, when they all were gone And none but thou and I alone, To act the devil ? " BUTLER, Httdibras, 3, 3, 149. A similar sort of ellipsis probably appears in the following instances : "Nor hope (I) to be myself less miserable By what I seek, but others to make such As /." MILTON, Par. Lost, ix. 126. " She [superstition] taught the weak to bend, the proud to pray, To power unseen, and mightier far than they. POPE, Essay on Man, 3, 252. " Believe that Rome has no firmer friend than he who, ordained to preserve order, finds himself impotent against aggression." BUIAVER, Rienzi, i. 5. 208. 2. Instead of the second object, the nominative appears after hdtan. See above, 150. Anacoluthic Nominative. 209. 3. In all these cases it is a sort of anacoluthon which produces the irregular construction, and it is espe- cially striking in the following instances, in which a pronoun referring to a noun in an oblique case appears in the nomi- native. K 2 1 3 2 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Unthank come on his heed that hand him so, And he that bettir schuld han knyt the reyne." CHAUCER, The Reeves Tale, 163. " Demetrius men saiden tho The better knight was of the two, To whom the lond was attendant As he, which heir was apparent." GOWER, i. pp. 213, 214. "Goo agen to Tormaday to see the noble lande of that lady, she of \\hom thou arte amorouse soo moche." CAXTON, Blanch, and Egl. iS6, 19. "To go and come, of custom free or any other task, I mean by Juliana, she, that blaze of beautie's breeding." Cly onion and Clamydes, p. 491, f>. " Do never view thy father, I, in presence any more." Ibid. 497, a. " Sith that mine honour cowardly was stole by caitiffe he." Ibid. " But shall I frame, then, mine excuse, by serving Venus, she."- Ibid. 501, b. " Than thus to see fell 'fortune, she, to hold her state in spite." Ibid. 505, b. "Clamydes, ah, by fortune, she, what froward luck and fate Most cruelly assigned is unto thy noble state." Ibid. 57> ^- " Fie on fell fortune, she." Ibid. 508, a. ' ' Although that with Clamydes, he, I have not kept my day. " Ibid. 511, a. " Yet though unto Neronis, she, I may not show my mind." Ibid. " Neronis. daughter to the kyng, by the kyng of Norway, he, Within a ship of merchandise convey'd away is she." Ibid. 514, a. " So do I fly from tyrant, he, whose heart were hard than flint. "- Ibid. 515, a. There is a similar instance in Shakspere, but it is apparently a quotation from some romantic poem. " For we that take purses go by the moon and the seven stars, and not by Phcebus, he, 'that wandering knight so fair.' " SHAK. I Henry IV. i. 2, 1 6. Cf. also the following instances : " Through the encouraging words of he 1 Ugrinfs Progress, 299. " Between you and I." DICKENS, Pickw. i. x. " Through the encouraging words of he that led in front." BUN VAN, Pilgrim's Progress, 299. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 133 Nominative with Verbs once Impersonal, and in Passive Constructions. 210. 4. Another interchange of the nominative and the oblique case was brought about by the decay of the inflexion in the : (a) Impersonal and (b) Passive constructions. In instances like : " Wo was this king," " God be thanked," what was originally the dative was mistaken for the nominative, and hence arose the constructions : " I am woe," " I am thanked." See Impersonal Verbs, 337, and Passive, 363. The Absolute Pronoun in the Oblique Case. 211. II. The oblique case instead of the nominative. There is a decided tendency in Middle and Modern English to use absolute personal pronouns in the dative (or accusative) case. This tendency, which in French was strong enough to divide the pronouns into two different classes (conjoints and absolus) produced, in English, the following changes. " You" supplanted "ye." 212. The oldest instances that have come to my notice are those in Sir Tristrem (ed. Kolbing), about 1320 A.D. "Send 5011 5are." 1150. " 5011 mi5t haue slain me ynou5, JK> fat y Tramtris hi5t." Ibid. 1598. But in both cases we have probably to read \ou. There are, however, certain instances as early as the middle of the fourteenth century : I 3 4 ENGLISH SYNTAX ' ' Ye show your lady lytille love That you so herttly preyse. " Ipomadon, 1807. " Fynde j'0 him, yff that ye may." Ibid. 5298. Other instances occur in Guy of Warwick, ed. Zupitza, i5th century version (11. 4192, 6352, 7053, 7217, 7218, 9847), and they are frequent in Caxton; but even there it is mostly in the inverted position (im- perative, less frequent in interrogative sentences) that you is introduced ; but the number of yes, even in that position, prevails. In Blanchardyn and Eglantine there are two you's in the imperative : "Come_j'0tt with me." 60, 28. "Bejbwsure." 185, 17. "But knowe you, that Hernyer dyde mysse of his enterpryse." Aymon, 90, 15. " Fayr chyldren, now be you sure." Ibid. 129, I. " Defye_jw< hym on my behalfe." IbiJ. 157, 32. "Now gyue you me good counseyll." Ibid. 203, 14; 361,9; 412, 26. 213. Interrogative Sentences. "What \xyou, fayre knyghte ?" CAXTON, Aymon, 91, 25. " Telle me, how thynke _jv . ? " Ibid. 170, I. " What thynge aske^w of me?" Ibid. 246, 20 ; 184, 31 ; 343, 17 ; 373. 29. There are, however, several instances of you in another position. "ru se Beowulf, se >e wiS Brecan wunne" (art thou that Beowulf who foughtst with Brecan ?) Beowulf, 506. "se Columba" = this Columba. Chronicle, 565. " se Cu)>a." Ibid. 571. "se Birinus." Ibid. 634. Middle English. " How pe magdalen wit grete Com for to was our lorde fete. " Cursor Mundi, 159. SYNTAX OF THE -PARTS OF SPEECH 137 So the Cotton and Fairfax MSS., the Gottingen and Trinity MSS., have "mari magdalain" (maudeleyn). " He made als, goon ys a grete while, Origenes upon the Maudeleyne." CHAUCER, Legend of Goode Women, 428. " Ascayn biget Silui, of whom Jxr Brut com." ROBERT OF GLOUC. 220; cf. 288, 299. " The Waleis wes to drawe." WRIGHT, Polit. Songs, p. 213. "Sire Robert the Bruytz." Ibid. p. 215. " 7 he Longespay was a noble knyght." Rich. Cceur de Lion, 6983. " Thei take Jhesu and lede hym in gret hast to the Herowde." Coventry Myst. p. 303. "I saw the Daphene closed under rinde." Complaint of the Black Knight, 64. Cf. Matzner, iii. 165. Modern English. " The Douglas and the Hotspur both together Are confident against the world in arms." SHAK. i Henry IV. v. i, 116. " Laws were the most sure When like the Draco's they were writ in blood. " MARLOWE, Jew of Malta, Prol. " Stout Choiseul would discern in the Dubarry nothing but a wonder- fully dizened Scarlet woman." CARLYLE, French Revol. i. i. 219. Names of Persons preceded by Attributes take the article in Old English, but drop it as early as the time of Layamon and Orm, and in the Elizabethan authors the omission of it prevails. I have examined three sixteenth century plays of three different authors with regard to this point, and the result is invariably the same. Greene's Orlando Furioso, Peele's Arraignment of Paris, Lodge's Wounds of Civil War, gave the following proportions : 1. Without article: with article = 47 : 6. 2. Ditto : ditto =16:3. 3. Ditto : ditto =42:4. 1 38 ENGLISH S YNTA X Personifications are dealt with in the same way : " Cruell Revenge, and rancorous Despight." SPENSER, Faerie Queene, 2, 7, 22. As for the other proper names (seas, rivers, mountains, countries), the use is not bound by fixed rules. Nouns preceded by Possessive Pronouns. 220. In Old English as in Gothic, Old Norse and Old High German, nouns with possessive pronouns may take the definite article. " hseleS mm se leofa" (my dear youth). Elene, 511. " jni eart dohtor min seo dyreste" (thou art my dearest daughter. Juliana, 193. " ]>xt tacnode LeoniSa'on his \uern nihstan gefeohte" (that Leonidas showed in his next battle). OROSIUS, 84, 31. "Mammea his sio gode modor " (his the good mother Mammea). Ibid. 270, 26. "mid hire \an yfelan sceonnesse" (with her evil temptation). Blickling Homilies, 5, i. 221. The article preceding the possessive pronoun : " Se heora cyning" (their king). OROSIUS, 56, 31. " seo heora iugoo"' (their youth). Blickling Homilies, 163, 3. "seo hire gebyrd" (her birth). Ibid. 163, 9. For Gothic, see Grimm, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. 392 ; for Old Norse, ibid. 433 ; for Old High German, 403. 222. In Caxton, possessive pronouns used substantively are sometimes preceded by the article : "Thenne toke the prouost his spere, and so dyde Blancharclyn the his." Blanch, and Eglant. 48, 20 (French original : la sienne). " I praye you that euery man force hymself to do worthily hys deuoyr, that your worship and the cures be kepte." Aymoti, 72, 21. " In whiche he hath not rendred the reason or made any decision, to approve better the his, than that other." Eneydos, 23, 19. This use (or rather abuse) seems due to French influence. SYNTAX OF THE PAXTS OF SPEECH 139 Nouns in the Vocative Case. 223. In the older periods of the language, nouns in the vocative case are preceded by the definite article instead of " Oh ! " Old English. Frequent in Jiomilies : " Men \a leofestan" (dearest brethren). Blickling Homilies, p. 6l ; Wulfstan, 134 (elsewhere he prefers 'leofan men'). " Gejjenc mi, se msfcra maga Healfdenes" (remember, now, the famous son of Halfdene). Bee king, Jm froeinest me a sellic )>ing" (O king A., thou askest me a strange thing). Ibid. ii. 293. " Farwelle, the semelyst that ever was sQyn."To?vnlcy Mysteries, P- 171- " Farwelle, the luflyst that ever was bred." Ibid. " Sith that we haue lost thee, farewell the joye of this world." CAXTON, Aymon, 574, 30. "Then syr Launcelot cryed : the knyght wyth the blak sheldc, make the redy to Juste with me ! " MALORY, Morte d' Arthur, 392, 16. Modern English. " The restful place ! renewer of my smart, The labour's salve ! increasing my sorrow, The body's ease, and troubler of my heart, Quieter of mind, mine unquiet foe." WYATT, Poems, p. 33. " My lord, the king, the king ! " SHAK. Wint. T. iii. 2, 143. " Brother, my lord the duke, Stand to and do as we." Tempest, iii. 3, 52. The Definite Article before Numerals. 224. Numerals denoting fast of a whole, are sometimes preceded by the definite article. " And sins he ran .... And borwcd him large boteles thre ; And in the two his poysoun poured he ; The thrid he keped clene for his drynke." CHAUCER, The Pardoneres Talc, 410. 140 ENGLISH SYNTAX "And if thou maist so fer forth wynne, That thou resound erst byginne, And woldest seyn thre thingis or mo, Thou shall fulle scarsly seyn the two." Rom aunt of the Rose, v. 77. The Indefinite Article. 225. Though the Teutonic languages agree in the later development of the indefinite article a, an, out of the numeral, that use was probably not common Teutonic. In Gothic and Old Norse ains or einn is always a numeral, in Old High German it does not appear before the tenth century, and in Old English poetry there are but faint traces of it. There are no instances in Cynewulf ; Caedmon offers an = sum, some one ; but there are two examples of it in Beowulf and many in prose. "Swa }>a driht-guman dreamum lifdon eadiglice, 6S ]>ict an cngan fyrene fremman, feond on helle" (thus the valiant men lived in joy happily, until a fiend of hell began to work evil). Beowulf, 100. " he geheold tela fiftig wintru (waes )>a froS cyning, eald efrel-weard), 68 J>at an ongan deorcum nihtuin draca r.'csian " (until a dragon began to lord it in dark nights). Ibid. 2211. "An man haefde twegen suna" (a man had two sons). Matthew, xxi. 8. " J>a com an man )>3es nama waes Jairus" (there came a man whose name was Jairus). Luke, viii. 41. " Cerdic and Cynric of slogon senne Bryttiscne cyning" (C. and C. slew a British king). -Chronicle, 508. The function of the indefinite article being nearly the same in Middle English as in modern times, I need only draw attention to a few points. "A " before Numerals. 226. A is often used before numerals, sometimes with the meaning of "about" ; the numeral, then, is looked upon as a sort of collective noun, in analogy to hundred and thous- SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 141 and. In Old English this use is very rarely met with. Matzner quotes the following instance : " Man singe ylce frigdrege xt ylcum mynstre an fiftig sealmas for J>one cyng " (men shall sing each Friday in each cloister about fifty psalms for the king). Legg. ix. 3. Middle English. "Alle bute a fyue men one." ROB. OF GLOUC. 770. " That is a 5 myle on this half Damasce." MAUNDEVILLE, p. 124. " Thens a 4 myle." Ibid. p. no. Modern English. This a is very frequent in Berners's Huon. "And they were in all a iiii score horsses." 18, 12. " (The knyght) sayd how that a vii yere passyd that duke Seuyn our father had taken iii castels." 29, 16. "So it fell that after the deth of his father about a vii yere, -kinge Charlemayn sent for him." 210, 3. " She dyed thereof a v yere past" (ed. 1601 : about). 210, 19. Cf. ibid. 61, 3; 62, 18; 63, 16; 63, 18; 66, 23, &c. " I have not past a two shillings or so." BEN JONSON, Every Man in his Humour, i, 4. The Indefinite Article used Pleonastically. 227. Here and there a puts in an unexpected ap- pearance in analogy to so + adjective + a ; "It nedeth not to be doubted that he is come to his extremyte of prowes and valyantes, wythout that amours hathe be the cause in the persone of some hyghe a pryncesse. " CAXTON, Blanchardyn and Egl. 72, 20. "he gaf to hym-self grete merueylle, and was wel abashed of that soudayne a wylle that was come to hym." Ibid. 126, 9. " which is the most fayr, and the most noble, and the moste com- plete a lady, and most pleasaunt of all the remnaunt of the world. " Ibid. 156, 13. " This so pleasant a path." BUN VAN, Pilgr. Progr. p. 2. 142 ENGLISH SYNTAX Omission of the Article. 228. As late as the fourteenth century the article was omitted in passages where we should expect it. Cf. the following instances in Trevisa, Higden's Polychronicon : " After solempne and wise writers of arte." TREVISA, i. 3. (Harleian MS. add the}. " But besines of writers to oure unkunnynge hadde i-holde and i-stregned mynde of olde dedes." Ibid. i. 4. (Harleian MS. : the solicitude of writers, the memorie of thynges.) " J>e brennynge of the temple of Jewes." Ibid. i. 29. " }>e comynge of Saxons." Ibid. " ]>e processe of Holy Writt." Ibid. 31. " In J>at lond bee]) noble citees and famous Neopolis and Puteoli." Ibid. i. 203. " For saltnesse of )>e er)>e." Ibid. 265. " meltej) wij> hete of fhtynge as snow droop wij) hete of \>e sonne." Ibid. 269. 229. From the sixteenth century the use or omission of the article was, on the wkole, ruled by the same principles as now-a-days ; but poets retained for themselves great liberty in that respect. Thus, Spenser in his poems, especially in the Faerie Queene, quite resembles Chaucer in this point, and even goes beyond him. Most cases of omission occurring in poetry may be brought under the following headings : | 230. i. Before the second object. " The wretched woman, whom vnhappy howre Hath now made thrall to your commandement." SPENSER, Faerie Queenc, i, 2, 22. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 143 231. 2. Before a substantive used predicatively. " You know that I am legate to the pope." MARLOWE, Ed-w. ii. 342. " Oh, must this day be period of my life ? " Ibid. 1277. " Faire harbour that them seems, so in they entred ar." SPENSER, F. Q. I, I, 7, 9. 232. 3. Before a substantive in apposition. " Conduct these warlike men To Rome, unhappy mistress of our harms. " LODGE, Wounds of Civil War, 119. " Not Euripus (unquiet flood) so oft Ebbs in a day." Tancred and Gismunda, 37. " Prince of Suavia, noble soil." Sir Clyomon and Sir Clainydes, 491, a 233. 4. After never and ever. " Where never blow was dealt with enemy." GASCOIGNE, 58. " I never saw bear go a-milking in all my life." Mticedorus, 212. " As ever you had man in all your life." Ibid. 224. " Will euer wight beleue that such hard hart Could rest within the crucll mothers breast ? " Gorboditc, 1280. Instances abound. 234. 5. After as in comparisons. "As hound that hath his keeper lost, Seek I your presence to obtain." WYATT, Poems, p. 44. "Think not .... I'll Keep the house as owlet does her tower." SHERIDAN KNOWLES, Hunchback, 2, 2. 235. 6. Before nouns beginning with s or ///, the definite article is shunned. " Whose cheerful voice doth comfort saddest wights." GASCOIGNE, 49. " To glad their heart with sight of pleasant sparks." To fill their ear with sound of instruments." Ibid. 58. 1 44 ENGLISH S YNTAX " Who was unmoved ivith sight of the most horrible continuances of death." SIDNEY, Arcadia, p. 26. " In sight of God and us your guilt is great." SHAK. 2 Henry VI. II. iii. 2. " The dismallest object that ever eye with sight made hard lament." TITUS, ii. 3, 205. " He, leaving throne alone. " GREENE, Alphonstts, 240, a. "I will have all things my lord doth want." GKEENE, George a- Greene, 254, a. "He, making speedy way through sperscd ayre." SPENSER, F. Q. I. i. 39'. " The false Duessa, leaving noyous Night, Returnd to stately pallace of Dame Pryde." Ibid. I. v. 45 2 . THE ADJ ECTIVE Adjectives used as Substantives. 236. The adjectives (answering to the Aristotelian cate- gory of TTOIOV, quale) were formed, at first, like substantives, and many of them could be used in both characters. There are languages in which adjectives are not distinguished from substantives. 1 The English adjectives may become substantives in three different ways. Substantives named after quality. 237. The quality of a thing is so striking, that the name of the adjective is adopted for the substantive itself. In this manner many nouns were formed in prehistoric times, e.g. wheat, A.-S. hwdte, Goth, hwaiteis, from the root hwit = white, so named from the whiteness of the meal ; gold, from the root ghar, to be yellow. 1 M. Miiller, I.e. 442. In Arabic and often in Hebrew substantives are used where we expect adjectives. Instead of saying "every man," "some men," the Arabs say "the totality of men," "a portion of men." SILVESTRE DE SACY, Grammairc Generate: Adjedif. Cf. the old English instances above. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 145 Ellipsis of the Noun. 238. An adjective may, according to the nature of the quality denoted by it, refer to one noun only, or it may be very often found as an attribute of one particular noun ; in both cases the result is the same, viz. the adjective by itself conveying at once the idea of the noun to which it belongs, the latter is dropped. This ellipsis, which chiefly applies to adjectives referring to God and man, seldom to animals and things, was common to all the Teutonic languages. Gothic. " Jah bij>e usdribans varj> unhutyo, rodida sa dumba" (and when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake). Afatthenv, ix. 33. " Laistidedum afar imma tvai blitidans" (two blind men followed him). Ibid. ix. 27. " Urreisand dau]>ans" (the dead rise). Luke, xx. 37. Old Saxon. "WarS thar lef so manag, halt gehelid, endi haf so sama, blindun gibotid " (there were cured many sick [people], halting, palsied, blind). Heliand, 375456. Cf. 2096, 2304, and passim. Old High German. "Ther doto" (the dead man). OTFRID, iii. 24, 60. " Ther blinto" (the blind man). Ibid. iii. 23, 8. Cf. ibid. iii. 20, 73 ; v. 21, 9. 239. While the Germans preserve this usage to the present day, the English language did not favour it in the same degree through all the periods of its development. Old English. i. Adjectives referring to God. Examples are very frequent. " cwoeo* |>aet se selmihtiga eorSan worhte" (he said that the Almighty created the earth). Beowulf, 92. Cf. Blickling Horn. 29, 2, 31, 25. "hie unscyldigne, synna leasne feore beneddon" (they robbed of life the innocent, him who was free of sins, sc. Christ). Elene, 496. 1 46 ENGLISH S YNTA X 2. Adjectives referring to man, and describing qualities of body and mind, may be used as well in the singular as in the plural, in the positive as well as in the comparative and superlative degree. " Se blinda, gyf he blindne lit" (the blind, if he lead a blind [man]). Matthciv, xv. 14. " Se ])e underfeho" rihtwisne on rihtwi'ses naman, he onfehS rihtwi'ses mede " (he that receiveth a righteous [man] in the name of a righteous [man] shall receive a righteous [man's] reward). Ibid. x. 41. " Hie for feos lufan earmne fordemajj buton scylde " (for the sake of bribes, they condemn the innocent poor [man]). Blick. Horn. 63, II. " Se blinda him ondswerode" (the blind [man] answered him). Ibid. 15, 23. " twegen landes men and an ael]>e6dig" (two natives and one stranger). ^ELFRIC, Horn. ii. 26, 20. Some adjectives which appear in the comparative degree alter their meaning with their grammatical function. These are : gingra, originally younger, but substantively = disciple j yldran, elders, parents. Cf. German : der Jiinger, die Eltern. "se biscop bij> Codes gingra" (the bishop is God's vassal). Blick. Horn. 45, 17. " Crist sylfa his geongrum saegde" (Christ himself said to his disciples). Ibid. 109, 7. "forjjon ure yldran swultan " (for our parents died). Ibid. 195, 24. Very frequent. 240. Middle English. The singular of these adjectives becomes very rare in prose ; perhaps we may say that it is limited to poetry only. " Al ]>at S65 J>at semly syked in hert, Sayde soj>ly al same segges til o]>er, Carande for J?at comly." (All that saw that fair one, sighed in their heart, and said truly one man to the other, out of care for that comely one). Sir Gawayne, 672. " Hit were a fole fele-folde, my fre, by my trawjje" (it would be a many-fold fool, my noble one, by my faith). Ibid. 1545. Cf. 1549. I 73- SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 147 " J)is ha]>el helde,, him in, & J)e halle entres" (this noble one moves in, and enters the hall). Ibid. 221. Cf. 234, 256, 655, 844. Other adjectives used substantively in Sir Gaivayne are : auncien (ancient), 948 ; dere (dear, noble), 678, 928 ; felle (cruel, of a boar), 1585; gay, 970, 1215, 1822, 2035; hende (fair), 827, 946, 1252, 1813, 2330; swete, 1108, 1222; wyly, 1905. " For he nought helpeth the needful in his neede." CHAUCER, Man of Laives Talc, 14. " As saith the wise." /(/. Sompnoures Tale, 307. " Com doun, my leef " (my darling). Id. Marchaundes Tale, 1145. Adjectives substantively used in the plural occur pretty often in Middle English prose. Apparently the English language, like later Latin, is against the usage (adopted by the Slavonic and Germanic idioms) which makes an individual represent a whole class. " And botnede blinde, ]>e dumbe ant te deaue, ant te deade arercle to lif " (he cured the blind, the dumb and the deaf, and raised the dead to life). Marharctc, I. " And bitacneS j>is tur ]>e hehschipe of meidenhad, J>at bihald as of heh, alle widewen under hire and iveddede baffe " (and this tower typifies the elevated stnte of virginity, that beholds as from high, all widows under it and wedded women}. Hali Maidcnhad, 5. "He nalde mid his tocume J>a sunfullen fordemen " (he would condemn the sinful at his coming). -O. E. How. i. 95. " iselic beoS efre ]>a mildheortan " (blessed are ever the meek- hearted). Ibid. 109. " ]>e lauerd seal beon li$e }>an godan, and eisful ]>an dusian" (the Lord shall be gentle to the good, and awful to the wicked). Ibid. in. In poetry examples are very numerous. 241. Modern English. The licence of using adjectives referring to persons as substantives may be said to have disappeared as early as the time of the Tudors ; but the L 2 148 ENGLISH SYNTAX traces left by it are visible even in the present stage of the language. Some adjectives have become exclusively substantives, as : a saint, a sage. Some old formulas still survive, as : the rich and the poor, old and young, high and low, the just and the unjust, the good, the wicked : but only in the plural. The old comparatives of old and young not only survived, but gave rise to analogous formations : in analogy of "my elders, my youngers," were introduced "my inferiors, my superiors," &c. Present Participles used as Substantives. 242. They are very frequent in poetry, less numerous in prose. Some are real substantives. Feond (fiend), present participle of feon, to hate ; Goth, fijands, German fcimi. Beowulf, 164, 726, &c. Freond (friend), present participle of frcon, to love ; Goth, frijonds, German frcinid. Befau. 1386, 1865, &c. Hetend (enemy), pres. part, of hctan (Jiatian), to hate. " SySSan wipen ahof wiS hctenduin" (since he took up arms against his enemies). Eletu, 17, 8. Cf. 119; Befau. 1829, &c. Wigend (warrior) and its compounds burgwigeiid, byrnivlgcnd, lind- wlgend. Befcu. 3100, 1126; Ekne 106, 984, &c. The adjectives referring to God are : H&end (the Saviour), Old Saxon: Heliaitd, O. H. G. heilant ; Elenc, 726 &c. ; Blick. Horn, n, 21, 15, 15 &c. Nerigend (Saviour), Goth, nasjands, Luke \. 47, ii. 1 1 ; Old Sax. ncrictid.Hiliand, 3718 &c. ; O. H. G. ncrrendeo ; Elene, 461, 465 &c. IVcaldotd (Ruler) (Old Sax. waldatid ; Heliand passim ;) Be6w. 17, 183 &c. ; Elcne, 4, So &c. ; C^DMON, Exodus, 16, 432. Alyscnd ( Redeemer), Blick. Horn. 65, 30, 87, 9. Frifrend (Comforter), Ibid. 105, 17, 131, 23. Sceppend, Scyppend (Creator), Ibid. 5, 35, 9, 23, &c. Scyldcnd (Protector), Ibid. 141, 14. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 149 This group soon disappears without leaving any trace in the later periods of the language. Only h&lend occurs in the literature of the twelfth and the first half of the thirteenth century. Layamon, 9144 ; Orm, 2216; Old English Horn. i. 83 ; Ancren Jtiwle, 912 ; Mark. i. 243. Adjectives denoting Nations and Tribes. " Da retsa;ton <5 Ccntiscan" (there settled the people of Kent). Chronicle (Parker MS. a.) 905. "And on Sara Deniscena healfe wearo" ofsloegen Eohric hira cyng" (and on the part of the Danes was killed E. their king). Ibid. "And him cierde call }>oet folc to j>e on Mercna lande geseten wses, segj)er ge Denisc ge Englisce " (and there turned to him all the people that lived in the Mercian country, the English as well as the Danes). Ibid. a. 922. " ]>a Judeiscan " (the Jews). yELFRic, Horn. 56, 31. This group is not very frequent in Middle English. "The Flemmysshe yherden telle the cas." WRIGHT, Political Songs, p. 189. " To liuer ])am has drihtin mint, And give egypcian a dint " (the Lord has in mind to deliver them, &c.). Cursor Mnndi, 6018 (Cotton MS.). Three other versions read : " Egypcians," as substantive. "And thoru )>e grece ouercomen," (and overcome by the Greeks), ibid. 7060. Cotton MS. The others again have -es. Modern English. The adjectives referring to nations partly survived (the English, the Scotch, the Chinese), and they were followed by adjectives describing religious sects, political parties, &c., as : Christians, Presbyterians, Lutherans, Stoics, Cynics, Jacobites, &c. Adjectives referring to Things. 244. The same ellipsis which accounts for the substan- tival use of adjectives referring to man sometimes applies to 150 ENGLISH SYNTAX things ; cf. Latin ferina, sc. caro (venison), altum, st. mare (high sea). Old English. Blanco. = a white or grey horse. Middle English. }>e broun deer. Gaivayne, 1162. \>e sylnener syhieren plate. Ibid. 124. \e luylde the wild beasts (cf. German Wild]. " At j>e fyrst quethe of the quest quaked \,c wylde " (at the first cry of the hounds the beasts quaked). Ibid. 1150. Cf. Destruction of Troy, 2347- " Now keep you from the white and from the rede, Namely from the white wyn of Leepe." CHAUCER, Pardoneres Tale, 100: cf. ibid. 64. Certeyn quantity, from the French. " And she to soper come when it was eve, With a certeyn of hire own men." CHAUCER, Troy his and Cryseyde, iii. 547. Modern English. The number of these adjectives has considerably increased, only most of them are no longer looked upon as adjectives : they form the plural with -s. Such are : common, cordial, fluid, green, initial, liquid, particular, solid, vegetable ; many of them are plurals only : bitters, canonicals, combustibles a combustible, credentials, delicates, &c. It is obvious that most of these substantives are simply taken from the Latin of the Middle Ages. For the etymology see the dictionary of Skeat. Abstract Neuters. 245. The third sort of adjectives which may be used as substantives are those denoting abstract ideas, as good, evil. This usage, too, is common to all the Teutonic languages. Gothic. K&7 (evil). John xviii. 23. Cf. Matth. v. 37. Old Saxon. g&d, Heliand, 1348, 3409 ; reht (that which is right), ibid. 3014, 3814 ; unreht (wrong), 1957, 3478 ; tibil, 1356, 3409. Old High German. guat, OTFRID iii. 18, 10 ; ubil, ii. 12, 91 ; reht, v. 23, 126. SYNTAX OF THE PAXTS OF SPEECH 151 Old English. In poetry and prose very frequent. " Ne gealcl he yjel yjcle" (he did not pay evil with evil). Elene, 493- ' ' J>set hi'o Jjtere cwene oncwcftan meahton, swa tiles, swa triiges " (that they might answer to the queen, were it something good, were it some- thing bad). Ibid. 325. " and ge J>am ryhte wioYoten hcefdon" (and you had rebelled against right). Ibid. 369. "soft and riht" (truth and justice). Bc6w. 1701. Cf. Ibid. 532; 1050; 2865. " gemyne he 'Sxs yfles J>e he worhte" (he may bear in mind the evil that he did). /ELFRED, Cura Past. 24. "Gemyne J>e sylfne hu mycel yfel )>e gelamp" (bethink thee how great an evil befell thee). Blick. Horn. 31, 12. "dyde mare yfel ]>onne god" (he did more evil than good). Ibid. 43. 34- "gyf ]m godas folce riht bodast" (if thou preach est justice to God's people). Ibid. 7, 7 : cf. ibid. 27, 16 ; 29, 5 ; 156, 13. 246. Middle English. This usage keeps on until the second half of the fifteenth century, when we perceive that the neuter of the adjective is supplanted by the correspond- ing substantive. " 5if we ponkien ure drihten alles }>inges ]>e he us sent, |>et gode and pet ufele " (if we thank our Lord for all things that he sends us, the good and the evil). Old Eng. Horn. i. 7. " hu scolde oj>er monnes god dede comen him to gode, ]>e nefre on }>isse line nanes godes ne rohte?" (how should another man's good deeds profit him, who never in this life took thought of any good thing) ? Ibid. 9. " Whannse he sej) ]>att Godess rihht Godess la;he rise^J> " (whenever he, sc. the wicked, sees that God's right and law rises.) Onn. 203, 4. Cf. 1 6 141. " so)) & rihht to rejjsen" (to raise truth and justice). ' ' Se sunes briglit Is more Sanne Se mones bright " (the sun's brightness is greater than the moon's light). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 143. 1 5 2 ENGLISH S YNTA X " ]>ou ne sselt nime godes name in ydd" (thou shalt not take God's name in vain. Aycnbitc, 6. " huo J>et onwor]>ej> his uader and his moder . . . o)>er hem missay]> mid kncadc, zene5e|) dyadliche" (whosoever offends his father and mother, or slanders them through wickedness, commits a deadly sin). Ibid. 8. Cf. II, 14. Chaucer makes very frequent use of this licence. "whan that the soth is wist." Man of Laives Tale, 974. "as in a tombe is al the/azV above." Squyeres Tale, 172. 247. It is doubtful whether the adjectives for colours and languages are to be understood as abstract neuters; there may be an ellipsis as well : the red, sc. colour, is too bright : German, sc. language, is hard. The adjectives for colours occur several times in Chaucer, but the definite article is always omitted ; this circumstance makes it probable that they were felt as abstract neuters. Cf. "he was clad in coote and hood of grene," Cant. Tales Prologue, 103 ; ibid. 116 ; ibid. 665. There are, how- ever, instances of the use of the definite article. " Have here a light and look on alle the blake." CHAUCER, Troy Ins and Cryseyde, ii. 1320. "Whan this knyght in the red beheld Balyn." Morte d 1 Arthur, 97, 3- 248. Modern English. While the writers of the second half of the fifteenth and the first half of the sixteenth century shun the use of adjectives as abstract substantives, there is a sudden revival of the old licence in the time of Queen Elizabeth, probably due to the influence of the classic languages so zealously and universally studied at that period. " To make them prove more feelingly the grief That bitter brings. " Toner ed, 51. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 153 " And fold me in the riches of thy fair (beauty)." GREENE, Looking Glass, 1189. Cf. Shaks. Sonn. 68. " And sucked up their dying mother's blood, Making her death their life, and eke her hurt their good" Faerie Queene, i. I, 25 8 . " The Lyon, Lord of every beast in field, Quoth she, his princely puissance doth abate, And mightie proud to humble weak (~ weakness) does yield." Ibid. i. 3, 7 :J . " I learne that little sweet Oft tempred is with muchell smart." Ibid. i. 4, 46 3 . Cf. i. 12, 39. "His ruddy lips did smyle, and rosy red Did paint his chearefull cheekes, yet being ded. " Ibid. ii. i, 41. " Nor can coy fortune contrary allow." Mucedorus, 206. " If any spark of human rest in thee, Forbear, begone." Ibid. 204. "Tut, Sylla's sparkling eyes should dim with clear The burning brands of their consuming light." LODGE, Wounds of Civil War, iiS. 1 " And sudden pale usurps her cheek." Venus and Adonis, 589. Cf. Winter's Tale, iv. 3, 4. "Till Fortune, tired with doing bad, Threw him ashore to give him glad. " Pericles, ii. Prol. 38. ' ' Say what you can, my false o'erweighs your true. " Measure, ii. 4. 170. The same use occurs here and there even in prose. "For the hurt that cometh therby is greater then the good."- SPENSER, View of the Present State of Ireland, 624. 1 Here the editor remarks: "Lodge and other writers not unfre- quently use the adjective for the substantive ; thus in The Discontented Satyre : ' Blush, daies eternal lamp, to see thy lot, Since that thy cleare with cloudy darks is scared. ' " 154 ENGLISH SYNTAX " He may command them as well to /'// as to good." Ibid. 624. "Because he can express the true ami lively of every thing. "- PUTTENHAM, 21. " But peradventure moe by a peculiar, which our speech hath in many things differing from theirs." Ibid. 21. " My earthly, by his heavenly overpowered ..." MILTON, Paradise Lost, viii. 453. This licence seems to have died out with the Elizabethan authors ; only a few adjectives in the positive degree, as good y ill, and many in the superlative most used in adverbial phrases have survived : " I'll do my best." " He got the worst of it." "At least," &c. . " Voice" of the Adjectives. 249. Like the verb, the adjective, in daily prose, is either transitive or intransitive, active or passive. Fearful is said of one who fears, but frightful of one who frightens, hateful of one who hates, hated of one who is hated. In Elizabethan English (and most probably also in earlier times, though I have looked in vain for instances older than the fourteenth century) the adjective is nearly indifferent with regard to voice. Wherof the dreaful hertes tremblen (dredful = timid). GOWER, Confessio Amantis, I. p. 247. Adjectives with Active and Passive Meaning. 250. Some adjectives, especially those ending in -////, -less, had in Tudor times both an active and a passive meaning. Careless, pass. = not cared for. " To throw away the dearest thing he owed As 't were a careless trifle." SHAK. Macbeth, i. 4, n. Disdainful, pass. = despicable. "Disdainful Turkesse and vnreucrend Bosse." MARLOWE, Tamb. 1261. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 155 " In vaine I striue and raile against those powers That nieane t' inuest me in a higher throane, As much too high for this disdain/till earth." Ibid. 4513. Greedy, pass. = greedily desired. "I do not meane, alonely husbandmen, Which till the ground, which dig, delve, mow and fowe, Which swinke and sweate, while we do sleepe and snort And serch the guts of earth, tm greedy gain." GASCOIGNE, 67. " Thereat the fiend his gnashing teeth did grate, And griev'd so long to lacke his greedie pray." SPENSER, Faerie Queene, 2, 7, 34^. Hateful, act. = full of hate. "Little office the hateful commons will perform for us." Rick. II, ii. 2, 138. Cf. Troilus, iv. i, 33 ; MARLOWE'S Jew, 1336, 2266 ; Lncrece, 486; S. Schmidt, s.v. i. Helpless, pass. = irremediable, incurable. " What helpless shame I feel." Lncrece, 756. "Such liclplesse harmes yts better hidden keep." SPENSER, Faerie Qneciie, II. 8, 34. RutJiful, pass. = piteous. "Sweet Almeda, pity the ruthfull plight Of Callapine, the sonne of Baiazeth. " MARLOWE, Tamb. 2484. " Trojan, thy ruthfiil tale hath made me sad." MARLOWE, Dido, 595. Terrible, pass. = awe-struck, affrighted. "What paper are you reading? Nothing, my lord. No? what needeth, then, that terrible despatch of it unto your pocket ? " Lear, I. 2, 32. 251. Adjectives with Transitive and Causative meaning. Cold= chilling. "And, that more wondrous was, in either jaw Three ranckes of yron teeth enraunged were, In which yett trickling blood, and gobbets raw, Of late devoured bodies did appeare, That sight thereof bredd d>ld congealed feare." SPENSER, Faerie Queene, i. u, 13. 1 56 ENGL ISH S YNTA X Lively = enlivening. "Oh! that my sights could turn to lively breath." MARLOWE, Jew, 1196. Luckless fatal. " What ! will you thus oppose me, luckless stars?" Ibid. 494. "Luckless woods." Muced. 210; ibid. 225. Mortal = deadly. " Whose direfull hand gaue him the worlaU wound." Gorbcduc, 1266. " Her huge long taile her den all overspred, Yet was in knots and many boughtes upwound, Pointed with mortall sting. " SPENSER, Faerie Queene, i, I, 15. " And in his bosome secretely there lay An hatefull snake, the which his taile up tyes In many folds, and mortall sting imployes." Ibid. I, 4, 31 ; 3, I, 28 ; 3, I, 65 ; 3, 4, 14 ; 3, 7, 4 ; 4, 7, 37. Joyous = joy-producing. Cf. glad. 2 Henry VI., iv. 9, 7. " For since mine eie your joyous sight did mis, My chearefull day is turnd to chearelesse night." SPENSER, Faerie Qiieene, i, 3, 27. Weary = wearying, becoming weary. " The silent night, that bringes the quiet pawse, From painefull trauailes of the wearie day, Prolonges my carefull thoughtes." Gorboduc, 2. " There auncient Night arriving did alight From her nigh -weary wayne." SPENSER, Faerie Queene, i, 5, 4i 2 . Merry = producing merriment. " Or Bacchus merry fruit they did invent, Or Cybeles franticke rites have made them mad. " Ibid, i, 6, 15% "Thou Saint George shall called be Saint George of merry England, the signe of victoree." Ibid, i, 10, 6 1 9 . SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 157 Kitchin observes : " Church says that in this phrase ' merry ' signifies pleasant, delightful ; attributing it to the pleasantness of the country, not to the cheerfulness of the inhabitants." "Merry" in Early English writers bears the sense of lively, joyous. So Chaucer, Tr, and Cr. iii. 1514, has "this murye morwe." He also speaks of "merry weather." Cf. Latin laeta arva. Piteous pity-producing. " But most was moved at the piteous vew Of Amoret, so neare unto decay. " SPENSER, Faerie Qneene, 4, 8, 2O 3 . Stony = benumbing. " And stony horrour all her senses fild." SPENSER, ibid. I, 6, 37, 3. Unhappy = mischievous, fatal. " Know that this Medor, whose unhappy name Is mixed with the fair Angelica's, Is even that Medor who enjoys her love." GREENE, Orlando Fitrioso, 97, b. " Uncle to this iinhappy traitor, king." PEELE, Battle of Alcazar, 422, 0. "This unhappy sight. " TancrcJ, Argument. "Comparing him to that unhappy guest." SHAK. Liter. 1565 "O most tinhappy strumpet." Err. IV. iv. 127. Cf. Schmidt, s.v. 3. Adjectives instead of Substantives in the Genitive Case. 252. The adjective being, in its functions, akin to the genitive, is often interchanged with it. The genitive de- noting quality is dealt with above, 166 ; but sometimes the adjective is used very freely where we expect the genitive, e.g. hungri yre = years of famine. Story of Gen. and Exod. 2136. Elizabethan literature is very rich in such instances ; perhaps Latin had some influence. Cj. "sequitate deum 158 ENGLISH SYNTAX erga bona malaque documenta " ( = " bonitatae malitiae- que' ; ), Tacitus, Ann. 16, 33; "honestum exemplum Cassii " ( = " honestatis "), ibid. " While slumbring on his carefull bed he restes." Gorbottuc, 1272. Cf. careless day, Spenser, Faerie Qu. iii. 5, i, 7 : " It stirreth up to sensuall desire, And in lewd slouth to wast his careless day." = day spent in carelessness. ' ' Your grace should now in these graue yeres of yours, Haue found ere this the price of mortall ioys. Yet the grasshopper with all his summer-piping, Starveth in winter with hungry griping. " Ralph Roystcr Doyster, v. 4. " Mine eyes no more on vanitie shall feed, But seeled up with death shall have their deadly tnccJ." faerie Quccne, I, 7, 23. = reward of death. " Well hoped I, and faire beginnings had, That he my captive languor should redeeme. " Ibid, i, 7, 49. = my evil condition of languor or faintness ; " captive " being used like Ital. cattivo, or Eng. "caitiff"; or perhaps " captive languor " refers to the dull captivity of her parent in the brazen tower (Kitchin). " And on his arme a bounch of keyes he bore, The which unused rust did overgrow. " Ibid. I, 8, 30. a Latinism : = the rust arising from disuse (Kitchin). "Lovers' absent hours" SHAKSP. Othello, iii. 4, 174 = absence hours, hours of absence or separation. "A fruitful prognostication." Antony, i. 2, 53 = a prognostication of fruit fulness. " Their sterile curse. "Jul. Ce stent on midden paradise" (except one tree that stands in the middle of the paradise). Old English, Horn. i. 221. " in middes J>e land." Cursor Mundi, 1314. Cf. ibid. 655, 1032, 5967, 7184; Ipomadon, 5478. Constructions like " half the day," " double the sum," are survivals of this old use. Comparison of the Adjective. Double Comparison. 254. This may be accounted for as a sort of mixed construction ; the language, hesitating between the Old English and the French way of comparison, often uses both. Middle English. "]>u erer (t) muchele ahtere and ec mare hrerdere" ( much braver and eke more hardier). LA YAM. 4349. "That lond is meche more hottere." MAUNDEVILLK, 4. 160 ENGLISH SYNTAX "More greter than is a destrere" (equus clextrarius). Ibid. 28. "more zuy]>ere" (more sooner). Ayeiibite, 6l. "more feller." Ibid. " more worse." Ibid. 64. " more swifter. " Ibid. 66. " more gratter. " Ibid. 66, 79, 100. "more stranger." Ibid. 75- "more werse." CAXTON, Blanch, and Egl. 23, 33. " more better. " Ibid. 91, 35. "the most valyauntest." Charles the Crete, 41, 27. " more sonner. " Ibid. 44, 18. "most next." Ibid. 44, 17. " more gretter. " Curial, 5, 13. Cf. Malory, Morte 2 > 2 3 ; i, 3 2 ; r > s 2 ; J > 6 > 4 ; i, 7, 9- Adjectives followed by "one". 256. The modern one after adjectives which refer to preceding nouns, is of recent date. I notice the first instance of one after an adjective in the positive degree in the fourteenth century (A.D. 1380). " Wan he was armed on horsesbak, a fair knyst a was to see, A iolif on \vy}> oute lak, bo]>e strong & fers was hee." Sir Fer umbras, 251. ' And after whan thou shall haue employed thy body, thy tyme and thy goodes for to deffcnde the, another new one cometh to the courte, and shall supplante thy benediction." Curial, 12, 13. In Middle English it frequently occurs after nouns. " Robert J>at hosebond was on." ROB. OF GL. 11302. "a servaunt was I on." CHAUCER, Knightes T. 956. " Apostel was he si]>en an." Cursor Mundi, 19733. Cf. ROBT. OF GL. 405, 5535, 7096 ; Cursor Mitndi, 13363, T 397 2 . J7994) 18209; Ipomadon, 4602, 5700. fit 162 ENGLISH SYNTAX THE NUMERALS Cardinals. Cardinals used substantively. 257. WITH the exception of hundred and thousand, which are always substantives, the numerals were in Old English used both as (a) Substantives (governing the genitive case) and (b) Adjectives. (a) "up ahof rihtes reniend j>ara roda twa" (the minister of right raised two roods). Elene, 880. " feower tida syndon on J>nem geare, on ]>xm we oft agyltaS" (there are four times in the year in which we oft sin). Blick. Horn. 35. (//) " Comon twegen englas" (there came two angels). Genesis xix. I. " pa nam he fif stanas" (he took five stones). Blick. Horn. 31. 258. In Middle and Modern English the substantival nature of hundred and thousand is kept, hence a hundred, a thousand ; but as early as the thirteenth century they are no longer followed by the genitive case. 259. It is probably owing to the analogy of hundred and thousand that, later on, other numerals too were pre- ceded by a (an). " A fyue men.'' ROB. OF GI.OUC. 770. " Aboute ane four hondred 5er." Ibid. 1017. " After oure lordes dej) a seue hundred ger." Ibid. 1428. There are very numerous instances of this use in Berners's. Huon. " And they were in all a iiii score horsses." 18, 12. " And (the knyght) sayd how that a vii yere passyd." 29, 16 "A xxx yere passyd I cam hether." 61, 3. Cf. 68, 18; 63, 16; 66, 23; 69, 4; 70, 14; 73, 7, &c. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 163 One. Of all the numerals one plays the most prominent part. There are several noteworthy points about its use. 260. One = alone. Old English" (He) geeode enll Britene baton Contware awe' 1 (he conquered all Britain, except Kent only). Chronicle, 617. Very frequent. The expression anra gehwylc=each one, is hard to explain. " Hi |>a se dema onbryrde, swa he deS anra gehwylcne" (them the judge inspired, as he does each one). -Judith, 95. "ic eow bidde and halsige j>ret anra manna gehwylc sceawige hine sylfne on his heortan " (I pray and beseech each of you to contemplate himself in his heart). Blick. Horn. 57- Perhaps the following instances may be regarded as a remnant of the Old English construction. " He was archer with best of an." (of any) Cursor Mundi, 3078, C. " j>en was he archer best of ane." Ibid. F. ' ' An archer was he best of an. " Ibid. G. Middle English. "And we Se ben fro heuene driuen, Sulen Susse one in sorwe linen " (and we that are driven from heaven shall thus alone live in sorrow). Story of Gen. and Exod. 308. "So fleg agar fro sarray Wimman wiS childe, one and sori, In the diserd, wil and weri " (then Hagar fled far away, woman with chUd, lonely and sorry, into the desert, homeless and weary). Ibid. 974. Cf. ibid, 2015, 3489. "'Se dragunes one ne stiren nout " (the dragons alone stir not). Old Eng. Miscell. p. 24, 1. 759. M 2 1 64 ENGLISH SYNTAX 261. The personal pronoun with one in this sense appears first in the dative, afterwards in the genitive case. " bi his eadi beoden in hulles him one" (by his blessed prayers in the hills alone). Old Eng. Horn. p. 207. "for |ai \e ane dreddes nawt wi5 |nn anre deore bodi to finite a^aines alle )>e ahefulle deueles of helle " (for thou alone dreadest not with thine own dear body to fight against all the awful devils of hell). Ibid. 271. "nil him ane. ' Orm 1025. Cf. ibid. 11747, TI 754- ' ' }>e gome vpon Gryngolet glydez hem vnder, Jmr5 mony misy and myre, mon al hym one.'' Sir Gawayne ami the Gr. Knight, 749. " }>at af>el Arthure \>e hende haldez hym one." Ibid. 904. ' ' he made his mone Within a gardin all him one.' GOWER, i. 148. The last quoted work contains two passages with the genitive case, 1048, 1230. In the Cursor Mundi all the three expressions, viz. him ane, his ane, alane, are found in the several manuscripts' rendering of the same passage. " His heuen he sal haue allan." C. 809. " His heyuen salle he haue him ane." F. " His heuen sal he haue bi his on." G. ' ' His heuen shal he haue his one. " T. " Drunken on slepe lai bi him an." C, 2021. " Dronkin on slepe lay bi his ane." F. " Drunken on slepe lai bi him ane." G. "Drunke he lay and slept his one." 71 " Wandran in wildernes hir an." C. 3052. " Wandrande in wildernes allane." F. " Wandrand in wildernes alane." G. " In wildernes wandrynge allone." T. " And iacob lai him an J>at naght." C. 3931. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 165 "Jacob lay him stille atte na.yt." F. "Jacob lay bi him-selue ]>at night." G. "Jacob lay bi him self J>at ny s i."T. " He wald etc seuen seep him an." C. 7454. " He walde ete vii shepe him allane." F. " He wild ete seuen schep his an." G. " Seuen sheep he wolde ete his one." T. " ]>e sorful wark him ane he wroght." C. 8983. ' ' |>e sorouful werk him ane he wro3t. " F. " )>at soruful werk }>aim self \>ai soght." G. " ))at sorweful werke hem self hit 301151." 71 "One" following Substantives and Adjectives. 262. In Middle English one follows substantives redun- dantly as early as Orm, and later on also adjectives referring to preceding nouns. Cf. Adjectives, 256. One = a certain. 263. One preceding proper nouns = a certain is scarcely to be found in Old English. " Oon Grecus ]>at reigned there sometyme." TREVISA, HIGDEN'S Polychronicon, i. 175. "Therfor he spak to on his frende, a cryten man." CAXTON, Godfrey of Bol. 219. Later instances are frequent. Cardinals instead of Ordinals. 264. There are several instances in Middle English of cardinals being used instead of ordinals. "Ebrius seigen, wune hem wex her To algen ilk fiftene ger." the Hebrews say that then began the custom of keeping each fifteenth car holy).- Story of Gen. and Exod. 918. 1 66 ENGLISH SYNTAX "o'e seuene and forwerti dai" (the forty-seventh day). Ibid. 3439. " He sailed )>e seuen day On rade." Sir Tristrem, 800. " Coppe and claper he bare Til jie fiften day." Ibid. 3174. " Of seynt Hyllary the churche ys, The twenty day of yowle ywys, As ye may understande." Le bone Florence, 1897. "The threttene artycul, the fowrtene artycul, the fyftene artycul articulus xiiius xiiiius articulus quindecimus." HALLIWELL, Early History of Freemasonry, 21. " The ten pane tenth." Townley Mysteries, p. 7. ' The lynage succeded from heyre to heyres vnto the foure and twenty kyng." CAXTOX, Charles the Crete, 21, 18. 265. Cardinals instead of Multiplicative*. Old English. "Da htt Alfred cyng timbran lang scipu ongen Jia cescas, \k waron fulneah ///' swd tange swa pa cpru '' (then King Alfred gave orders to build long ships against the 'aescas' [Danish ships] ; those were well nigh twice as long as the others). Chronicle, a. 897. Professor Zupitza quotes several Middle English instances exhibiting this use. " We sail garre feste }>am foure so fast" (we shall cause them to be bound four times as fast). York Plays, 86, 308. " Yette was y ten so glad." Sir Amadas, 746. " Fo~Mre so gud thoffe hit were " (though it were four times as good). Ibid. 350. Elizabethan English. " He would kiss you twenty with a breath " (twenty times). SHAKSPERE, Henry VIII. I. iv. 30. Ordinals. Fractional Numerals. 266. The fractional numerals were formed by the ordinal and d&l, later on part. The Old and Middle English use of half in connection with ordinals is remarkable. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 167 healf means one + half of the second, i.e. i + 1. ftridda /ieatf means two + half of the third, i.e. 2 + , &c. Cf. German, "anderthalb," "dritthalb," "vierthalb," &c. Old English. "Na"n ren com ofer eoroan feorSan healfan geare" (no rain came over the earth for three years and a half). WRIGHT, Popular Treatises, p. 18. " He n'csode nigonteotfe healf gear " (he reigned eighteen years and a half). Chronicle, 855. Midiile English. ")>a wass wel halif feorrj>e ger, J>att comm na reggn." Orm. 8621. " J>a scipen wenden to wundre ooer half hundred" (the ships went to destruction a hundred and fifty). LAYAMON, i. 335. " |)ritti wynter and Jnidde half yer havy woned in londe her." Har- roiving of Hell, p. 15. 267. NOTE. The use of numerals in connection with mm (some) is worth noting. Old English. "And Hannibal 6t>fleah feowera sum to A[>rametum" (and Hannibal fled with four [others] to Adrumetum). Orosius, 202, 16. " Hiiru se snotra sunu Wihstanes acigde of corSre cyninges Jiegnas syfone tosomne J;a selestan, code eahta sum under inwit-hrof ' (the wise son of Wihstan called the seven best thanes of the king from out the host, he [himself] went the eighth into the den). Beowulf, 3124. As may be seen from these two examples, sum is either comprised in the preceding cardinal number (as in eahta sum, he with seven others), or it means one more (as in feowera sum (with four others). In Middle English it is probably the French influence which accounts for the ordinal number in the following examples. French : lui quinzieme, he with 14 others. \ 168 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Tristrem dede as he hi^t, He busked and made him :are ; His fiftend some of knijt Wij> him :ede na mare " (i.e. he with fifteen others). KOLBING, Notes to Sir Tnstrem, p. 133 " Finde me min askeing, Mine fiftend som of kni^t." Ibid. 1375. THE PRONOUNS. Personal Pronouns. Omission of the Pronoun. 268. In the prehistoric times of the Teutonic languages the inflexions of the verbal forms were sufficient to ex- press the three persons, as in Greek, Latin, Lithuanian, and Slavonic. But we have only the Gothic to confirm this supposition, the literary remains of the other Teutonic languages having kept but a few remnants of that old, undoubtedly Indo-European use. As the omission of the pronoun is the rule in Gothic, instances abound on every page. For exceptions, cf. Grimm, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. p. 202. For Old High German see ibid. p. 210. In Old and Middle English, less frequently after the fifteenth century, the pronoun is often omitted, when it may be supplied from the context or has been mentioned in a previous sentence, principal or subordinate. 269. The Imperative, as a rule, has no pronoun. But there are very numerous exceptions, especially in poetry In Cynewulf's Elene, for instance it is just as many times used as omitted. In- SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 169 stances are very frequent. The common arrangement of words, then, is imperative + pronoun ; for exceptions, viz. "thou give" instead of "give thou", see Order of Words, 45 2 - The other cases of omission may be divided into the following groups : The Pronoun must be supplied from the Context. 270. A. This is the case in the 3rd person plural. " J>ser ret hy$e stod hringed-stefna, isig and ut-fus, seftelinges fser ; a-ledon l?a leofne J>e6den, beaga bryttan on bearm scipes, masrne be mteste" (there in the harbour stood the [ship] ringed at the stem, shining and ready, the warrior's vessel ; they laid the dear lord, the giver of rings, in the bosom of the ship, the famous close by the mast). Beo- ivulf, 34. aledon, viz., his warriors. " Gewiton him j>a feran" (they set out on their journey). Ibid. 301. Viz., Beowulf and his men. The Pronoun omitted in the Second of two Co-ordinate Sentences. 271. B. When the subject is the same in two co-ordinate sentences, it is omitted in the second. The omission is striking whenever there is a clause inserted between the two principal sentences. Old English. " Wiht unha?lo grim and grsedig gearo sona wses, reoc and reSe, and on raeste genam |>ritig )>egna : )>anon eft gewat hiifte hreinig to ham faran " (the disastrous wight, grim and greedy, was soon ready, fierce and cruel, and in [their] rest took thirty thanes ; then went thence to turn home- ward, rejoicing in his prey). Beoivulf, 123. iyo ENGLISH SYNTAX " modsorge waeg Romwara cyning, rices ne wende for werodleste : haefde wi'gena to lyt " (sorrowful thought the king of the Romans, [he] thought that his king- dom would fail for want of people, [he] had too few warriors). Elene, 61-63. Cf. ibid. 92, 401, 469, &c. ' ' sum woes cehtwelij rice 5ere'fa, rondburium weold, card weardade oftast symle in J>aere ceastre Commodia, heold hordjestreon " (there was a wealthy count, reigned over fortified towns, [he] defended his home very oft in the town Commodia, held the treasure). Juliana, 1 8 22. Cf. ibid. 28, 48, 52, 73, &c. " Her com Eomer from Cwichelme West-Seaxna cininge. )>6hte J>aet he wolde ofstingan Eadwine cininge" (then came E. from C. the king of the West-Saxons ; thought to slay Eadwine). Chronicle, 626. Cf. ibid. 656. Cf. Blick. Horn. 177, 22 ; 189, 17 ; 223, 7. Middle English. " J>a he iseh Martham and Mariam Magdalena ]>e sustren wepe for hore broSer deS, and ure drihten Surh rouSe }>et he. hefde of horn, schedde of his halie e5ene hate teres, and hore brokers arerde, and [scil. heo, they] weren stille of hore wope." Old Eng. Horn. i. 157. Cf. ibid. ii. 93 ; iii. 119, &c. " Al it was for abraham is wif, Sat he hire held Sor wi3 strif ; 80 bi-Shogte him ful wel " (it was all for Abraham's wife, that he kept her to her grief ; then [he] bethought him full well). Story of Gen. and Exod. 1183. Cf. ibid. 1729; Old Eng. Miscellany, p. 4, 5, 19. " Geten and born was so j>e child, was fair and white." Sir Tristretn, xxiii. 244. " So ranne the vasselles to gyder, and roughte eche other by suche a force upon the sheldes, that they were brusen and broken all to peces ; theire speres (that sore bygge and stronge were) broke also all to peces. And thenne toke theire swerdes [scil. they]." CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 28, II. Cf. ibid. 43, 5 ; 49, 29 ; 64, 16, &c. The Pronoun omitted in the Subordinate Sentence. 272. C. When the subject is the same in a principal and a subordinate sentence, the pronoun is omitted in one of them. Old English. "he manegum wearft mannum to hroSer, sySSan wipen ahof wiS hetendum " (he became the protection of many men, since he raised arms against enemies). Elene, 15 Jf. "hersaegj>...hu se Alysend )>ysses menniscan cynneshine sylfne geeap- medde ]>xt of heaj)e \>xs federlican )>rymmes to eor(>an astag" (here 4s related . . . how that the merciful Lord and the Redeemer of mankind so humbled himself that [he] descended from the exaltation of the paternal glory into this earth). Blick. Horn. 65, 28. Middle English. "and 5if he hit naueo 1 , a5efe (scil. he) swa muchel swa he mai " (and if he hath it not, let him restore as much as he is able). Old Eng. Horn. i. 29. " Jm seist |>at on gode bileuest (scil. thou)." Ibid. ii. 25. Cf. ibid. ii. 71. ' ' auh hwon heo so haueS idon, do (scil. heo) ase deS |>e pellican. "- Ancren Riwle, p. 118. Cf. Introduction to Caxton's Blanch, and Egl. xxxiv. Modern English. " If any man will applye these thinges together, shall not se the one farre differ from the other." ASCHAM, Toxophi- lus, p. 19. ' ' which dayly we may beholde & perceyue in many, that yf they had wanted these pleasures sholde more dylygently haue holden themselfe in the path that bryngeth & ledeth vs vnto the blyssed lyfe." JOHN FISHER, 23, ' ' Thys sayd ye false traitour, by cause he desyred no thyng elles, but one of the sonnes of duke Seuyn myght sley Chariot, wherby he thought shuld be dystroyed in acusynge them of murder, wherby he myght come to his dampnable intent." BERNERS : S Huon, i. 19, nff. Viz., " the sonnes of duke Seuyn " (not Chariot* as Lee suggests). ' ' Whan Huon had thus made his othe erle Amaury stept forthe all afrayde and sware how Huons othe was false, and that [he] surely knew that it was Chariot when he slewe him." Ibid. 40, 3. 172 ENGLISH SYNTAX TJie Pronoun supplied from the Oblique Case. 273. D. When the subject of a subordinate sentence is not the same as that of the principal one, and is yet omitted, it must be supplied from the context, generally from a preced- ing oblique case. Old English. " ic J>e biddan wille, \>x\. [)m] me )>et goldhord, gasta scyppend, geopenie" (I will ask thee that them, Creator of spirits, mayest open to me the treasure). Elem, 789. "waes him noma cenned Heliseus, haefde ealdordom micelne and interne " (he was called Heliseus, [he] had great and famous authority). Juliana, 25. Cf. ibid. 265, 382, 447. Cf. Blick. Horn. 25, 22 ; 53, 27; 233, 2. Middle English. "and ]>eh us ure sinnes rewe. and [we] imint hauen |>at we hem wile forleten, naSeles we sitteo' ford' ]>at we hem forleten " (and though we be sorry for our sins, and have purposed to forsake them, nevertheless we sit until we forsake them). Old English Horn. ii. 101. "Fil me a cuppe of ful god ale, And wile drinken, her y spelle." HAVELOK, 14, 15. Where Skeat reads "And y wile." " Jm me to kni5t houe, And knijthod haue proued." KING HORN, 1267, 68. Where Matzner (Sprachproben, i. 227) reads "haue y proued." " Tristremes schip was 5are, And asked his benisoun. " Sir Tristtem, cvi. 1157. "But he, which alle thinges may childe, Thre yere til that she cam to londe Her ship to stere hath take on honde, And in Northumberlond arriveth." GOWER, L 183. " And with that worde his hewe fadeth, Andsaide." Ibid. 251. Cf. Caxton, Blanch. 39, 15 ; 44, 12 ; 45, 16. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 173 In Modern English the omission of the pronoun is only to be met with in colloquial language. First Person. " ' Cannot sing.' ' Prithee, Hermogenes. ' ' Cannot sing. ' " BEN JONSON, Poetaster, 2, \. " Pray thee, Roman." Ibid. I, i. " Pr'ythee what art, what rhetoric didst thou use, To gain this mighty boon ? " ADDISON, Cato, 3, 3. " Would to God we had died." Exodus xvi. 3. " O would that she loved me ! " SHERIDAN KNOWLES, Hunchback, 4, i. " Thank ye, George ! I ask no more.'' GOLDSMITH, She Stoops to Conquer, 4. The second person is often omitted in questions. "Dost hear?" SHAKS. Tempest, i, 2. "Dost court abundance for the sake of peace?" YOUNG, Night Thoughts, 6, 494. "How dost? And where hast been these eighteen months?" LEIGH HUNT, Legend of Florence, i, i. "Why, where hast been ?" COLERIDGE, Piccoiomini, 2, 8 " Hast honestly confess'd it to thyself?" Ibid. 4, 4. 274. The peculiar sort of omission which appears in the following instances is accounted for in the same way as the omission of the relative pronoun. The same word belongs to two different sentences (construction O.TTO KOLVOV). ' ' I pray to God so gyf my body care, Yif ever, sith I highte Hogge of Ware, Herd I a miller better set a-werke." CHAUCER, The Cokes Prologue, II. ' ' I pray to God me graunt this bone. " Coventry Mysteries, p. 42. Cf. also ibid. 50, 102, 139. There are, however, instances of the same phrase with the pronoun. " I praye to God he spede your way." Coventry Mysteries, p. 104. 1 74 ENGLISH ,9 YNTA X The Object Pronoun omitted. 275. The pronoun as object is scarcely ever omitted. There are, it is true, two cases, which one would be inclined to look upon as examples of omission, but both may be explained in another way. First, an object when governed by two verbs was put only once in older periods, while we repeat it now ; in the second case there is a sudden change of construction. A. "But the knyght that was right courteys, giiyded hym and con- duyted a whyle." CAXTON, Blanch. 39, 30. Cf. for other instances Order of Words, 474. B. " As for the good he taketh none hede, He saith, but only of the love, Of which he wend have been above.'' GOWER, i. 251. ' For as to his fadir, he wolde not touche. " CAXTON, Aymon, 85, 29. Cf. Starkey, England in the Reign of Henry VIII., 71, 66 : " As for thys matter, we shal ryght wel avoyd." Use of "we" instead of "7". 276. The pluralis majestatis as used by sovereigns, is not known in Old English. The Anglo-Saxon kings in intro- ducing their laws always have " ic." " Ic Ine mid godes gyfe Westseaxna cyning. Ic Aelfre'd, ic AeSelstdn." It is only when speaking for themselves and council that they use " we " *. But the " we " of authors appears very early, probably in imitation of the Latin. 1 March is wrong in his statement with regard to we = u in Beowulf 958 and 1652 ; the context shows that the plural refers to Beowulf and his men. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 175 " )>a lare J>e we nu willaS on Engliscum gereorde sec3ean " (the lore that we will now say in English). S. Basilius, Prologue, ed. Norman. " We willa'S furSor ymbe J>as emnihte swiSor sprecan " (we will speak farther about the equinox). WRIGHT, Popular Treatises, p. 4. Cf. ^Ifric, Horn. i. 580, 26. " Thou " and " You." 277. It is not before the thirteenth century that the plural of courtesy is to be met with. " Jacob eft bit hem faren agon, Oc he ne duren Se weie cumen in, ' But ge wiS us senden beniamin ' " (Jacob bids them go again [to Egypt], but they dare not come that way, "unless ye send with us Benjamin"). Story of Genesis and Exodus (about 1250 A.D.) 2240. " ' Louerd,' he seiden everilc on, ' ytr siluer is yi brogt agon ' " (" Lord," they said every one, "your silver is brought you back again "). fbid. 2260. " J>e emperour was stille ]>o, and ne 5af him non ansuere. ' Sire emperour,' qua)) }>e erle J>o, ' ne be y no so bolde.' " ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 1341. " Sire king, \v[h]i lete ^e mi moder and me biuore \e lede? " Ibid. 2757. Four MSS. have "than" Robert de Brunne, in his translation of PETER LANG- TOFT'S French Chronicle (A.D. 1307) offers several instances. King Richard is addressed by Isaac's messengers : "Your wille wille he alle do and be at 5our mercy." PETER LANGTOFT'S Chronicle, p. 163. By subjects, as by Robert of Thornham : " fat 5 wille }>er lie, it is to 5our honoure." p. 165. By the bishop : " 56 ere so trew a kyng." p. 175. 278. From this time downward the two pronouns are seen struggling for existence, the polite, courtly ye more and more displacing the honest old thou^ the latter being only used from superiors to inferiors, or from equals to equals as 176 ENGLISH SYNTAX a sign of contempt or defiance. Very often both are used by the same person in the same speech, as in the instance quoted from Robert of Gloucester, the change in the address denoting also a change in the speaker's mind- There is a very instructive example of this change in Sir Gawayne and the Greene Knight. The lady of the castle constantly addresses Gawayne with "ye", but being offended with his resistance, she, getting into a kind of temper, continues : " |x>u hat5 for-5eten 5ederly pat 5isterday I tajjtte alder-truest token of talk pat I cowpe " (t/iou hast soon forgotten that yesterday I taught token of talk, truest of all that I knew). 1485, 86. But in most of the other instances both thou andj>ast ic sylf hit com" (see my hands and my feet, that I self it am). Ibid. 39. Middle English. Precisely the same expression may have been continued for a while. " Thesue heom to seyde, lo ich hit em." Old Etig. Miscellany, 42, 184. But later on, a slight change takes place. Instead of " ic it am " we find " it am I ". " For sothe it am nat I." CHAUCER, The Knightes Tale, 602. " I am thy mortal foo, and it am I That loveth so hoote Emelye the brighte." Ibid. 878. The modern expression may pernaps be traced back to as early as the beginning of the fourteenth century. " ' Es ]>at,' he said, ' mi sun daui ? ' ' Ya, soth,' he said, ' it es i."- Cttrsor Mnndi (Cotton, Fairfax, and Gottingen MSS. ). This is, however, doubtful, as es, in the Cursor Mnndi, is equal to am; but there are instances in writers of the fifteenth century. " It is not he that slewe the man, hit is I." Gesta Romanontm, 201. " It was I my self that cam in the lykenesse." Morte a" Arthur, 38, 22. " It was I said balyn that slewe this knyght. " Ibid. 83, 25. For "it is me," see above, 2*14. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 179 "//" instead of "there". 281. //is sometimes used in Middle English, and still in the sixteenth century, where we say " there ". "God him bad, bi 5e tail he it nam, And it a-non a wond it bi-came. " Story of Gen. and Exod. 2807, 8. " He wenden to wisse Of here lif to misse, Al )>e day and al J>e ni5t, Till hit sprang day liyt." King Horn , 121 24. " Of )>e erth it groues tres and gress." Cursor Mundi, 545 (Cotton MS.). " Bot now it es }>is appell etten." Ibid. 873. " Sua lang it lathed seth liue." Ibid. 1456. Cf. ibid. 1644, 1850, 2131, &c. " Bot hit ar ladyes in-no5e." Sir Gaivayne and the Gr. Kn. 1251. " Saynt Austyn sayth it semeth to be a noble kynred bytwene this blyssed vyrgin & sinners." JOHN FISHER, 50, 9. " If thou synne ones it is nedefull to the one mercy." Ibid. 97, 22. " It is " emphasizing Nouns and Sentences. 282. The origin of this use is traceable to Old English, though the French "Scst" may have favoured its develop- ment in the Middle English period. Old English. "J>aet WJES on Jxrne monandaeg Defter Marianmsesse, Jjcet Godwine becom " (it was on Monday after Mary mess that Godwine came). Chronicle, 1052. "Is paat for iiiycel gecynd Jjcet lirum lichoman cym5 call his msegen of )>am mete ]>e we jricgao" " (it is through mighty nature that to our body comes all its strength from the food which we eat). BOETH. 34, n. "For J>am Jnngum woes gio j>o:t se wisa Catulus hine gebealg" (it was on account that formerly the wise Catulus was angry). Ibid. 27, i. English. " In pe tymc bitwene Abraham & Moyses, it was, pat men come verst to Engelond." RUB. OF GLOUC. 204. N 2 i So ENGLISH S YNTAX " Hyt is in the deyd name that I spyke." WEBER, Aniadas, iii. v. 284. " How is it that the modyr of God me xulde come to ?" Coventry Mysteries, p. 226. Later on, /'/ is is used without much force or meaning, as may be seen by the suppression of the relative pronoun. "//" used redundantly. "Dangerous peer, That smooth's! it so with king and commonweal." 2 Henry VI. ii. I. 22. 283. The same conception which accounts for the cognate accusative, viz., the idea of any activity as its own object, brought about the use of // as exhibited in the quoted instance. When, for instance, we see somebody fighting, and we want to say that he fights well, we may say either (as we commonly do), " he fights well," or with a cognate accusative, "he fights the fight well." Now, the modern languages are not very fond of the latter expression, it being probably felt as a badly sounding tautology ; hence the object, which, in fact, is but a dim idea of the activity, was not improperly expressed by /'/. The use, which is quite familiar in Middle and Modern German (" er treibt es nicht schlecht ; er gibt es gut ; cf. French, " il le lui donne bien "), may be traced back to the older periods of the language, though we are not able as yet to see all the stages of the development, the links between Old, Middle and Modern English being but imperfectly known. Old English. " Min Drihten Htelende Crist, hii maeg ic hit on prim dag urn gefaran ? ac ma wen is J>aet )>u onsende Jrinne engel, se hit maeg hraed- licor geferan ; forfton, min Drihten, ]m wast J>set ic com flrexlic man, & ic hit ne maeg hraedlicor }>ider geferan, forffon J)e, min Drihten, se sij>fset is t>yder to lang, & Jone weg ic ne con." (My Lord Jesus Christ, how can I go thither in three days? It were better, l' think, that thou SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 181 shouldst send thine angel, who may perform the journey more speedily ; for thou knowest, my Lord, that I am but a man of flesh, and I cannot perform this journey very quickly, for the way thither is too long, and I know not the road.) Blick. Hoin. 231. Cf. 235. "swa swa he hit macode on his life" (as he made it in his life, i.e. as he lived in his life). yELFRlc's Horn. ii. 354, 24. "gif hi hit refter Orere godspellican gesetnysse carfullice healdaS" (if they carefully hold it after the evangelic rules). Ibid. i. 370, 12. Middle English. " (He) straunge made it of hir manage, His purpos was for to bystowe hir hye Into som worthy blood of ancetrye." CHAUCER, Reeves Tale, 60. " He made it straunge, and swore, so God him save, Lasse than a thousand pound he wolde nought have." Id. Frankeleynes r fale, 487. " Whi makest ]>ow hit nowe so straunge to me?" Gesta Rom. 220. Modern English. "To revel it with him and his new bride." 3 Hen. VI. iii. 3, 225. "I cannot daub it further" (= continue my former dissembling). Lear iv. I, 54. " Lord Angelo dukes it well." Measure for M. iii. 2, 100. " He wanted to rough it like the commonest labourer in Paris." BRADDON, Ishmael, i. 88. Pleonastic use of the Personal Pronoun. " The nobles, they are fled, the commons cold." SHAKSPERE. 284. In order to emphasize a noun as subject, its per- sonal pronoun is made to precede or to follow it. 1 The Pronoun precedes the Noun. 285. Old English. He J)a se eadiga wer Guthlac heora worda ne gimde" (he there the blessed man G. did not care for their words). Giithlac, 5. "And he sanctus Georgius him to Dryhtne gebad" (and he St. Cieorge prayed to the Lord). SWEET, Oldest English Texts, p. 178. For the psychological origin of this use see Double Subject, 73. 1 82 ENGLISH SYNTAX Middle English -"And he swa dude sone, J>e king of Denmarke" (and he did so, the king of Denmark). LAYAMON, ii. 558. " Thai ar so long taryyng, the fowles, that we cast out." Tmvnley Myst. p. 33. " And thus she spake, this mayden ying." Lay Le Freine, 1 2 1. " But sche ne told no man her sore The emperesse. " Octoz'ian, 653. "The way he shalle you lede, The kyng of alle man-kyn." To-ccnley Myst. p. 136. Instances with the pronoun in the oblique case. ' ' Who gaf ludith corage or hardinesse To sleen him Olofernus in his tente ? " CHAUCER, Man of Laws Tale, 939. " For jelousie and fere of him Arcite." Id. Knights Tale, 475. In Modern English this use is restricted to poetry. " She early left her sleepless bed, The fairest maid of Teviotdale." SCOTT, Last Minstrel, 2, 25. " What may it be, the heavy sound, That moans old Branksome's turrets round ? " Ibid. I, 12. The Pronoun folloivs the Noun. 286. Old English. " Se ofersprseca wer ne wieiS he naefre geryht ne gelsered on ]>iss worlde " (the loquacious man will never be corrected or taught in this world). Cttra Fastoralis, 278, 22. Middle English. " }>e knigtes J>ai were hende." Sir Tristrem, 62 ; A.D. 1320. Modern English. " The mother she has dyed her cruell handes In blood of her owne sonne." Gorboduc, 1350. Very frequent in Elizabethan writers. "For God he knows." SHAKSP. Richard III. iiL 7, 236. Cf. Abbott, 243. " My wife she was to go to her father's." Pepys 1 Diary, a. 1559. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 183 The Personal Pronoun used redundantly in Complex Sentences. 287. If the predicate is separated from the subject by any adverbial, participial or adjectival clause, a personal pronoun is often pleonastically inserted to mark the subject. 288. (a) After adverbial or participial clauses the pro- noun occurs very often in the fifteenth century. "So the knyght, whenne he sawe the scheter drawe his bowe, he swapte his hed undir J>e watir." Gesta Rom. 3. " The which kny5t as he rode or 5ede in a certeyne day in erndis of J>e emperour, he sawe afer a serpent." Ibid. 5. " Every knyght aftir J>at he myght no more use armys, he should be put oute of the empire." Ibid. 45. " The kyng thenne, after the knyght had thus spoken to hym, he gaff commaundement." CAXTON, Blanch. 102, 16. " How Gryffon of Haultefelle and Guenelon, after that they hadde slayne the Duke Beues of Aygremonte, they retorned to Paris." CAXTOX, Ay/noil, 58, 13. " J>e messager heringe these wordes he turned home agene." Gesta Rom. 171. " Butt thenne on of them, beholdyng the gracious fase of the childe, he was mevid by mercy." Ibid. 209. " The emperour, trowing that it were the herte of the childe, he caste hit into the fire." Ibid. 210. 289. (b] After adjectival or relative clauses this use may be traced back to the earliest periods of the English language. A few instances will suffice for the present occasion. "Ac J>a lond on east healfe Danais ]>e J>?er nihst sindon, Albani hi sind genemnede" (but the countries on the east of the Danais which are next, they are called Albani). Orosius, 14, 23. "And he Ninus Soroastrem Bactriana cyning, se cu8e manna ?trest drycraftas, lie him oferwann and ofsloh " (and he Ninus overcame and slew S. the king of Bactriana, who of all men was the first to know magic art). Ibid. 30, 10. Cf. ibid. 12, 16 : 26, 20: 72, 13; 98, 2; 124, 16 : 188, 26 ; 204, 6. 184 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Ure seldren, ]>a J>e )>as stowa aer hioldon, hie lufedon wisdom" (our ancestors, who held these places before, they loved wisdom). Cnra Pastoralis, p. 4. Cf. 22. Old Eng. Horn. i. pp. 3, 7, 9, 25 ; ii. pp. 19, 41, &c. Old English Miscellany, pp. 17, 18, 40. Story of Gen. and Exod., 11. 1003-4, 1065, 3839. Cursor Mundi, 11. 283, 285, 7184, 8940, 9014, &c., &c. Cf. below, Adjectival Clauses. The Emphatic Pronoun. 290. The personal pronoun is strengthened by self. "Self" used appositively. 291. As in Gothic and Old High German, self is in Old English first an adjective, and if added appositively to the personal pronoun, it agrees with it in number, gender and case. " Swa )>u self talast " (as thou sayest thyself)- Befctitlf, 595. " Nii we seolfe geseoo 1 sigores tacen" (now we ourselves see the token of victory). Elene, 1 1 2 1 . Instances abound. " Self" in connection with the Dative. " He did it himself." 292. As early as the ninth century self, as subject, is found preceded by him. The fact that the first instances of self preceded by him are met with mostly in connection with intransitive verbs, gives us the key to this curious expression. We have seen above (cf. Ethic Dative, 191) that such verbs, especially those denoting movement, were often followed by the dative SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 185 of the personal pronoun in Old English as well as in the other Teutonic languages, e.g. " gewa"t him pa* se seSeling " (there went him the nobleman). Now the subject of this sentence may be occasionally emphasized by the pronoun self ; then we have "gewdt him self se aeSeling." This is indeed very often the case in Old English. "And him self si)>J>an to j>rem rice feng" (and he himself succeeded since to the kingdom). Orosius, 66, 6. " Marius and Sylla geforan him self" (Thorpe : died voluntarily.) Ibid. 236, 24. "And gestod him self on J>rem hiehstan torre " (and stood himself on the highest tower). Ibid. 260, 33. " (he) baer him sylf his lac " (he bore himself his offering). ^LFRIC, Lives of Saints, vi. 236. " Ic com me sylf to eow" (I came to you myself). ^LFRIC, De Nov. Test. 1 8, 7. Other instances : Cura Pastoralis, 90, n ; 425, 10. JEUnc, Homilies, ii. 62, 23 ; 410, 12 ; 514, 12. Wulfstan, 218, 28; 241, 13. " Self as Subject. 293. The Old English expression, viz., personal pronoun in the nominative case and self agreeing with it as an appo- sition (ic self, we selfe, &c.) soon gets out of use. It occurs in Layamon, and is still in the Cotton MS. of the Cursor Mundi ; but Orm seems to have discarded it altogether. " }m seolf (])u )>i seolf) wurS al isund." LA YAM. i. 135. " He seolf (he B.) him wolde specken wiS." Ibid. ii. 32. " As godds suld ]>ee seluen be." Cursor Mundi, Cotton MS. 780. But the other MSS. have : " As goddis sulde 56 ]>en be." Fairfax MS. " Als goddes suld 3ur seluen be." Gott. MS. " As Goddes shulde 56 bo)>e be." Trinity MS. 1 86 ENGLISH S YNTAX "And wroght he self in }>at labore." Ibid. Cotton MS. 1726. "And wro3t his-self in >at labour." Ibid. Fairfax MS. " And wroght himself in ]>at labur." Ibid. Gottingen MS. " And him self dude his cure." Ibid. Trinity MS. " He self )>e dore )>an has he stoken." Ibid. Cotton MS. 1758. " Him-self >e doer he has stokyn. " Ibid. Fairfax MS. " Him-self )>e dur suith had stokin." Ibid. Gottingen MS. " Him self J>e dore soone had stoken." Ibid. Trinity MS. Cf. ibid. 2010, 2559, 2713, &c. 294. Next we find the personal pronoun in the nomina- tive case + dative of the personal pronoun + " self " (ic me self, \u \e self, &c.). From the fact that, in Orm, self appears without any inflexion in the singular, we may safely infer that, in the twelfth century, this expression is exactly the same as in Old English, i.e. self has not yet been attracted by the (ethical?) dative of the pronoun. " I me sellf sahh godess gast." Orm. 12592. " jif ]>u arrt te sellf millde." Ibid. 1252. " }rarrh J>att he wollde ben himmsellf i wreterr fullhtnedd." Ibid. 195. "5ho wass hire sellf god widdwe." Ibid. 8685. It must be observed, however, that the Old English Homilifs exhibit several instances of inflected self. See ii. pp. 21, in, 137, 139, 147, 153, 155, 183, 189. "Himself" as subject. 295. The pronoun in the nominative is dropped, and only the dative is used. " Him seolf mid wsene ferde into ane watere " (he himself went with difficulty into a water). LAYAM. i. 93. " Swa himsulf wolde." Ibid. A. ii. 130. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 187 " Heom seolf nomen hire lond." Ibid. B. i. 255. "Alls himmself itt wollde." Orm, 4227. " Cumm }>e sellf." Ibid. 12798. Cf. Old Eng. Horn. i. 9; ii. 45, 51, 61, 87, &c., and so very often. Myself. 296. The personal pronoun + myself is scarcely to be met with before the thirteenth century. I do not find it in the Old English Hotnilies, but there are instances in Laya- mon, and Ancren Riwle. "Ich mi seolf neore" (if I had not been there myself). LA YAM. i. 376. " Bute 5if J>i sulf it makie. " Ancren Riwle, p. 124. Cf. ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 4009 (mi sulf), 8361 (mi sulf), 1082 (bi sulf). In the fourteenth century it becomes frequent. There are two facts which seem to suggest that this construction was brought into existence by some change in the pronunciation of the e in me self, the self, so that it was confounded with the / in my self, thy self. First, all the instances of this construction found in the thirteenth century exhibit only miself and \iself, never ourself or your- self, which do not occur before the fourteenth century. " J>a55e jour-self be talenttyf to take hit to your-seluen" (though you yourself are willing to undertake it). Sir Gaivayne and the G>: K. 350. Cf. ibid. 1964. Secondly, the use of the inflected form of self ("myselue ") shows that self in this connection was at first not looked upon as a substantive. It was not until the use of myself had become the rule, that the other persons were formed after the same fashion. Only the third person with its 1 88 ENGLISH SYNTAX three distinct genders resisted the analogy of myself ; there are, however, not unfrequent instances of even the third person used in the same way. " Alle thaa that blisses the Sal tham self blessed be." Cursor Mundi, 5378 (Cotton MS.). The Fairfax and Trinity MSS. have thai (thei). " Had thair ouerman ham selfe." Ibid. 6968 (Cotton MS.). Fairfax : be thaire selue. " Thof he self was clene o sin." Ibid. 7263 (Cotton MS.). The Gottingen and Trinity MSS. have //////self; Fairfax has his self. Cf. 3408. "The stif kyng A is seluen," Sir Gaw. and the Green Kn. 107. Cf. "al his one," ibid. 1048 ; "oure one," ibid. 1230. "Self" in connection with a Pronoun as Object. 297. A. Personal pronoun in the oblique case + self agreeing with it in number, gender and case. Until the fourteenth century I generally find self in the oblique case, e.g. : " and sone sum he cu)>e ben Himm ane bi himm sellfe/m " (not self!). Orm. 822. But in the Cursor Mundi "self" becomes very common. 298. B. The possessive pronoun + self appears as early as the first half of the i3th century : " For J>ine luue ich worsocal )>at me leof was, And 5ef Se al mi snluen " (for thy love I forsook all that was dear to me, and gave thee all my self ). On God Urcisun of Ure Lefdi (Old Eng!. Horn.), i. 197. " }m dest me god, and hermest Jw su/f." Antren Kiivle, p. 124. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 189 Modern English. Both in the direct and oblique case the possessive pronoun in the first and second person is the rule, while the personal pronoun, with a few exceptions, is kept in the third. 1 Note. "Own" is sometimes inserted. " For your cursidnes I shall hange you my owne self at this gibet."- Aymon, 339, 13. The Reflexive Pronoun. 299. There is no special pronoun in Old English to denote an action reflected upon the agent, the personal pronoun being used in its stead. There 'are, however^ numerous instances of personal pronouns emphasized by self, as in Modern English. "Gemyne J)^sylfne." Blick. Horn. 31, 12. In Middle English the compound forms are steadily increasing, but as early as Caxton's time they seem to be the rule. Of thirty instances occurring on the first forty-two pages of Blanehardyn, only three are simple, namely, i, 22 ; 2, 10; 41, 21. 300. As for the inflection of self it is not used as a substantive with s in the plural before the middle of the sixteenth century. John Fisher has still only selfe ; Starkey vacillates between " selfe " and "selves" (20 "themselfe," 23 " themselfys ") ; Ascham has already only "them- selves." 1 " Almighty god in his selfe." FISHER, 8, 6, " His self wittnesseth. " Ibid. 72, IO. " To saue his self. BERNERS'S Huon, i. 108. "The nine muses their selfe." ASCHAM, Toxophilus, (ed. Arber), p. 44. "He may make hisself easy." DICKENS, Pickwick, ii. 55. 190 ENGLISH SYNTAX The Possessive Pronoun. 301. The possessive pronoun having its origin in the genitive of the personal pronoun, is often replaced by " of " + pronoun. Middle English. " ($e) strengSe of oV helpe mi muchele wacnesse " (may the strength of thee help my great weakness). Old English Homilies, i. 273, A.D. 1200. " I byseke you, knightes, for the love of me. Goth and dresseth my lond among my sones three." Tale of Gamelyn, 35. "We haue seen J>e glorie of hym." WYCL. Joh. i. 14. " That I may feylle the smelle of the." Town Mys. p. 43. Modern English. "The native myghtiness and fall of him."- SHAK. Henry V. 2, 4. "The lamentable fall of me." Rich. II. 5, I. " I never met with the fellow of her." RICHARDSON, Pamela, 29. Cf. Matzner, iii., p. 230 ; Introduction to Caxton's Blanchardyn, 5. Relative referring to a Possessive Pronoun. 302. Owing to the original meaning of "my" of me, a possessive pronoun is often antecedent to a relative one. Middle English. " Prest we ben for the to deye, And for his love that deyd on rood." Richard Cceur de Lion, 4468. " Unthank com on his heed that band him so." CHAUCER, The Reeves Tale, 162. Modern English. "They shall strike Your children yet unborn and unbegot, That lift your vassal hands against my head." SHAK. Rich. II. 3, 3, 89. ' ' Let grief and sorrow still embrace his heart, That doth not wish thee joy." SHAK. Tempest, 5, 214. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 191 The tents Of wickedness, wherein shall dwell his race Who slew his brother." MILTON, Paradise Lost, u, 607. 303. Note. In the following instances the possessive pronoun is equivalent to a personal pronoun, the preceding both having lost its genitival inflexion : "But I have sworn to frustrate both their hopes." MARLOWE, Jew, 2, 2. " But clay and clay differs in dignity Whose dust is both alike." SHAK. Cymbelitie, iv. 2, 4. "Have I not all their letters to meet me in arms?" SHAK. t Henry IV. ii. 3, 28. " Tell her 'tis all our ways it runs in the family." SHERIDAN, Rivals, 4, 2. Compare the Middle English instances : " Jmrrh tyy : re ba]>re bisne" (through the example of them both). Or HI. 2794. Cf. ibid. 3301, 9762, &c. ' ' And after, by her bother rede, A ladder they set the hall to." ELLIS, Metric Rom. iii. 65. The Possessive Pronoun before Substantival Adjectives. 304. The possessive pronoun is followed by the ad- jective used substantively, denoting equality, superiority, and inferiority, and others in the comparative degree. Old English. " Drihten hwa is ]>/ gellcal" (O Lord, who is thy equal?). Ps. xxxiv. n. " )wet nan man nis his gellca on eorSan" (that no man is his like on earth). -Job iii. 16. " ]>a his betera la-g" (now that his lord lay dead). BYRUTNOTH, 276 (Grein). " ]>a me yldra mln ageaf andsware" (then my elder, i.e. father, gave me answer). Elate, 462. 192 ENGLISH SYNTAX " SecgaS swylc wundru eowrum gingrum " (say such wonders to your youngers). Ps. xlviii. 13. Middle English. "Ne nat ich a wserulde riche cniht his Hie he" (I know not in the world a rich knight his like). LAYAMON, ii. 109. "His per in the world ne was" (his like was not in the world). ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 255. Cf. ibid. 399. Modern English instances are very frequent. 305. In Old and Middle English the possessive pronoun is often preceded by a demonstrative pronoun. See above, 221. 306. My is used as a term of courtesy. This is prob- ably borrowed from the French. " Maria sought ]>an til him son And said, ' mi lauerd, quat has it don Jus bodi, ded wor)>ei to be ? ' " (Mary went to him soon and said, " my lord what has it done, this child, to deserve death ?") Cursor Mundi, 11966, A.ix 1300. Mr. Kington Oliphant quotes "mi lord the Douke," from Weber, Metrical Romances, A. D. 1330. The New English, i. 14. Cf. Introduction to Caxton's Blanchardyn, 12 (6). But I find an instance of this use in Aelfred : ' ' Mid J>y J>set fyr him nealecte, }>a wass he him ondnfedende and forht geworden, cwaeS to }>am engle : Mln domne, hwaet is |>is fyr?" (When the fire came near him, he was frightened and alarmed, said to the angel : "My lord, what is this fire?") BEDA, Hi. 19. Cf. also ibid. iii. 14 : " Hwaet woldest Jni, nn'n domne bis f op, )>aet cynelice hors J>aem }>earfan syllan " ? (why wouldst thou, my lord bishop, give that royal horse to the poor?) The Possessive Pronoun used Indefinitely. 307. In Modern English the possessive pronoun is used indefinitely, with a slight shade of contempt. ' ' Your fat king and your lean beggar, is but variable service ; two dishes, but to one table." SHAK. Hamlet, iv. 3, 24. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 193 ' ' I would teach these nineteen the special rules, as your punto, your reverse, your stoccata, your iinbroccato, your pas sada, your montanto." BEN JONSON, Every Man in his Humour, 4, 5. " Tell me how to put a young friend of mine in the way of seeing something of Paris life, more ihsmyour fool of a tourist generally sees. MRS. WARD, David Grieve, ii. 99. "His" instead of the Genitive Case. 308. This use may be traced back to Old English, where not only his, but also other possessive pronouns, are found after proper nouns, in order to make up for the want of the genitival inflection. " J>a.>r Asia and Europa hiera landgemircu togaxlre licgaS" (where the boundaries of Europe and Asia lie). Orosius, 8 10 . "Africa and Asia hiera landgemircu onginnaS of Alexandria" (the boundary between Africa and Asia begins at Alexandria). Ibid. 8 28 . " Jwer we gesawon Enac his cynryn" (we saw the children of Anac there). Num. xiii. 29. In the first period of Middle English the same use is to be found mostly in proper nouns. "Argal his broker." LAYAMON, i. 279. "To Corn wale his eserde." Ibid. i. 175. " Al it was for Abraham is wif." Story of Gen. and Exod. \ 181. " And al So briSere, of frigti mod, fellen bi-forn Sat louerd is fot" (and all the brothers of fearful mood fell to that Lord's feet). Ibid. 2272. " Decius Cesar his tyme." TREVISA, i. 39. But the second version of Layamon's Brut exhibits a few instances of his replacing inflectional s. "Min hem his mochele mod" (= mine uncle's). i. 375. " Urne ]>e teares uppe ])e king his leores" (the tears ran down the king's cheeks). iii. 214. " J>e bissop his broker, "ii. 276. Cf. Introduction to Caxton's Blanch, and Egl., p. 36, d. o 1 94 ENGLISH S YNTA X Modern English. The sixteenth century makes a very large use of his = s, it occurs in the seventeenth and the eighteenth centuries, and has not died out even in our own time. 309. The Possessive Pronoun occurs sometimes in con- nection with the Gerund, where we should expect the Oblique Case of the Personal Pronoun. " Another homicidy is doon for necessite, as whan a man slcth another in his defendant. " CHAUCER, Persones Tale, p. 312. " Thou knowest well, that I dyde was in my deffendynge. " CAXTON, Aynion, 82, 26. "It was I that slewe this knyght in my deffendaunt." MALORY, Morte if Arthur, 83, 25. The Possessive Pronoun emphasized. 310. The possessive pronoun was in Old English em- phasized by own ("agen"), one ("an"), and self, the latter being invariably used in the genitive case. (a) "se ege his agenra unSeawa" (the fear of his own vices). Cur a Pas tor alts, 24, I. "his agen wif" (his own wife). Ibid. 397, 17. agen geleafa )>e haefj) geha-ledne" (thy Blick. Horn. 15, 14. (ft) An in connection with the possessive pronoun is rare. " witigan witigodan . . . J>a>t se wolde cuman . . . & him call e J>as cynericu on his dncs rent geagnian" (prophets foretold . . . that he would come . . . and possess for himself all these kingdoms as his own possession). Blick. Horn. 105, 7 ff. (c) " hiera selfra gilp " (their own boast). Cura Pastoralis, 108, 20. "hiere selfre suna sende gife unscynde " (she sent to her own son a blameless gift). Elcnc, 1200. " Sses willgifan, hiere sylfre suna " (of the joyous giver, her own son). Ibid. 222. " )>in agen geleafa )>e haefj) geha-ledne" (thy own belief has cured thee). Blick. Horn. 15, 14. SYNTAX OF THE rARTS OF SPEECH 195 "Crist cwae> Jmrh his sylfes miij>" (Christ said through his own mouth). -Blick. Horn. 59, i. "he mid his sylfes willan to eorf^an astag" (he, by his own will, descended to the earth). Ibid. 83, 30. Of these expressions only the first, that with own, has come down to Modern English times. The expression "of mine." 311. In Old English the possessive pronoun, or, as the French say, "pronominal adjective," expresses only the conception of belonging and possession ; it is a real adjec- tive, and does not convey, as at present, the idea of determination. If, therefore, Old English authors want to make nouns preceded by possessive pronouns determina- tive, they add the definite article. " hseleS min se leofa " (my dear youth) Elene, 511. " Jm eart dohtor min seo dyreste" (thou art my dearest daughter). Juliana, 93. For other instances see above, 220-22. Later on, the possessive pronoun apparently implies a determinative meaning (as in Modern German and Modern French) ; therefore its connection with the definite article is made superfluous, while the indefinite article is quite impossible. Instead of the old construction we find hence- forth what may be termed the genitive pseudo-partitive. See above, 178-180. The Possessive Pronoun used Substantively. 312. The possessive pronoun is also used substantively in Old English without any difference of inflexion, in the later periods with an s added to our, your, her, their. Besides, this use, in Modern English, is much more restricted than in Old English. o 2 196 ENGLISH SYNTAX (a) Of persons. Old English. " Hig wa-ron pine" (they were thine). -John, xvii. 6. " ]>a. ferdon sume of urum to ]>rere bergenne " (and some of ours went to the tomb). Luke, xxiv. 24. ' ' Eac sume wif of urum us bregdon " (some women of ours amazed us). Ibid. 22. Middle English. "Fare we bihalues, alse we of heoren weoren :> (go we aside, as if we were of their party). LAYAMON, i. 178. " 5if J)U and \itte ]>er wurSeS daed." Ibid. i. 419. "To )>e & to alle tyne." ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 335. " I haue herde that ye haue called me and my broder the sones of a traytour, and that the kyng knoweth well that our fader slewe yours by trayson, wherof I wylle ye wyte that ye lie falsely, but your fader dyde assaylle our by trayson. " CAXTON, Aymon, 545, 10. "Ye wolle enforce yourselfe to rescue oute of daunger of deth, my lorde and youre, my good husband Sadoyne." CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 189, 25. (b} Of things. Old English. " Nis hit na min inc to syllene." Mark, x. 40. " He nimeS of minum." -John. xvi. 14. The following example, in the plural, is a literal translation of the Greek original : " Ealle mine synd ]>yne, and ]>yne synd mine." -John, xvii. 10. Original : " ra epa iravTa era eoriv /cal TO. era e/xa." Vul- gata : "mea omnia tua sunt, et tua mea sunt." Cf. Cura Pastoralis, 318, 16; 326, 12. Middle English. " Ane lete hem gon, eche lord to his owne.'* MAUNDEVILLE, p. 89. Modern English. " He shall receive of mine. "John, xvi. 14. "He shall take of mine." Ibid. xvi. 15. " He speaketh of his own." Ibid. viii. 44. " Let no man seek his own." I Cor. x. 24. "Charity . . . seeketh not her ow n. " Hid. xiii. 5. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 197 The Dative of the Personal Pronoun instead of the Possessive Pronoun. 3 13. When speaking of the parts of the human body, we use the possessive pronoun in Modern English ; the older periods omit it altogether as superfluous, or make up for it by the dative of the personal pronoun. " Abraham haefde him on handa fyr and swurd" (A. had in his hand fire and sword). /ELFRIC, Horn. ii. 60, 26. " hafa Se minne stsef on handa " (take my staff into thy hand). Ibid. ii. 416, 35. " J>a cnitton hi rapas hire to handum and fotum " (they put ropes on her feet and hands). Ibid. i. 488, 35 ; Lives of Saints, ix. IOO ; Be&- u'nlf, 2405. The Demonstrative Pronoun. 314. The syntactic use of the demonstrative pronoun has undergone but slight alterations from Old English down to modern times. " An " (one] used as a Demonstrative. 315. It is a noteworthy point that the numeral An (one) was, in Old English, used as a demonstrative this or that. " Swa J>a driht-guman dreamum lifdon eadiglice, 63 J)3et an ongan fyrene fremman, feond on helle " (thus the warriois lived in joy happily, till that one began to work crimes, the fiend of hell). Beowulf, 99101. dn, sc. Grendel, mentioned above in 86. The same use prevails in Middle High German. Cf. Paul und Braune, fieitrage, xi. 518-527; xii. 371, 393- 316. " Sum" too, was used in a Demonstrative Sense. " Naefre ic maran geseah eorla ofer eorftan, Jwnne is eower sum, secg on searwum " (never saw I a greater earl on earth than is some one [that one] of you, the man in arms). Beowulf, 248. 1 98 ENGLISH S YNTAX "giiS-beorna sum wicg gewende, word ?efter cwseS" (the one of the warriors ( = the warrior, who in this case is a solitary one, not one of a troop, as the phrase might lead one to imagine) turned his horse, said a word after). Ibid. 314. In both passages the person referred to was mentioned before. " These Seven Years." 317. Se, seo \&t having lost their inflexions, and being turned into the monotonous article the, their demonstrative function was taken up by this. Expressions like the following are scarcely to be traced back to the oldest periods of English. Middle English. "I have served thy brother this sixtene yeer."- Tale of Gamelyn, 400. Cf. 354. "Here wille I lig this four ty dayes." Tcnvn. Myst. p. 16. "Ere this." 318. This used as a local or temporal adverb as in ere this, by this, between this and the Pyramids (Bulwer, Money, 2, 5), is found as early as Old English. Old English. "Swa swaheo stent 6j> )>is." BASILIUS, ffexameron, 6. [Quoted by Matzner, iii. 244.] "Nu Sonne 03 Jj we reahton hwelc se hierde bion sceal" (hitherto we have said what the pastor is to be). Cura Pastoralis, 172, 14, A.D. 890. Middle English. " J>er nas bituene ]>is and Spayne no prince with- oute al )>is." ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 3915. " This " and " T/uu." 3 1 9. This as denoting what is nearer, contrasting with that as denoting what is farther off, is of a recent date. Cf. " \att an wass o ynnd hallf \e_fltimm, And o ]>is hallf ]>att oj>err." Orm. 10588. Cf. ibid. 10611. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 199 " God shal destroye and this and that." i Cor. vi. 13. " For that, and this, that lyys here, Have cost me fulle dere. " Town. My st. p. 13, 320. That is, as late as the end of the fifteenth century, used without any demonstrative force, " Germania J>at contray. " TREVISA, i. 171. " Beaneus Apollo that man." Ibid. i. 221. ")>at man Paris." Ibid. 225. " Parthia >at kyngdom. " Ibid. i. 85. " Hibernia |>at lond." Ibid. 143. "Cappadocia ])at londe." Ibid. 147. Cf. "that one, that other "-"each other." " That one looked upon that other for to see who wolde sette fyrst honde upon hym." CAXTON, Charles the Crete, 44, 26. "that one was named babtysme, and that other grabam." Ibid. 59, 17, 18. Cf. ibid. 59, 24-25 ; 62, 19; 70, 21. The following passage shows the transition from that to the : " For other (= either) he shall hate the one and love the other ; or els he shall lene to the one, and despise that other.' 1 '' TYNDALE, Matth. vi. 24. " That" in connection with the Genitive. 321. That + genitive used with reference to a preceding noun in order to avoid repetition is scarcely to be traced back to Old English, where the single genitive was con- sidered sufficient, as in Latin. " Eower rihtwisnys mare is, }>onne ]>oera wn'tera" (your righteousness is greater than that of the scribes). Matth. v. 20. 200 ENGLISH SYNTAX But there are Middle English instances of this use. " 56 schulle undirstonde that it (this croune) was of jonkes of the see . . . for I have seen and beholden many tymes that of Paris and thai of Constantynoble." MAUNDEVJLLE, p. 13. "The emperour of Constantynoble scythe that he hathe the spere heed : and I have often tyme seen it ; but it is grettere than that at Parys." Ibid. p. 14. 322. " Such " as a Demonstrative Pronoun has, on the whole, undergone no syntactical change ; there is, however, a marked difference between the old and modern use of such and such ; while nowadays its function is that of an indefinite pronoun, its meaning, in older periods, was merely demonstrative, always pointing to a preceding noun. Instances are not frequent. Old English. "Be swilciim and be suuilcum )m miht ongitan J>aet se craeft J>ses lichoman bit? on )>am mode " (by such and such [things] thou mayest understand that the power of the body is in the mind). BOETH. 58, I. Middle English. "All ^ey^re lac wass nuillc annd swillc" (all their offerings were such and such). Orm. 1006. " And seggesst swilh and swilk wass )>u." Ibid. 1512. "All sivillc annd Seville comm Sannt Johan to shsewenn." Ibid. 9381. " For Seville annd swillc wass Drihhtin la]> Saducewisshe leode." Ibid. 9749. While in all these instances such and such serves to avoid repetition, the following passage shows it in another shade of meaning. "Joseph soght on me in bour ]>at suikeful fals, )>at fole lichour, Al suilk and suite, sir, was )>e scam )>at he can seke on mi licam " (Joseph called on me in [my] chamber, that deceitful false [one], that foul fornicator, such and such was the shame that he did seek on my body). Cursor Mundi > 4413. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 201 Potiphar's wife feigns to be ashamed of mentioning the proper word for Joseph's shameful offer, and substitutes such and such. Note. For swilc as a relative pronoun see below, 334. " The same " instead of the Personal Pronoun. 323. The same is often used as a personal pronoun with- out any demonstrative force. " He had of me a chain : at five o'clock I shall receive the money for the same ( it)." SHAKSPERE, Comedy of Errors, iv. i, n. " Give me the paper, let me read the same." Ibid. Love's Labour Lost, i. i, 1 1 6. Cf. German, derselbe, dieselbe, dasselbe = he, she, it. The Interrogative Pronoun. There are but a few noteworthy points in the development of this pronoun. " What " used Substantively. 324. What\s> originally, as in the other Teutonic lan- guages, used only as a substantive, and, as such, governs the genitive case. But after the decay of the inflexion, what was originally a genitive, was looked upon as a nominative, so that what became an adjective. Old English. " J>a geseah selfa sigora waldend hivtrt wses monna manes on eorSan " (there saw himself, the ruler of victories what crime of men was on earth). C^DMON, Genesis, 1271. Perhaps the phrase "What news?" is a remnant of this old use. Cf. the following instances : "Ne sec5e we nan ))ing niives on Jnssere gesetnisse" (we say nothing rtew in this book). yLFRic, Lives of Saints, p. 4, 1. 46. 202 ENGLISH SYNTAX ' ' What nives so )>ay nome, at na5t quen }>ay metten )>ay acorcled of ]>e covenauntes byfore )>e courte alle " (what news so [ever] they took [heard ?], when they met at night, they accorded of the covenants before the whole court). Sir Gawayne and the Greene Knight, 1407. " What" referring to Persons. 325. In Old and Middle English what refers predica- tively to persons as well as to things ; it is not before the fourteenth century that we note the tendency to put who for what. Old English. " Hwatt syndon ge " (who are you ?) Befrivulf, 479- " Sege us, Crist, hmcet is se j;e ]>e sloh?" (say unto us, who is he that struck thee ?) Matth. xxvi. 68. " Hwtet synd J>as ? " (who are these ?) Gen. xxxiii. 5- Middle English. " What beoS ])eos ut-la5en?" (who are these out- laws?). LA YAM. iii. 91. " And wiste wele, what he wes." Sir Tristrem, 598. " quat art thou ? " Cursor Mundi, 3725. Thus the Cotton, Gottingen and Trinity MSS. ; Fairfax has "qua art J>ou." " Qnat art )>ou, he said, lemman?" Ibid. 38, 39. Thus the Cotton, Fairfax, Gottingen and Trinity MSS. " And quat art Jxra me beddes sua? " Ibid. 5202. Thus the Cotton, Gottingen and Trinity MSS. ; Fairfax has "qua art J?ou." Cf. ibid. 7370, 7887. "She loked backward for to see what he was that so hastely rode after her." CAXTON, Blanch. 41, 30. " Moche grete desyre I haue to wyte and knowe what he may be." Ibid. 64, I. " (He) asked of him what he was, of what lande and of what lynage. " Ibid. 99, 35. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 20^ Tudor English. " (Huon demaundyd) ivhat he was, and who was hys father." LORD BERNERS, Htion, 17, 22. "He demaundyd what we were." Ibid. 29, n. Cf. ibid. 30, 3; 30, 13, &c. 326. " Whaf" used Adjectively, = qualis is of a recent date. In Old English and the first periods of Middle English this function was performed by hwylc, in later Middle English by whatkyn ("kynnes"), what maner. Old English. " Me com on gemynd hivelce wutan gio wceron geond Angelkynn" (it occurred to my mind what wise men were once in England). Cura Pastor. 2, 2. "geSenc hivelc witu us ]>a becomon " (consider what punishments came on us). Ibid. 4, 4. Very frequent. Middle English. "j>u nast, ofwhulche londe heo com hider liSen, ne whulc king is hire fader, ne whulc quen hire moder. " LAYAMON, i. 98. " ]>ench, mid wulche deden ]m miht werien ]>ine leoden." Ibid. i. 365. " Her mann unnderstanndenn ma55, while mann iss drihhtnenn cweme " (here man may understand what man is agreeable to the lord). Orm. 3965- For the other constructions with kynn, maner, see Genitive Case, 167-172. 327. " What" as an exclamation is very old. Old English. " Hiva-t ! J>a Job aras" (Lo ! then Job rose). Job, 2, 2. Middle English. "What! be ye wood?" I Cor. xiv. 23. Modern English. "What! must our mouths be cold?" Tempest, i, i, 56. 204 ENGLISH SYNTAX 328. " Who is who." For this expression see Morris, Accidence, Indefinite Pronoun. The Relative Pronoun. Origin. 329. Comparative syntax teaches us that the relative sentence was primarily expressed by being immediately sub- ordinated to the principal clause without the addition of any explanatory word : "This is the man I saw." For the sake of clearness and emphasis, however, the object of the ante- cedent clause was repeated in the consequent by some demonstrative term signifying locality, and the attention was thus drawn to the idea intended to be signalised. But after a time, this pronoun, this representative of the object denoted, came to be used in all cases, and not merely where peculiar stress was wished to be laid upon it; and when analogy had thus uniformly extended this particular employ- ment of the word, it ceased to convey any longer a purely demonstrative sense, and assumed a relative signification, which was then applied by the further operation of analogy to instances in which the demonstrative could hardly have been employed. 1 In Old English as well as in the other Teutonic languages the primary way of joining together sentences and adjectival clauses without any outward mark of their relation to each other survived. See above, 109. But as a rule, the re- lative sentence was introduced by a demonstrative pronoun, or a particle of probably demonstrative character. The development of the English relatives is shown in the fol- lowing sections. 1 Sayce, I.e. p. 370; cf. Jolly: " Ueber die einfachste form der Hypotaxis im Indogermanischen ; " and Windisch, " Untersuchungen liber den Ursprung des Relativpronomens," in Curtius' Studien, vi. i, and ii. 2. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 205 330. The Demonstrative Pronoun. Old English. Se, seo, \cet were used as relatives, either by themselves or in connection with the indeclinable particle \>e. "moste wesan on worulde, se J>ses wsestmes onbat" (he was to live eternally, who ate of this fruit). G&PMON, Gen. 470. " ]>xt wses deao"es beam, se bser bitres fela" (that was the tree of death, that bare much bitterness). Ibid. 479. "ge to deajje pone deman ongunnon, se Se of Seaoe sylf worn awehte " (you began to deem to death him that awaked many from death). Elene, 303. ' ' weras, ]>a )>e eowre & on ferhosefan fyrmest haebben " (men who have your law foremost in their mind). Ibid, 315. 331. As early as the time of Alfred the Great, the neuter \cet seems to become indifferent to gender and number, as may be inferred from the following instances. " Aefter J>sem Romane curon III hund cempena and siex, tyzt sceolde to anwige gangan " (after that the Romans chose three hundred and six warriors that should go to single combat). Orosius, 72, 15. " He hrefde eahta and eahtatig coortona, \ai we nu truman hataS" (he had eighty-eight cohorts that we call now 'truman'). Ibid, 240, 32. "and hie benoman heora heofodstedes ]>at hie Capitoliam heton" (they invaded the chief place, which they called Capitolium). Ibid, 86, 30. "obne Nazareniscan Ha&lend *8at wses afanden wer, etc." (the Saviour of Nazareth, a man approved, etc.). Ctira Pastor. 443, 5. " d"aet hie magon eac be Sisse bisene ongietan ftcet him is to gecue- den " (which they can also understand from this example, which is addressed to them). Ibid. 189, 21. 332. In Middle English the other forms of the de- monstrative se, seo', \c&t disappear at a very early period, and \cet takes their place. The use of Old English \>e as a relative died out in Early Middle English. The two texts of Layamon's Brut are very instructive in this respect. 206 ENGLISH S YNTA X Text A. (the older) exhibits several remnants of the old demonstrative, while B. levels all to the uniform that. A. B. 13827. An alle mine Hue J>e ich In al mine lifue pat ich ileued iluued habbe. habbe. 13851. of Jxit ilke aende \>e of )>an ilk hende J>at Englis his Angles is ihaten. ihote. 13897. We habbeS godes gode We habbe]) godes gode |>at we j>e we luuieS an ure louieS in mode, mode. Cf. ibid. 14127, 14211, 14255. For the history of that in Modern English see Morris, Accidence. 333- " Old English. So far as I can see only after swd hwd and swd hwilc whosoever. Middle English. So is scarcely to be met with in Middle English. " He was holden most of myghte Off all next the whyte knyght, So did hym mekill dere. " Ipomadon, 3272. This, however, admits of another explanation. Cf. Tobler, Gennania, xvii. But so certainly survived as a relative in the compound as (alswa), used not only after such, but also after other cor- relatives. Middle English. "The first Soudan was Zarocon ... as was fadre to Sahaladyn." MAUNDEV. v. 36. " Tho as were present." Book of Noblesse, 32. Modern English. " The ymages as they used in olde tyme to erecte in worshyp." LORD BERNERS, Froissart, ii. Preface. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 207 " That kind of fruite As maids call medlars." SHAK. Romeo, ii. i, 36. " To those as have no children." HOLLAND, Plutarch's Morals, 222. " It's he as lives in the great stone house." Lamplighter, 91. New English Dictionary, s.v. 334. " Swilc" = such. Swilc was used in Old English as a proper relative. " call ST.vylc him god sealde " (all that God gave him). Beowulf, 72. " ne aron nu cyningas ne caseras swilce iu weeron " (there are not now the kings and emperors that were once). Seafarer, 83. There are instances of this use in Early Middle English. 335. Interrogative Pronouns used as Relatives. The transition from the Old English relatives to those used in Middle and Modern English was effected by the indefinite or general relatives. It is in these that the interrogatives who and what were first used in the relative sense. Old English. " Swa hwd swa" = whosoever, "swa hwaet swa" = whatsoever, " swa hwilc swa " = whosoever, " swa hwd swd Jwet secgan cyme<5," whosoever comes to say that. C/EDMON, Gen. 438. " swd hwd swd gebyrgde, J)ses on f>am beame geweox " (whosoever tasted of that which grew on that tree). Ibid. 483. " Eac is to geSencenne )>aet on 5a tid ]>e se biscephad swse gehered wees, swie hwelc swa hiene underfeng, he underfeng martyrdom " (we must also reflect that at the tyme when the office of bishop was in such high estimation, he who accepted it accepted martyrdom). Ctira Pastor. 52. " Swa hwelc Sonne swce Sissa uncysta hwelcre underSieded bid 1 , him biS forboden Sset he offrige Code hlaf" (whoever, then, is subject to one of these vices is forbidden to offer bread to God). Ibid. 72. Middle English. " Wha swa wulle libba, halde J>as sibba" (whoso- ever will live, hold peace). LA YAM. i. 155. 208 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Who, siva in J>eu straelen breken griS, j;e king him wolde binimen his lif ; ah ivha sa oSerne imette )>er, faeire hine igraette " (whosoever break the peace in the street, the king will take his life ; whosoever meet another there, may fairly greet him). Ibid. 206. " IVhasc is J>att bridclgumess frend, he stannd wi)>]> himm " (whoso- ever is the bridegroom's friend stands with him). Orm. 18375. 336. From indefinite relatives, who and which become proper ones, though after a long struggle, who in the nomi- native scarcely being generally accepted before the sixteenth century (Lord Berners's Arthur of Little Britaine, A.D. 1532). There are, however, instances as early as the tenth and twelfth centuries. " J>ast deofol openlice pone fandige, hwa him fulfylligean wille" (the devil tempts him -who will follow him). WULFSTAN, ed. Napier, 95. 19- "A hwam mai he luue treweliche htua ne luues his brother" (Ah ! whom may he love truly who does not love his brother). Old English Horn. i. 274. For other relatives and their functions see Morris, Accidence, 188-210. For omission of the relative, see Adjective Clauses^ 109- THE VERB. Impersonal Verbs. " I'll dispose them as it likes me best." MARLOWE. 337- THE impersonal verbs denoting natural or else external events, as raining, thunder, freezing, &c., have re- mained the same with regard to their syntactical use, from Old English down to modern times. We still say : " it rains" (Old English hit riri\ "it thunders" (Old English hit \unraS\ " it freezes " (Old English hit fredse^}, " it happens that " (Old English hit gelimpe'S), &c. 338. But those verbs which express states or actions of he human mind have undergone an important change. As SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 209 stated above (see Nominative Case), many once impersonal verbs became personal, 1 and we have now scarcely any instances of such verbs, as "it likes me." This tendency to replace impersonal verbs by personal expressions may be seen at work in Middle English, but even as late as the Elizabethan times the process is not yet quite completed. A few instances may suffice to show the development from Old English down to Middle English times. Ail, Old English eglan, Middle English eilen, originally only impersonal ; but there is a trace of personal use as early as 1250. " 5et heaven on here red" (yet they ail [become weak] in their counsel). Story of Gen. and Exod. 3809. "For who loueth God can ayle nothynge but good." SKELTON, Magnyfyc. 2393. "Thou ask'st the Conscience what she ails." QUARLES, Emblems ii. 5, 82. " I knew not what I ay led, but I knew I ay led something more than ordinary : and my heart was very heavy. " ELLWOOD, Autobiog. 20. " What can the fool mean ? " said old Richard ; " what can he ail at the dogs?" HOGG, Tales and Sketches, iii. 191. New English Dictionary, s.v. Forthynke = repent. In Middle English only impersonal. This was replaced in Modern English by repent, used personally. Like continued to be used impersonally until the sixteenth century. 1 The slow development of verbs expressing subjective states is also noticed by Max Miiller, though not with regard to impersonal verbs. " It is more difficult to understand how roots, if originally expressive of acts only, could be made to express mere subjective states. It may be true that the necessity of expressing subjective states arose at a much later time, and was not called forth by any such pressing wants as, for instance, the necessity for ordering people to dig or to strike or to pull. Nor must we suppose that the growth of language was ever determined by the clear consciousness of a want, and by a deliberate consideration of the best means of meeting it." MAX MiJLLER, I.e. p. 321. P 210 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Therefore 'tis best, if so it like you all, To send my thousand horse incontinent. " MARLOWE, Tatnburlaine, i. 51. Cf. Schmidt, Shakspere Lexicon, s.v. For a fuller account of this development, see my Intro- duction to Caxton's Blanchardyn, p. xlvii. Intransitive, Transitive, and Reflexive Verbs. 339- I* nas generally been supposed that originally all roots expressive of act, were what we call intransitive, and expressed merely the act without any reference to the result produced by an act. Such suppositions are difficult to prove or to disprove. Each root, if it expresses an act, implies no doubt a subject and an object, whether they are expressed or not, and though it may be argued that nouns which express the object must be later than the verbs expressing the subject, every root, as root, would seem to possess potentially a transitive as well as an intransitive character. 1 Hence, even in Old English many verbs were used both as transitives and intransitives, e.g. : " swogaS windas, bld'vcfS brecende " (winds roar, they blow breaking); " hateS hie beman bldivan " (he bids them blow horns). GREIN, s.v. But apart from these words, the double character of which is due to the very nature of the verb, there were several phonetic and syntactic factors at work which brought about the unparalleled freedom of the English language to use the same verb in an intransitive, transitive, or causative and reflexive sense, e.g. change, mend. 2 1 Max Miiller, I.e. p. 319. 9 Cf. the cobbler's inscription : "Never too late to mend." SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 211 Transitive and Intransitive Verbs Interchanged. " The ship will not sink in the water." " Kate sank her head upon his shoulder." 340. In Old English, as well as in the other Teutonic languages, intransitives became transitives, or rather causa- tives, by adding the suffix -ja to that form of the verb-stem which appears in the singular of the preterite, or, in other words, by becoming weak verbs from strong ones. The suffix -ja further effects a mutation of the root-vowel, which thus comes to be a characteristic of causative verbs in English sit, sat, sat-jan, settan, sine, sane, sanc-jan, sencan. Thus biigan (Gothic biugari) means to bow to somebody, but bfgan (from bedgjan, Gothic baugjari) means to bow something, to bend ; sincan means to sink (intransitive), sencan, to make something sink; sittan, to sit, settan, to set ; licyan, to lie, lec^an, to lay ; fallan, to fall, fellan, to fell. 341. If a verb was derived from an adjective, it split at once into forms of different meaning. If formed by means of -ja (first conjugation) it had a causative meaning, if by b (second conjugation) an intransitive one. Hence the fol- lowing double forms from the same root : Stem. First Conjugation. Second Conjugation. Causative. Intransitive, bald. byldan (to make strong). bealdian (to be strong), blac. blacan (to bleach). blacian (to grow pale), col. acelan (to cool). colian (to become cool), ful. fyllan (to fill). fullian (to become full), hard. a-hyrdan (to harden). heardian (to become hard), long. lengan (to make long). longian (to be long, weary) naru (w). genyrwan (to make narrow). nearwian (to be narrow), wac. weccan (to wake). wacian (to be awake), warm. wyrman (to warm) wearmian (to grow warm) P 2 2 1 2 ENGLISH S YNTA X 342. Now, even in Old English we see that this distinc- tion is no longer strictly observed. Thus flebn, which is a strong verb, and originally means to flee, is found with the meaning of the causative to put to flight. " Hundteontig eower_/fc0'j> hira tyn Jn'isendu " (your hundred shall put to flight their ten thousands). Lev. xxvi. 8. " Ure hcelend ahangen wses on rode " (our Saviour was hanged on the cross). Legends of the Holy Rood, 7. On the other hand, we find intransitive forms of verbs when we are authorised to expect transitive ones, e.g. nearwian instead of nyrwan. "FeleS sona mines gemotes, seo ]>e mec nearwaft" (she soon feels my resistance that makes me narrow). Riddles, xxvi. (GREIN). Perhaps verbs like meltan (to melt and to make melt) and belgan (to be angry and to anger), in which there was an accidental likeness of the intransitive and the causative forms in some of the moods and tenses, contributed to break down the line of meaning which originally existed between the two classes of verbs, just as schmelzeu in Modern German is used in both its strong and weak forms, as intransitive and causative. 343. In Middle English the confusion went on in- creasing from century to century. " Swo doS J>e fule man ]>e folegeS his wombes wil, and of unrihte bigete ofte fillet " (so doth the foul man who follows the will of his belly and often fills [himself] with unlawful gains). Old English Homilies, ii. 37 A.D. 1200. " ]>e storm bisinkeft )>e ship gif he mai " (the storm sinks the ship, if it can). Ibid. 177. " Nu wot Adam sum del of wo Her-after sal he leren mo" (leren = learn). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 354 A.D. 1250. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 213 " Ai was borgen Bala-segor Sor quile 'Sat loth dwellede Sor ; Oc siSen loth went ut of hine Brende it 'Sunder, sane it er'Se-dine " (ever was safe Bala-segor, as long as Lot dwelt there, but when he left it, thunder burnt it, earth- quake sank it). Ibid. 1108. " Heore Ii5t qtieincte over-al" (their light went out everywhere). Legendary (ed. Horstmann), 19, 6. A. D. 1280-90. " ' This worlde,' he seide, ' more than an hour Schal ben i-dreynt, so hideous is the schour : Thus schal mankynde drench, and leese his lyf. ' " CHAUCER, The Miller's Tale, 335. The following list, taken from Caxton, will show the progress in that development in the second half of the fifteenth century. Cease, causative = stop. " Soo pray I you that ye wyl cesse your grete sorowe." CAXTON, Blanch. 44, 2. Cf. ibid. 53, 27. Learn = teach. " She was not lernyd to receyue suche geestes. " Blanch. 67, 29. Cf. 141, 4. Lose = ruin. " But through fortune chaungeable, my lande hath be wasted and lost by Darius." Blanch. 146, 5. Possess = put in possession. " When he had gyuen to me my lande, and possessed me in my countrey, I wold not accepte it." Charles the Crete, 147, 16. Succumb = subject. " In their folysshe pryde I shal succombe and brynge a lowe their corage " (original : Et de la foil entreprinse quilz out faicte pour 1'orgueil et oultrage qui les ensuient centre vous vouldroy abaissier leur couraige follastre). Blanch. 104, 30. Sit = set. "And he sat al his folk in a bushment within a grete wode."- Aymon, 136, 18. "(they) sate themself at dyner. " Melusitie, p. 157. 214 ENGLISH SYNTAX Tarry delay. ' ' Other infynyte thynges that are wont to tarye the corages of some enterpryses. " Blanch. 17, n. "here we shall tarye styll oure penne." Ibid. 182, II. Walop = gallop. " But Blanchardyne wyth a glad chere waloped his courser as bruyauntly as he coude " ( = made to gallop). Blanch. 42, 5. 344. Modern English. This most valuable freedom develops into full bloom in the sixteenth century, and the popular language of our own days goes even beyond the licence of Elizabethan authors. Cease, causative = stop. " Here cease more questions." Tempest, L 2, 184. Decrease = lessen. " Left solely heir to all his lands and goods, Which I have rather bettered than decreased. " Taming of the Shrew, ii. 119. Fall= let fall. " Mine eyes, even sociable to the show of thine, Fall fellowly drops." Tempest, v. 64. Fear= frighten. " Of such a thing as thou, iofear, not to delight." Othello, i. 2, 71. Fly - cause (falcons) to fly. " Believe me, lords, for flying at the brook I saw not better sport these seven years' day. " 2 Henry VI. ii. I, I. Increase = extend. " And your affections are A sick man's appetite, who desires most that Which would increase his evil. " Coriolanus, i. I, 183. Cf. Spenser, Faerie Queene, i. 4, 15. Issue = send forth. " The paper as the body of my friend, And every word in it a gaping wound, Issuing life-blood. " Merchant, iii. 2, 269. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 215 Learn = teach. " To you I am bound for life and education : My life and education both do learn me How to respect you." Othello, i. 3, 183. Cf. French apprendre quelqiSun = enseigner. Lose = ruin. " Her eyes had lost her tongue. " Twelfth Night, ii. 2, 21. Perish = kill, slay. " Because thy flinty heart, more hard than they, Might in the palace perish Margaret." 2 Henry VI. iii. 2, 100. Possess = put in possession of. " I -will possess you of that ship and treasure." Antony, iii. u, 21. Remember = remind. " Let me remember thee what Ihou hast promised, What not yet is performed." Tempest, i. 2, 243. Run = cause to run. " If you run the nuthooks humours on me. " Merry Wives, i. I, 171. "My father went down to run his last horse at Newmarket." BULWER, Pelham, I. Sink = submerge. "I would have sunk the sea within the earth." Tempest, i. 2, in. "Sinking his voice almost to a whisper." DICKENS, Sketches, P- 363- 6zV=seat. " Then she sat herself down." TROLLOPE, American Scenes, i. 140. "Whatever he did, he was constantly sitting himself down in his chair, and never stopping in it." DICKENS, Chimes, 86. " Sitting himself down on the very edge of the chair." DICKENS, Fickw. ii. 356. Stand = set, put. "The pretty housemaid had stood the candle on the floor/' DICKENS, Pickiv. ii. 377. 2 1 6 ENGLISH S YNTAX Sup = feed. " If a' have no more man's blood in his belly than will sup a flea." Lovers Labour Lost, v. 2, 698. Transitive Verbs used in a Reflexive and Passive Sense. " I pray, now, keep below." Tempest. ' ' Prepare for dinner. " Lear. 345. The other peculiarity of Modern English to use a transitive where the older periods and other modern lan- guages require the reflexive, was probably brought about by the tendency to drop the reflexive pronoun. Thus, for instance, the older expression, " make yourself ready for dinner," became the modern one by dropping "yourself." This use, too, can be traced back to the oldest periods of English. Old English : Baftian, bathe. "Seldon heo bcffiian wolde" (she would seldom bathe). BEDA, 4, 19- D&lan, divide. " Jxmne on J>reo d&Ieft . . . folc " (they are divided into three parts). Elene, 1286. Middle English : Beten, originally transitive, to mend. " >enne wulle ic birewsien and beten " (then will I repent and mend). Old Eng. Horn. L 23. Make merry. "J>ay maden as mery as any men mo3ten." Sir Gawayne and the Green Knight, 1953. Sited. " Balearis, )>e firste greet hauen and passage of ]>at see, schede\ into Spayne." TREVISA, Polychr. L 55. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 217 Turn. "he forlet J>atgod him het don, and dide ))at god himforbet ; and on pese wise turnde fro him " (he omitted to do what God bade him do, and did that which God forbade him ; and in this way turned from him). Old Eng. Horn. ii. 59. Cf. " TurneS giu to me " (turn yourself to me), ibid, In Modern English instances abound. 346. As a consequence of this use of transitive verbs in a reflexive sense, many transitive verbs came to be used also as passives, e.g., the book never sold, the function of the passive being very near that of the reflexive, and both being often interchanged. Breed. " Fair encounter Of two most rare affections ! Heaven rain grace On that which breeds between them. " Tempest, iii. i, 76. Cure. "One desperate grief cures with another's anguish." Romeo, i. 2, 49. Fill. "Now quick desire has caught the yielding prey, And glutton-like she feeds, yet never fillet h." Venus, 548. Miscarry. " There miscarried A vessel of our country richly fraught." Merchant, ii. 8, 29. Quench. " Weeps she still ? Dost thou think She will not quench and let instructions enter ? " Cymbeline, i. 5, 47. Read. " Vows, love, promises . . . how queerly they read after a while." THACKERAY, Vanity Fair, i. i. Sell. "But as they (the treatises) never sold." GOLDSMITH, Vicar of Wake field, I. 218 ENGLISH SYNTAX Shape. " Their dear loss The more of you 'twas felt, the more it shaped Unto my end of stealing them. " Cymbeline, v. 5, 346. Stain. "If virtue's gloss will stain with any soil, Is a sharp wit matched with too blunt a will." Love's Labour Lost, ii. 48. Yoke. 'Twere pity To sunder them thatjv/k so well together." 3 Henry vL iv. I, 23. AUXILIARY VERBS. Functions of the Auxiliary Verbs. 347. The loss of verbal forms expressing tense and mood has given rise to the extended use and greater importance of auxiliary verbs in English. While, for instance, in Greek there exists a special ending to express action belonging to the past (perfectunt), and another to express repeated action (aoristus gnomicus], Modern English must recur to the auxiliaries have and will: "I have done," "he would say" = he used to say. Instead of the short expressive optativus we must make use of the periphrasis with may : vvv ydp Ktv IXoi TrdAiv, " now he may take the town " ; instead of the polite so-called Attic optative we use shall: "I should think so," &c. The most important auxiliary verbs, which make up for the loss of verbal inflections, are : be t have, may, let, shall, will. "Be." 348. Generally speaking, the functions of " be " are the same now as in Old English, only it has been considerably encroached upon by have. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 219 Formerly be was used to form the perfect tenses of in- transitive verbs, and have those of transitives. Now have is used for intransitives too. Old English. Mostly "be." Cf. however Beda i, 23 : " (heo) sumne dael J>a:s weges gefaren hafdon" (they had journeyed part of their way). Middle English. "Brennes wes awaei aflogen." LAYAMON, i. 203. " A traitor... yflou was out of Engelond." ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 5609 (B). Modern English. "This gentleman is happily arrived, my mind presumes, for his own good and ours." Taming \. 2, 213. " Miracles are ceased." Henry V. i. i, 67. " My Lord Chesterfield had killed another gentleman, and was fled." PEPYS, Diary 1659. On the other hand be is now invariably used in all passives, while in older periods it shared this function with the verb weor^an (German iverdeii). "Have." " Have at thee with a downright blow." 2 Henry VI. ii. 3, 92. " He that will caper with me for a thousand marks, let him lend me the money, and have at him." 2 Henry IV. i. 2, 213. 349. This peculiar use of "have," which occurs very frequently in Elizabethan authors, is hard to account for ; but it may be traced back to the fourteenth century. " Haue at ! " seyd Douwal, "now is leyser ! " ROBERT DE BRUNNE, Story of England, 2753. A. D. 1336. " ' Haf at J)e }>enne,' quod >at oj>er, & heue5 hit" (sc. the ax) alofte, & wayte5 as wro]>ely, as he wode were." Sir Gawayne and the Gr. Knight, 2288. A.D. 1360. " Have at thee ! " Townley Myst. 26. A.D. 1440. 220 ENGLISH SYNTAX " win:'' 350. " Will " as an auxiliary expressing customary action is met with at an early date. " So wole ech man }>at o}>er louie can " (so does every man that loves another). LAYAMON, ii 541. "She was so pitous, she ivolde wepe if that she saw a mouse." CHAUCER, Canterb. Tales Pro/. 143. In this function will shares with shall. " Ful redily with hem the fyr they hadde, Thencens, the clothes, and the remenant al That to the sacrifice longen schal." CHAUCER, The Knighles Tale, 1420. ' ' For ofte shall a woman have Thing, whiche a man may nought areche." GOWER, i. 150. "Let." " Let us go for a walk." 351. This auxiliary came in as a compensation for the decay of modal inflection, e.g., in "let us go," "let him do his worst " ; in the older periods the verb alone in the subjunctive mood was used, or uton + infinitive, uton being an old verb employed specially for this function = "let us." Old English. " Upp-dhebben we his naman " (let us exalt his name). Ps, xxxiii. 2. " Uton faran " (let us go). Luke, ii. 15. Middle English. " Ga we nu." Orm. 3390. " Settde we to Rome." LA YAM. ii. 59. ^ Modern English, The simple subjunctive is still common in poetry. "Come ! be we bold and make despatch." COLERIDGE, Ptccolotnini, 2, I. " Part we in friendship from your land." SCOTT, Marmion, 6, 13. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 221 " Do." " How do you ? " = How do you do ? BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER, The Scornful Lady, iv. i. 352. There is a great difference between the Middle and Modern English use of do. From the beginning of the thirteenth century to the end of the fifteenth, do means " to cause," thus making up for the loss of causative verbs (cf. above, 340-342). " Min engel sal ic don fte biforen gon " (I shall make my angel to go before thee). Story of Cen. and Exod. 3607. "I shal doo folow hym" (=1 shall cause him to be followed: original : le le ferai Sieuir). CAXTON, Blanch. 44, 10. 353. But as early as the time of Robert of Gloucester "do " occurs redundantly along with can or gan. " Fos me clupej) )>ilke wei, J>at bi mani a god toun de]> wende " (foes call me that way that does go by many a good town). ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 179. " I vuele tyme . . . reste thou dust chese " (in evil time didst thou choose rest). Id. 8809. Cf. " Sone o morwen he gan him garen " (early in the morning he made himself ready). Story of Gen. and Ex. 1417. Quite common in Middle English. The same use of do is common in German, and occurs also here and there in Old French. "Adont/0^ un sentier maintenant traverser" (then they cross a foot-path). ' " Convoitisefatf son arc tendre " (Covetise bends its bow). " Faites moi escouter" (listen to me). TOBLER, Beitrage, p. 19. 354. Do = io be in the phrase "how do you do?" is scarcely met with in older periods. Dr. Furnivall thinks this phrase has been borrowed from the French. 222 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Que fait mes sires ? " (how does my lord ?). Roncevaux, 159. Cf. Caxton's Eneydos, p. 21. This use is common in the time of Caxton. Cf. my Introduction to Caxton's Blanchardyn. "Stand." 355. Stand as an auxiliary =" to be" is common in Elizabethan writers and modern times. ' ' The truest issue of thy throne by his own interdiction stands accursed.'' Macbeth, iv. 3, 107. " How stand you affected to his wish ? " Gentlemen of Verona, i. 3, 60. " Shall " and " will " used Elliptically. " I shall no more to sea." Tempest, ii. 2, 44. "I unll to my honest knight." Merry Wives, iii. 2, 88. 356. This use is very common in Old and Middle English, and has not disappeared even in modern times. Old English. " Ic him sefter sceal" (I shall go after him). Beo- ivulf, 2817. " Ic to sx wille " (I will go to the sea). Ibid. 318. Middle English. "Bot I ivyl to )>e chapel, for chaunce J>at may falle." Sir Gauing wi5 J>yrse" (I alone shall now defy Grendel). Beowulf, 424. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 223 "Ic cume eft to J>e on J)isne tfman, and }>in wff Sarra sceal habban sunu " (I shall come again to thee at that time, and thy wife Sarah shall have a son ; Vulgate : et habebit filium Sara). yELFRic, Genesis 18, 10. " We willaS wunian on &ere strsete (Vulgate : in platea manebimus). " Ibid. 19, 2. The Modern English restriction of "shall" to the first person, and of "will" to the second and third, is of recent date. "Should" with Infinitive instead of the Subjunctive Preterite. 358. This use, too, may be traced back to Old English, where it is found side by side with the subjunctive. "And hi ]>a eft sendon rerendracan to Rome and ws&pendre stefne him fultumes bcedon, )>set ]>Det earme eftel mid ealle ne fordiligad ne ware, ne se nama Sasre Romaniscan )>eode, se fte mid him swa lange scean and bryhte, fram fremdra fteoda ungeSwsernesse fornumen and fordilgad beon sceohle " (and they again sent messengers to Rome and with weeping voice asked for aid, that the poor country were not utterly destroyed, and that the name of the Roman people, which was so long bright and shining among them, should not be overcast and obscured by the violence of foreign nations). BEDA, i. 12. Cf. ibid. 14, 23. Sceolde is also used in reported (indirect) speech ; generally when the reporter does not wish to commit himself or wishes to imply that the statement which he quotes is not trust- worthy or not true. " Da s&don hi )>ret foes harperes wif sceolde acwelan " (they said that the harper's wife died). ALFRED, Boethius, cxxxv. "To the second (imputation) therefore, that they (poets) should be the principall lyars ; I aunswere paradoxically, but, truely, I thinke truely ; that of all Writers under the sunne, the Poet is the least lier."- SlDNEY, Apologiefor Poetrie. 359. "May" as a modal verb is met with in the oldest periods. " (hie) georne sohton a wisestan wordgeryno," 224 ENGLISH SYNTAX " J>?et hi'o }>ctre cwene oncweSan meahton " (anxiously they sought the wisest word secrets, that they might tell the queen). Elene, 324. "6]>)Ket he {>a memgu forl?&tan mihte" (Latin: donee demitteret turbas). ^EtFRic, Homilies, ii. 384. VOICE. Relation between Reflexive and Passive. " O that even I had squared me To thy counsel." Winter's Tale. 360. i. It is a matter of fact that illiterate people very rarely use the passive voice, simply because they do not want it. Psychologically the passive voice may be traced back to three sources, neither of which is to be found in the language of children and common people. In the first place, the passive appears when the subject of a verb is either unknown, or, at least, not present in the mind of the speaker, e.g., in the phrase "// is said that there will be a war before long." The passive in this case is not of a very old date, nor is it very familiar to simple people. Either the third person plural is employed as in Greek and Latin (Xcyowriv, dicunt), or the indefinite "man," "men" = one (German "man," French "on" homo). 361. 2. The subject may be known, but the object of the verb is much more prominent in the mind of the speaker : then the passive is a very convenient form, e.g., such books are written by him. 362. 3. The passive alternates with the active to give change and colour to the speech. It is evident that the two last cases are not of a compulsory nature, and but for the first cause, the passive would never have come into use. Now the science of language teaches that the want of the first kind was in the oldest periods, and is still in our days supplied not by the passive, but by the reflexive, this SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 22$ practically being the oldest form of the passive voice. If, for instance, the door is opened from without, and nobody is seen doing it, people said: "The door opens itself." Thus in French: " La porte s'ouvre " ; in German : " Die Thiire offnet sich." Thus the middle or reflexive voice was used as passive in Sanscrit, Greek, Latin, and in the Norse languages. This close relation between the reflexive and passive is still seen in Elizabethan English when both may be inter- changed. " I did collect myself." Winter's Talc, iii. 3, 38. Cf. Be collected ! Tempest, i. 2, 13. " Therefore, good Brutus, be prepared to hear " ( = prepare yourself). Julius Ctrsar, i. 2, 66. Passive of Verbs with a Djuble Object. 363. The peculiarity of forming the passive voice also from verbs with a double object, which is peculiar to English among the modern languages, is originally a conversion of what is, logically speaking, the object of a verb into the subject : he was given a book = a book was given to him. This was brought about by two facts. First, the dative and accusative were confounded, so that objects governed by verbs like "answer," "help," "thank," were consequently looked upon as accusatives, and were treated accordingly ; secondly, what was originally a dative was mistaken for a nominative, as in the following instances : " Ure Lauerd beo ijxmked" (Our Lord be thanked). Ancren Kiwle, p. 8. " nes among al moncun oni holi dole ifunden ]>et rnuhte beon ileten blod." (There was not found among all mankind any holy portion that might be let blood.) Ibid. 1 12. 226 ENGLISH SYNTAX Hence already in Middle English the passive of intransi- tive verbs. " J>al we beon iquemed" (that we be pleased). LAYAMON, i, 40. " He )>at was mast for-given till Mast aght to luue him wit skill " (he to whom most was forgiven ought reasonably to love him most). Cursor Mundi, 14048. A. l>. 1300. " Louerd, i]>anked be Jw? ay ]>at i have beden J>at ilke day." ALEXIUS, ed. Schipper, Version L 157. A.D. 1350. "I fand Jesus bowndene, scourgede, gyffene galle to drynke." HAMPOLE, Prose Treatises, p. 5. A.D. 1370. " He schal be sclaundrid for a cursed man and forboden to teche." WYCLIF, English Works (Early English Text Soc.), p. 74. A.D. 1370. " I am commandid." CHAUCER, Clerkes Tale, iii. 85. ' ' ye schal be payd. " Id. Frankeleynes Talc, 495. ' ' Thembassatours ben answerde for fynal. " Id. Troylus and Cryseyde, iv. 117. Passive of the Infinitive. " Yet, if men moved him, was he such a storm As oft 'twixt May and April is to see. " Lover's Complaint, 1 02. " What 's to do ? " Twelfth Night, iii. 3, 38. House to let. 364. There are verbal forms which, in Old English, were indifferent with regard to voice. These were the infinitive, the verbal noun (-ung, -ing), and sometimes the participle past, when used adjectively. Whenever there is an action without a subject to do it, we find the passive construction in Latin, infinitivus passivi (or rather gcrundium), e.g., " militem occidi iussit ; credendum est." So far as I am aware, both these constructions are translated in Old English, as well as in Middle English of the first centuries, by the simple infinitive. " )>a hi )>aet ne ge}>afodan, j>a het he hi behcAfdian " (when they did not suffer that, he gave orders to behead them). SWEET, Oldest English Texts, p. 177. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 227 " hit is lang to arrecene" (it is long to be recounted). WULFSTAN, 7, 12. Cf. Introduction to Caxton's Blanch. 25. The few Old English instances are probably due to the Latin original : "he wolde hine genemnedne bean" (he would have him called). Luke, i. 62. Vulgate : quem vellet euin vocari. Aliddle English. "heo wes wurse to \olien )>enne efreni of alle ]>a opre pine'' (it was worse to endure than any of the other torments). Old Eng. Horn. i. 43. "hwet is us to dotine?" (quid nobis faciendum est). Ibid. i. 91. "Foul artow to embrace" CHAUCER, Pardoneres Tale, 90. " But ay thay wondren what sche mighte be, That in so poure array was for to se. " Id. Clerkes Tale, vi. 82. 365. In Middle English there is a faint beginning of creating new passive constructions of the infinitive after the Latin type ; but before the Elizabethan age the modern construction is not completed. " pair siluer he tok and gaue }>am corn And to }>air inne did it be born." Cursor Mundi (Cot. Gott. and Trin. MSS.), 4856. Cf. 5004, 5080, 9098. "worthy to be . . . i-preysed" (= praeconiis attollendi). TREVISA, > 3- "suche serue)> and is good to be knowe of Christen men. " Ibid. 1,17. "that made hem gentil men y-callid be. " CHAUCER, Wyj 'of Bathes Tale, 267. "And suffrith us .... Ful ofte to be bete in sondry wise." Clerkes Tale, vi. 220. (Petrarch's Original, p. 170 : "et saepe nos multis ac gravibus flagellis exerceri sinit "). The tendency to discard the old use is of an early date, as we may gather from the various readings of the following passage of the Cursor Mundi. Q 2 228 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Many oj>er maiden )t )>ar were For to foster and to lere. " Cotton MS. 10608. Fairfax, Gottingen, and Trinity have " to fosteryng and to lare." Modern English instances of the active construction : " We have debts of our own to forgive." THACKERAY, The New- comes. ' ' He was furnished with a variety of other necessaries too numerous to recapitulate." DICKENS, Ficfci'iek I. Chapter xiiL "Their tea had not grown cool enough to swallow." CoNWAY, Called Back. "That would be a very strong measure to take." NoRRIS, Airs. Fcnton. TENSE. The Present Tense. 366. Originally the present and preterite tenses were made to express all the time-relations of the verb, the present being also used for the future, and the preterite for all the past tenses. But already in Old English the auxiliary verbs to have and to be came in to form the other periphrastic tenses. 367. But there are remnants of the old use in Middle and even in Modern English. " Go5 in \Krne castel }>et is on5ein cou, and yfiiule^ redliche J>ar ane asse " (go unto the city that is against you, and ye shall straightway find there an ass). Old Engish Homiies, I. p. 3. A.D. 1200. Cf. ibid. p. 16. " Wanne Ilengist is aslawe, Aureli wor\ king. Apoysened he worj> atte laste, and after him wor\> ido His brother in J>e kinedom pat apoysend wor\> also " (when Hengist is slain, Aurelius will become king ; at last he will be poysoned, and after him his brother will be placed on the throne, and he, too, will be poysoned). ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 2839-2842. A.D. 1290. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 229 One MS. has " schal be." " For-J>i me for to fynde if }>ou fraystes, fayles )>ou neuer (me to find wilt than not fail, if thou askest). Sir Gawayne and the Greene Knight, 455. A.D. 1360. "This nine monthis thou seyst me nowth" (thou wilt not see me these nine months). Coventry Mysteries, 104. A.D. 1440. In Modern English the old use occurs in the idiom " I tell you what." 368. The Historical Present is scarcely to be met with in Old English ; but there are numerous instances of it from the thirteenth century down to our times. " Quilum er Pharao hire toe Nu takeS Abimelech hire oc " (Once before Pharao had taken her, now Abimelech takes her also). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 1172. A.D. 1250. " }rir kinges rides forth }>air rade J>e stern alwais J>am forwit glade " (these kings ride forth [on] their road, the star always glided before them). Cursor Mundi, 11427. A.D. 1300. Frequent in Chaucer and Elizabethan writers. 369. Note. It is worth remarking that Modern English has produced a sort of Preteritive Verb (Preterite in form, but Present in meaning) similar to Greek oTSo, Latin novi, Old English wdt etc., namely the idiom "have got" = have " Well, Ma'am have you got anything to say?" DICKENS, David Copperfield, i. 276. Very frequent in familiar speech. 230 ENGLISH SYNTAX The Preterite and the Perfect Tenses. 370. The distinction between the preterite and the perfect tense as defined in our grammars and observed in good prose is of quite a modern date. This is best proved by the fact that both tenses are interchanged. Middle English. " Wi5 wines drinc he wenten is Shogt, So Sat he hattdft Se dede ivroght." Story of Gen. and Exod. 1149, 50. " Symeon and leui it bi-speken, And hauen here sister Sor i-wreken. " Ibid. 1855, 56. Cf. ibid. 2043, 2101, 2312, 2609, 2622, &c. Modern English. D. Pedro. " Runs not this speech like iron through your blood ? Claud. I have drunk poison whiles he utter'd it." Much Ado. v. I, 253. 371. Sequence of the Tenses ("consecutio temporum"). " Principal tenses depend on principal tenses ; historical on historical." On the whole, this rule of the Latin Grammar holds good in all the periods of English ; only there are exceptions. The Present instead of the Preterite Tense. " Therefore they thought it good you hear a play." Taming of the Shrew, Induction, 2, 136. 372. This is due to a sort of anacoluthon. The speaker begins to give an objective account of something that happened in the past ; but his imagination being enlivened by his own account, he sees, as it were, what he relates SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 231 happening in the present, under his eyes. 1 This change of the tense has some resemblance to the sudden transi- tion from indirect to direct speech, which is, indeed, very common in the older stages of the language. Old English. "o"a unrihte men )>a eodan \xt hie }>a men litgelaeddon, and hie to mete gedon " (then went out those wicked people that they might bring forth the men, and eat them). Blick. Horn. 232. " A morwe, when it was day, J>e leuedy of heije priis Com J)er Tristrem lay, And asked, what he is." Sir Tristrem, 1214. Cf. ibid. 1541, 2752. " He toke and tolde him his corage, That he purposeth a viage." GOWER, i. 244. " (Blanchardyn) prayed hym that he vousshesaujfto helpe hym tha he were doubed knyght " (original : quil le aidast a adouber de ses armes). CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 24, 2. Modern English. "Thus he besought god of perdon and to gyue hym grace to dystroy his enemy, who is orryble to beholde " (edition of 1605 : who was so . . .). LORD BERNERS, Htion, 146, 3. " For he knew wel that Raoull, if he coude fynde the meanes, he ~juyll haue from hym his wyfe" (edition of 1605: he would . . .). Ibid. 216, 17. " The people, therefore, of the fair, made a great gazing upon them : some said they were fools, some they were bedlams, and some they are outlandish men." BUXYAN, Pilgrinfs Progress, 89. ' ' He was come on purpose to talk with me about a piece of home- news that everybody in town will be full of two hours hence. '' ADDISON, Essays, ed. R. A. Green ('Humours of the Town"), 121. The Preterite instead of the Past Perfect Tense. 373. The relative time-relation of two events which take place in the past or in the future remains in many cases 1 It is possible to explain this in a different way namely, that to the speaker in this case, their thinking is really past,_jwa wtes syxte gear Constantines caserdomes, J>aet he Romwara in rice wear ahaefen to hereteman " (it was the sixth year of Constantine's reign, after he had been elected chief of the Romans). Elene, 7. Middle English. "Efter alle )>e schendfulle pinen J>et he \olede oSe longe uriniht, me ledde him amorwen vorte hongen o waritreo " (after all the disgraceful torments that he had suffered in the Friday eve, they Jed him in the morning to be hanged). Ancren Riiule, 122. "he sawe the serpent which that he helpe against the toode." Gesta Rom. 6. Modern English. "Huon shewyd hym all the adventure that he had syns he cam fro bourdeux. " LORD BERNERS, Huon, 54, 18. " Huon thus beyng in dyspleasure wyth hymselfe for the lye that he made, went forth tyll he came to the palays." Ibid. 116, 20. (The edition of 1605 alters into "had made.") " He, back returning by the ivory door, Remounted up as light as cheerful lark, And on his little winges the dream he bore In haste unto his lord, where he him left afore." SPENSER, Faerie Queene, L I, 44. " I discovered one of the inhabitants advancing towards the stile, of the same size with him whom I saw in the sea pursuing our boat,"- SWIFT, Gulliver, ii. I. Past instead of the Present Tense. 374. These instances illustrate a very old and interesting syntactic fact, viz., the relation existing between mood and tense. The use of putting the future instead of the impera- tive ("you will do it at once ! ") is well known ; but it is a SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 233 less familiar fact that the functions of the subjunctive mood are in a manner connected with the past. If what a person thinks, hopes, or tries, does not agree with the facts, the verb containing the object of the verbs think, believe, trow, fear, hope, try, &c., appears, as a rule, in a tense anterior to that of those verbs. This may be pyscho- logically accounted for by the desire of the speaker to remove the action which he considers to be at variance with reality out of the present, this being psychologically the tense of visible certainty and truth. This use being only a substitute for the subjunctive mood, it does not occur before the formal endings of the verbs are in decay. " He trowed that sche hadde ben a comoun woman that dwelled there." MAUNDEVILLE, p. 24. " Sche wende that he had ben a gardener." Ibid. p. 79. " The prouost and the other of the towne entred ayen in to the cyte, wenyng to them that Blanchardyn had be wyth them, but he was not." CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 88, 8. "for well he wend that he sholde neuyr haue seen ayen her." Ibid. 95, 30. ' ' I expected that he would have praised me for my prudence ; but on the contrary, he blamed me." EDGEWORTH, Popular Tales, ii. 13. 375. There is scarcely any parallel of this use to be found in inflectional languages endowed with the subjunctive mood, so far as the finite verb is concerned ; but the infinitive being incapable of expressing mood is met with exhibiting the same use in Latin as in the English of the older periods. " ne quis Bacchis initiatus esset, coisse out con-venisse causa sacro- rum velit." Liv. 39, 14, 8. "ne quis quid fugae causa vendidisse neve emisse vellet." Ibid. 39, 17, 3- " dum se . . . refugisse volunt longe longeque recesse," LUCR. 38. 234 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Immanis in antro Bacchatur vates, magnum si pectore possit Excussisse deum." VERG. A. 6, 78. "sunt, quinolint tetigisse," &c. HOR. S. I, 2, 28; "ne quis humasse velit Ajacem, Atrida, vetas cur?' 1 -Ibid. 2, 3, 187. " But faire and wel sche creep in to the clerk, And lith ful stille, and wolde han caught a sleep." CHAUCER, Reeve's Tale, 306. "He wende to haue tourned the br}'dell of his horse." CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 140, 32. This use was continued in the sixteenth century. " He fell to the erthe, wenyng he had been slayne." LORD BERNERS, Huon, 29, 25. "he was about in such familiar sort to have spoken to her." SIDNEY, Arcadia, p. 27. " I was about to have told you my reason thereof." SPENSER, Ireland, p. 613. " I hope to have kept." Ibid. p. 620. Mood. 376. The characteristic features in the development of the English moods are : (a) The subjunctive preterite instead of the Old English subjunctive present in such clauses as are dependent on sentences with the present tense ; (b) The use of auxiliaries as modal verbs to make up for the loss of perceptible forms of the subjunctive mood ; (c) The tendency of the language to restrict the subjunc- tive to the most necessary functions, or to get rid of it altogether. The Preterite instead of the Present. 377. i. Clauses implying Unreality. Old English. "Him sculon eglan ooerra monna broca, swelce he efnswiSe him ^rowige " (he must grieve for the troubles of others, as if he suffer equally with them). Cura Pastoralis, 74, 10. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 235 ' ' Donne he underfehS ]>xt fenn Sara ftweandra, him SyncS swelce he forleose J>a smyltnesse his cla.-nnesse " (when he receives the dirt of the washers, it seems to him as if he loose the splendour of his purity). Cur a Pastoralis, 104, 24. Middle English. " Wateres he [Engelond] ha]) ek inou5, ac at uore alle oj>ere }>re Out of J>e lond in to J>e se, armes as J>ei it be" (rivers it has also enough, but especially three, out of the land into the sea as though it be [were] arms). ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 20, A.D. 1290. Later on we find ' as it were." The same development is met with in German. 378. 2. Noun Clauses dependent on impersonal Verbs. " 'Twere better she were kissed in general." SHAKESPEARE, Troilus and Cressida, iv. 5. Old English. "Selre bi?f o&5hwrem bset he his freond ivrece, J>onne he fela murne." (It is better for everybody that he revenge his friend than that he mourn much). Bemmilf, 1386. The Preterite in these clauses seems to be of recent date. 379. 3. Noun Clauses after Verbs expressing Wish. " I wish, grave governors, 'twere in my power To favour you, but 'tis my father's cause." MARLOWE, few of Malta, i. 2. Middle English instances are frequently met with. "Thus my wille is that iiivere." Townley Mysteries, p. 167. Auxiliaries as Modal Verbs. See Auxiliaries, 347 seq. 380. The Decay of the Subjunctive Mood. The following synoptic table will serve both to show the use of the Subjunctive in older periods and its gradual decay in later centuries. 236 ENGLISH SYNTAX I *- r s" w o o a u o ^ "^ g-S sfl 5f O rt W r. ,. >-*'"-r 'ft PH I * U 00 <&> 8- IS .S fc !; ensample couthe rel si I" ^1 : s I 3 ? l-a'dffl ^ s ^^ 4) -C *^3 < 1 o ~ c ~ " i-giSi Cfi < X g I W S o' O *J s J III " g w tt S *>* S ? * ^ , "*j . ri ^j ^O*** ^fa3 B * *^ ">3 rt J3 rt ^. ,** C X vs *T3 L_, ^2 "*** ^ L^ ^s >/; *~"S c ojOr*t* CN S W o i C -4-J ^ S? *~^ k$ ^ C/2 c ^\ r*- 5 <3 T^ ^ w rt 6 So-SS ^ J -s - *"t2 o o ' S _j ^\ ^** ^ r <~l * J ^^^ ua S - C ^s ^"^ 55 ^ ^J o s ^ ; h-i H S C* "^ " OO *tj "^ OO J5 ^ ."^ > ^ f$ S ' ^ en ^ S 12 C^ * " 43 Q . ^^^ >^ ^ !t " J3 HH G(SS^~ L '"* J ^"cH 5j ^," . *t. C h^ ^ Q *^ 4) r\ " H ^ O ^^ tx) t ro c/2 r^ t/1 Q HH Jsi H-t ^ HH K*"* ^ C ) * ^ K *>* " r* h* ^* r* fj * '^ S C .; jsjiS $% "5o Uo X o g ^ i ,3 ^ S |S rt *^i >. *u 4^ O <-> 2 ; 5d . "S ^ Jl'o'f <-> in 1! - "S iS ^ 1 ^ 1 ^ O si^ *g o" ' xrt %"'<; ^ .< *j> *SJH ^ "^ pr W t ^ " ^^ s R " w *>* "*~ "-S '~^ _c "^ "^^ uT 1 ^ *T ^t j>j _] S .'i ^o ^ ^* to ?X r ^3 ^ ^ ^-i O 2 Q *^> *~ tv -^ ^ -j r^ C "^ ^ "* Q Q O ^ . ^ rt o "S "' - .fS g (U ^3 "^ <^ 'S'S *> M^ o ^ O h . ^ B r^-i "" ^^.-"^ i wl. 2 CX ^ <0 ^<^ Sx w^ ^ r c ^11 ^ge d. oo to GLISH. 17 f * isl . 4j ^-^ ~ 06 s c- N i- I^S.d ^ 4-5 v Vj ~ -B- o ^ w ^,5 cy j N ^ . Vj j*v. SS .S ^* W Q 4 ^^ |1 ^ 1 a S S ^Pl ' il-s^I ill f s $^^5 _j ^ ^ 2 2 yJ *s* .> ^ JN 55 fl . - >> M rt ^J y ^2 t W Q tj >f * ^\ ** OJ -S ^ * " ^ W *S 3 a " II .* BTSx^^ N C M T3 ^ U .-; u-l .- ; S ^ JO rt^ a ^Q g = " ^-^ X S G ^" " . '^ g .v, (3 O 1 3 O 55 W w iliif- 1 HI "5J O ~ ^ .^ V J 8 ** ' >j " ' Q u j> f -g p ~JJ 00 5 '3 S a 'US^r^.S*^ .; <-] S> J^ f] *rj p ] ^ U! *.* i 01 5 junctive !5 d u_ -3 , * C3 O Q 1J ^-C f) 3 rt g s BS 'B 1 i)CT "35 .fi " >S S "^ 0) s w'i's-d ^? o '5 **" J^ g J2 N T3 Jj ^"3 ~ '2o *^ j5 ^^"^ ri . c ^ S * ^* L, yi .^ rt t/5 X3 .^s ,-j. y= g ^"K ^t ^" s '3'*'' >s S*^ - 1 - 1 ^ 00 X in e! _, o 1 rt -g b/3 Jj '. ^ O fc5 P >-< I 1 ** O 55 W O-i| S^.^ Si K *"* V ^""* 4 ~ l 3 b/3 B ^V^^^T-J^: O s 5.2 S s n' , rt 5 "^ 1| ^i 81 !^ g S ^ O 5 D rt c ^'S SP k ^f rt "T *il{i s^ rj.^J' 8 ! ^ J3 ^2 . j jd 5 5 M -*- ^-> 240 ENGLISH SYNTAX CLAU ADVERB o S c W 5 .5 1 I o % 2 ,j O v * S W he Ru l c "i "S S 1 ? g s i w-g a C/2 ^ 2 ^ rt O OX X - W bfl- SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 241 3 ^ CO .K JT a - 00 t/) r3 rt T^ ^ S 1 E.S^g 21 |S K || ^s_i \A "* o "* rt "<5J Ji ^ 2 I-) ^ ^ *^ O ^t oo to O W ~ % % x?-^ ^r ^ 0^3 Q o3 ^SU '^ "T^^ f5 O ^ .fjlj | ^ ; ^ S g Jl :-^=S u <2 N * 1 ft Vj 1 pq V s 1 fe 4) 2 1 d p Si XI t- o +-> cj 'idicatiu ,&, ,(X '$ ss > o * o is <^ o s l ^ S-fi ^H 1> d S Instances Irf H if 1 w s . -; o ^^ Is cn.y AUNDEVIL : l XI a s Hlal!*4t 5 J a- s ^1- o ; C o,^ 1 O ' ^ ^ T3 uT .> <-> O ^i -c- C x oi rt * * " u "^ J^ > s SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 243 I |^ <- * r-t <~ t ^i W o <3 f> > It o ^ ^^ "" kS J3 " S w O IS S A S r 1 '1 ^ ? ^ ^ "s ^ 3 " 1^ " Illl S K -G 5,^ 1 o J5 .^o M g Q X tn O-, bil oj 1 ^ 1 ;K j 53 D W "S3 1 O *N " " W ^< ^ " . < ^ G \^ ^ O ^ J^ v2 O SS w ^o >rt ^ S 2 Q c ^ 5 1 G a c O * v> y) U5 D ?3 | ^ ^> B 1 5 - I ? fi . <; G Ss*8s*B3p 06 00 OLD ENGLISH. Sumre tide mid j>y }>e we wa lirum drihtne, we astigon on scip, and he ateowde us sls&pende ware to costian :e upon a time when we v L our Lord, we ascended \ on board a ship, and he appef .s as if he were asleep, to pi Blickling Homilies, 235. Instances with Indicative. None. " .'S.S ^ cS S P A 244 ENGLISH SYNTAX a I a" 1 ^ vC rt k? ^f -if^'-. ^3,r *% .Cow -3 x - > -.5 o . 2 *? S5 2 < C >W & ^ ^1 $ ^,fe o CM 2 S- 1 a ,; -5 rt I -" O 2wj 3 M -C s o ^ & -,"$ O Q O "* > w . S q O 1 QO O SJ ^ J ^ ENGLIS Vsi 1 S . - g I MODERN t/5 '" * < ~ ^ 5 " Instances wit ^ll^l^lllf ^ ^ P,J g^o g'aTg f*J " "i* ^ c'g.S^af |3 , .^ . c5 ^i ^ c ? [f I waj not a f . V 43 O ^^ ^ M J - 1 " o - o sx, **^ *' i> ^L . rt f"^ i) 8 *T f sT <*> :? -- ^ gH^^^^-^ f : iriiirn O 5 K" , r^* ^ rQ - . S s; ^i^ ^^s ^ O - "*3 .12 jy *" ,s '^ 1 Is o ^ * .S 43 - %; IS ' xi "i w ^ ^ t^J at 'P^ > o ^ ^ .Vj > ' 13 'c ti a "i ^ O 2 '% 'i c| s " <** jj aj '"t^ *^^^i ^ . *^* C J^ ^ Q O O * ^^j *^*t O ""^ W * ** ^ hV*^ ^ ^^ g " ^ Ji c ^ t3 Q J- ^ * Oj t< ^* S ^ Q 5 - s ? | <-5 ^i -1 i !3 s 5J Oi '"O . c Q HJ . rt tj u> r- S3 4> g .' S "' G c 00 Iff -IT 1 * ^ P "Q " / /"- ' 5 ^3 'O . ~ .5 2 M ^C - Sl^ 1 8 O & % Sf 2 ** 3 13 y > ^ 0) "H ^ ^ ir> (/ C O .w 'O ^^ S ^H o * jj V*^* o t> o 2 Ul ^ jj g jj .J" s o J S *" t! !s 'i Q <-> : Isl s s.^ Mfl ^ ^iQ | IT 5 13 K S "iC ~ "S 'S o "s s g- ^ ro ^ 1 J 43 - W -^ ^ ^ % w . ^ o.s S^ "U S'si . ! Ill i! 1 i "3'n S H " UJ ^ C "5 CO > iJ 1 if ts ^ C *^^ ^ 2 < O H-I s s " OT ^ s * ffe ^ ^ T3 ^ pj ^t/3 jjj 11 "^ aj jS \J Q S *S tf <-> S 8 8 5 1 ^ W ^ r^ > ^ ~ ^ ^J -t- S 1 i J~! 1 <0 JH -^43 bJDSs S g TJ s -^ C ~ (U ^ r^ O ^ f*sj ^^ 5, 43 ^43 6 '52 ^ o 11 rt ^ * (3" " 1 ^ a> ~ ' **" * ' o rs Sj 2 ^_ o F O 43 4* ri C?\ ON D V ^J o "7? "^ *^^ **^ *l ^^ ft "^ U O ^"13 iif .^ ^sf^ .S^S 6 S ..-. j3 C5 J3 c5 73 rt Ql ~ O *-* dj '^ ^ o lj||l^l 1 'S c . = S c u o ^ cd .7 t> f \ B 1 g o . apostles -c ?. V >: f. 9) ^ en w^ i""^ . X & - 2 o """" -^- v: c^S I ~ M rtT3 >. o ^ *-r, w c u s u K MIDDLE ;e iherden er 0) in 3 ^ ' ^ 1 u u I .= ' o Ed f. . jfl ^- | ~ i u ^ = _u two apostle: they should English Hoti o> ^ 3 -S LS ? p rt^ 60 1=5 : 2 JB in - " Instances jg-Sljl ^!**i c ^ c/} .*"! > rt -*- * * -*- ? i *' i U g 2 O^i *J 4-1 1 |2J .c M 4) -i rQ ^'~- . " O iAI C"F * rt iu o ndicativ "rt -= a c i jiiht - a < E- cS O ."3 rt ^ j S *^ -^ 4 *N O *-' U SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 247 The Simple and Gerundial Infinitive. 392. The infinitive in the older periods of the language was still felt as a noun in every respect, and as such it was used in all the functions belonging to a noun, without the help of to. The so-called gerundial infinitive, however, came in very early, went on gaining ground from century to century, until it succeeded in restricting the simple in- finitive to the few cases in which it occurs nowadays, viz., after the auxiliaries : may, do, can, imist, shall, and will ; and after the following principal verbs : dare, let, bid, see, hear, feel, need, make, have. 393. The struggle between the two infinitives may be seen in all the Old and Middle English texts, and even in the sixteenth century the simple infinitive tries still to retain part of its old dominion. A few striking instances will show the development from the old to the modern use. Old English. Very frequent after impersonal verbs, e.g. " me getyihte writan ]>e " (it seemed good to me to write unto thee). Luke, i. 3- Middle English. " Rihten hire and sm&en hire is of euch religioun and of euerich ordre ]>e god, & al )>e strengSe " (to correct it and smooth it [sc. the heart] is the good and strength of every religion and every order). Ancren Riwle, 4. " Gon iseon swuch & elnen ham & helpen . . . . )>is is riht reli- gioun " (to go and visit such, and to comfort and assist them . . . this is right religion). Ibid. IO. Modern English. "You ought not walk." SHAK. Julius Casar, i. i= 3- "You were wont be civil." Othello, ii. 3, 190. " I list not prophesy." Wint. Tale, iv. I, 26. " He thought have slain her." SPENSER, Faerie Queene, i, i, 50. 248 ENGLISH SYNTAX " To : ' after Auxiliaries. " I would no more Endure this wooden slavery than to suffer The flesh-fly blow my mouth." Tempest, iii. i, 62. " Who would be so mock'd with glory, or to live But in a dream of friendship ?" Timon of Athens, iv. 2, 33. 394. When in the long struggle between the two infini- tives the old demarcation was removed, the gerundial in- finitive succeeded for a time even in getting into use after auxiliary verbs ; sometimes we see it along with the simple infinitive in the same sentence. " To do youre biding ay we wille. " 7'mvnley Mys. p. 38. " To say the best for sothe I shalle." Ibid. 266. " that I my5t the rather to haue grace." Early Eng. Wills, 129, 9. Elizabethan English. " She tells me she'll wed the stranger knight, Or never more to view nor day nor night. " Pericles, ii. 5, 17. " Some pagan shore, Where these two Christian armies might combine The blood of malice in a vein of league, And not to spend it so unneighbourly. " King John, \. 2, 39. For to. 395. The preposition for prefixed to the gerundial infinitive appears very early, implying the idea of aim and purpose. tl forr swa to winnenn blisse." Orm. 896. "forr uss to clennsenn." Ibid. 1384. "forr J>e to 5ifenn bisne." Ibid. 1239. Later on, the original meaning was forgotten, and for to was used along with to in the same sentence without any real distinction. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 249 "They alle sholde mounte on horsbacke/^r tenquyre and seke after his most dere and welbeloued sone, and to brynge hym ayen vnlo hym. " CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 20, 21. "ye myght well kepe your selfe that ye com not so often to see vs and for to doo vs harm." CAXTON, Aymon, 83, 9. In the time of Queen Elizabeth ''for to " is going out of fashion ; for while it occurs very often as a metrical stop-gap in minor poets, and (probably as a conscious) archaism in Spenser, Marlowe and Shakspere seem to have shunned it. In all the works of Marlowe I have counted but seven " for to," while, in Greene's Alphonsus, King of Arragon, there are fifty-three " for to " against fifty-two "to," and in Peele's (?) Sir Clyomon and Sir ^J Clamydes the number of both is the same, namely fifty. Functions of the Infinitive. 396. Though the infinitive ranges over a very wide area in Modern English, its functions were more numerous still in earlier periods. There are several interesting rem- nants in the literature of the Elizabethan age, and even in the popular language of our own times. 397. Infinitive instead of the (modern} Gerund. "Wythout aduenture tofynde." CAXTON, Blanch. 31, 18. " Wythout to make any noyse." CAXTON, Aymon, 78, 24. J " he salued hym prayng that for to paye well and largely content hym, he wold vouchsauf to take hym for his hoste."- Blanch. 46, 9. ' ' but none myght compare wyth Reynawde for to do well. " Aymon, 82,3. Elizabethan English. " To fright you thus methinks I am too savage." Macbeth, 5v. 2, 70. Not "too savage to fright you," but "/ or for frighting you." 1 This construction is due to the French original : sans trouver, sans airc. 250 ENGLISH SYNTAX "Too proud to be (of being) so valiant." Coriolanus, i. I, 263. "I will not shame myself to give you (by giving you) this." Merchant of Ven. iv. i, 431. " Make moan to be abridged." Ibid. i. I, 126. Not "/'# order to be" but "about being abridged." Cf. Abbott, Shakspearian Grammar, 356. 398. The Infinitive ttsed instead of a whole Clause (as a many-worded adverb). " To sue to live, I find I seek to die, And seeking death find life. " Measure for Measure, iii. I, 43. " He lefte not for to be forthwith quartered .... but that he toke that same sarasyn by the heyre." Charles the Crete, 132, 18. "and soo he lete conduyte the harper out of the countrey but to say that kyng Mark was wonderly wrothe he was" (conditional clause). Morte d 1 Arthur, 465, 12. ' ' Syr, quod they, to dye in the quarell we shall ayde and socoure you" (edition of 1601 "were we sure to dye"). LORD BERNERS, Huon, 22, 2. " I thanke the of thy grace to haue gyuen me the puyssaunce to sle such a creature " (edition of 1601 "that thou hast gyuen me," &c.). Ibid. 109, 21. Cf. Abbott, Shakspearian Grammar, 357. The Absolute Infinitive. "Moste sencelesse man he, that himselfe doth hate, To love another. Lo ! then, for thine ayd, Here take thy lovers token on thy pate So they to fight.'" SPENSER, Faerie Queetie i. 6, 47, 8. 399. There is a peculiar use of the infinitive which is found first in the second half of the fourteenth century. " I say this, be ye redy with good herte To al my lust, and that I frely may As me best liste do yow laughe or smerte, And never ye to gruch it." CHAUCER, Clerkes Tales, 158. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 251 " Let hym fynde a sarasyn Ajtd y to fynde a knyght of myn." Guy of Wanvick, 353 1, 2 I have tried in vain to find any trace of this use in earlier days, and can only account for it in the following way. There is a distinct tendency in the English of the four- teenth century to supplant adverbial clauses of time, and express a condition by absolute constructions. " \>e same Plato lyvyng, hys maistre socrates deservede victorie of unri5tful dee}) in my presence." CHAUCER'S Bocce, 184. (Original : eodemque superstite praeceptor ejus Socrates injustse vie- toriam mortis me adstante promeruit). "but I withstod ]>at ordinaunce and overcom it, knowyng al \is \e kyng hymself. " Ibid. 308. " The service doon, they soupen al by day." CHAUCER, Squyeres Tale, 289. " The cause iknoive, and of his harm the roote, Anon he yaf the syke man his boote. " Ibid. Canterbury Tales, Prologue, 423. 400. As appears by the preceding examples, both parti- ciples serve to represent clauses in the present and past tense. But how about the future? Why should there be no absolute construction for a clause with a future tense ? The want of a proper participle did not prevent the language from completing the use of absolute constructions. // resorted to the infinitive. Some writers tried to introduce a future participle. ' ' For mysbyleued men in tyme to corny nge schulde J>orw5 hem be conuerted and i-torned to good byleue." TREVISA, Polychr. i. 267. Cf. Skeat, Notes to Piers Plowman, p. 371. " He was to dyings." WYCLIFF, Litke, i. 2 (erat moriturus}. " to day nge." Ibid. xxii. 23 (facturus). But this innovation was not accepted. There is, how- ever, a similar formation in Caxton. 252 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Guy, hir loue and Incoming husband. " Charles the Crete, 134, 27. i.e. " that was to be." " Our tocomyng souerayne lorde." Blades, Caxton, 139, 40. This probably gave birth to that peculiar use which, in the course of its development, became more and more free, so that in the fourteenth century the absolute infinitive often serves to alternate with any principal sentence and clause. " I dar the better ask of you a space Of audience, to schewen oure request And ye, my lord, to doon right as yow lest." CHAUCER, Clerkes Tale, 49. ' ' Men schold him brenne in a fuyr so reed, If he were founde, or if men might him spye, And we also to here him companye." CHAUCER, Second Nonnes Tale, 315. " Vf it fortunyd that the vanquisser sle his enemye in the feld, or he confesse the treason for the deth of his sonne, that than the vatujtiyssher to lese all his londys. " LORD BERNERS, Huon, 40, 26. For other instances see Introduction to Blanchardyn, 29. There are several passages in Elizabethan literature which exhibit the same use. " Heaven would that she these gifts should have, And I to live and die her slave." As You like It, iii. 2, 162. Cf. Sonnets, 58. " But on this condition, that she should follow him, and he not to follow her." BACON, Advancement of Learning, 284. Dr. Abbott explains these constructions as a change for clearness' sake ; but the historical development does not confirm this explanation. Cf. A Shakspearian Grammar, 4i6. Modern English. " Only once, in place of a neat drawing of mine, in China-ink, representing Miles asleep after dinner, and which my friend Bunbury would not disown, I found a rude picture of myself going SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 253 over my mare Sultana's head, and entitled ' The Squire on Horseback, or fish out of water.' And the fellow to roar with laughter, and all the girls to titter, when I came upon the page ! " THACKERAY, The Virginians IV. 3. 1 " The caul was put up in a raffle down in our part of the country, to fifty members at half-a-crown a head, the winner to spend five shillings." DICKENS, David Copperfield, I. 2. " It seems a poor return for all these years, and me to have gone about in the woods with him when we were both boys and all. " BESANT AND RICE, The Monk of Thelema II. 285. The Accusative with the Infinitive. " 1 'judged him to be aforeigner."RWL\VKR. " He frankly avowed himself to be Wilfred of Ivanhoe." WALTER SCOTT. 401. The accusative + infin. as object of verbs like biddan (ask), hdtan (bid), sebn (see), gehyran (hear), findan (find), is quite common in Old English. " (he) &zv/him cngla ward. geopenigean, uncuSe wyrd " (he asked the lord of the angels to open the unknown destiny.) Elene, noi. " Swylce ic magti-pegnas mine hate witS feonda gehwone flotan eowerne arum healdan " (I also bid my men to keep well your vessel against any foe). Befavztlf, 293. " J>ser meahte gesion, se )>one siS beheold brecan ofer bseSweg brimwudu " (there might see who looked on the road, a vessel break over the bath-way [sea]). Elene, 243. ' ' J>u sset )>a&r sum blind J>earfa beSon wege, and gehyrde miccle menigo him beforan /&#" (there sat by the way a blind beggar, and heard a great multitude go before him). Blickling Homilies, 15. 402. This usage was later on developed in a double way. First, it was extended from the above-mentioned verbs to others, like know, think, declare, wish, suffer, until, in the 3 But this is an intentional imitation of the French idiom : Et nous de repondre, etc 254 ENGLISH SYNTAX sixteenth century, the construction of the accusative + infinitive had almost as wide a range in English as in Latin ; Secondly, there came in the gerundial infinitive, while in Old English the simple one is the rule. Modern English. 403. (a] Instances with the simple infinitive. " And ne \>ole me neuer nan oSer bing a5ain f>i wille luuie " (and suffer me never to love anything against thy will). Old English Homilies I. 285, A.D. I20C. " And :he it clepit Moysen 5he wiste of water it boren ben " (she called it Moses, she knew it to be born of water). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 2632, A.D. 1250. " IVilde bttllokes heo wuste fale ope ane heije hulle go " (wild bullocks she knew to go on a high hill). Lives of Saints (HORSTMANN), 38, 67. A.D. 1290. 44 Man schal not suffre his wyf go roule about." CHAUCER, Wyf of Bathe, Prologue, 453. " }>erfore J>ey suffre J> no man be a knyght J>at will be her lorde." TREVISA, Higden's Polychronicon I. 263, A.D. 1387. ' ' No woman ought to chide nor to strive with a fole that she suf- posithe have a malicious hert." Knight of La Tour Landry, p. 21, A.D. 1440. Tudor English. " How is it that thou art sounkynd and outtragyous to me, for so lyttel offence to suffer me endure this greate misery ?"- LORD BERNERS, Huon 124, 31. A.D. 1534. 404. (b} Instances with the gerundial infinitive. " \K>/f us to bi-wepen ure sunne" (suffer us to bewail our sins). Old English Homilies, I. 71, A.D. 1200. " ne nalde he nawt \olien \>e peof forte breoken hire " (nor would he suffer the thief to break into it, sc. the house). ibid. 245. " Trawes thou this lady bryght of ble Here loue on thee to lay ? " Ypomadon, 846-7. A.D. 1340. "But suffre me my mischief to bywaylle. " CHAUCER, Troylus atid Cryseyde, I. 755. 4 ' I shal leue to telle yow of the kynge and the quene, stffiyng theym to demayne (utter) theire complayntes. " CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 21, 6. A.D. 1489. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 255 In the sixteenth century to becomes the rule. Modern English. Instances abound. 405. Note. While the accusative with the infinitive as object became more and more frequent in modern times, the same construction as subject did not outlive the six- teenth century. "No wondur is a Ictvid man to ruste." CHAUCER, Cant. Tales, Prologue, 502. "now were it tymea lady to gette henne." Ibid. Knight es Tale, 1430. "but it is good a man be at his large." Ibid. Troylus III. 581. " (his folke) putte hem self vpon their enmyes, so that it was force the polonyens to recute abak." CAXTON, Blanch. 107, 18. " It may fortune a man to be sorry for his synne." FlSHER, English Works, 32, II. " Hyt is not sufficient a man to get knowledge and virtue." STARKEY, England in the time of Henry VIII. p. 6. The Nominative with the Infinitive. " I to bear this . . . is some burden." SHAKSPERE. 406. In the fifteenth century, and even in Shakspere, we sometimes find the infinitive in connection with the nomina- tive case instead of the expected accusative, after substantives, adjectives, and impersonal verbs. " Tha wurdan \mfyegelyfde, ond Crist him sealde gesih J>e " (and they became quickly believing, Christ gave them a sight). Blick. Horn. X 5S> 5- Cf. forworht = wicked. WULFSTAN, 14, 2. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 257 Middle English. " nu leofe breSre 56 habbeS iherd hwa erest biwon reste bam forgulte saule " (now, dear brethren, ye have heard who first obtained rest for the souls of the damned). Old Eng. Horn. I. 45. " Now hadde Calkas left, in this mischaunce, Alle umviste of this fals and wikked dede, His doughter." CHAUCER, Troy his and Cryseyde, I. 93. Modern English. " He was a scholar, Exceeding wise, fair-spoken, and persuading." Henry VIII. iv. 2, 52. Cf. ''better-spoken.' 1 '' Leariv. 6, 10. 11 well-spoken." Rich. III. I, I, 29 ; i. 3, 348. "Like one in ell-studied in a sad ostent." Merch. of Venice, ii. 2, 205. " We were read in the classics." SMOLLETT, Roderick Random, p. 49- The Absolute Participle. ' ' She being dcwm t I have the placing of the British crown." SHAK. Cymbeline, 3, 5 167. 409. When to a substantive not the subject of a verb, and dependent upon no other word in the sentence (noun, adjective, verb, or preposition), a participle is joined as its predicate, a clause is formed that modifies the verbal predicate of the sentence, and denotes an accompanying circumstance, as in : " Urbe expugnata imperator rediit." * This definition is correct with regard to our present con- ception of this expression. To us the construction as exhibited in the above instances is really absolute, i.e. detached from all the members of the sentence. 410. But originally there was no such a thing as an abso- lute participle. What we look upon as such was simply a very freely used case implying at first instrumental meaning, then including by degrees also cause and time. 1 Morgan Cnllaway, The Absolute Participle in Anglo-Saxon. S 258 ENGLISH SYNTAX "Crassus cohortatus suos, omnibus cupientibtts, ad hostium castra contendit. " C.^SAR, B. G. 3, 24, 5. " Nullo hoste prohibcnte aut iter demorantc incolumem legionem in Allobroges perduxit. ' ' Ibid 3, 6, 5. " Thrasybulus a barbaris, ex oppido noctu eruptione facta, in taber- naculo interfectus est." Nep. 8, 4, 4. What gives this construction such a strange appearance to our modern eyes is, first, the extensive meaning of the case, then the concreteness of the conception so entirely different from our own. It is not the action or state as an abstract, but the person or thing acting, which is the subject of perception, feeling, or thought. "hae liters recitata magnum luctum fecerunt" (= the reading of this letter). LIVIUS, 27, 29. "poena violates religionis iustam recusationem non habet " (= for the violation of religion). CICERO, De Leg. 2, 15. 41 1. This mode of expression was by no means unfamiliar to the English of the older periods. But when we have emancipated our mind from the fetters of our modern languages, and have once got accustomed to the old expres- sion, we find no .difficulty in understanding the so-called absolute construction. What makes this explanation sure almost beyond doubt is the use of be in Old Frisian and Old English, and at in Gothic and Old Norse. "se be Diocletiane lyfgendum Gallia rice rehte " (qui vivente Diocletiano Galliam regebat). BEDA, I. 8. "Sset heo forketen haefde bi Sam fader lifiendum" (= idolatrise, quam vivcnte eo intermisisse videbantur). Ibid. II. 5- "Waes he be fta?i brewer lifigendum wraecca in Gallia" (= qui vivente adhuc fratre cum exularet in Galliam). Ibid. II. 15. Old Frisian. " sllpendere thiade and bi unwissa wakondon " (homi- nibus domientibus et incertis vigilantibus). GRIMM, Deutsche Gram- mat ik, iv. 905. "Jah galaij) in Jairusaulyma Jesus j ah in alh ; jah bisaihvands alia, at andanahtja ju)>an visandin hveilai usiddja in Bejmuan nii|> Jwim tvalibim " (and Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple : and SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 259 when he had looked round about upon all things, and now the eventide was come, he went out unto Bethany with the twelve.) Mark, xi. n. "Jah sunsaiv nauhj>anuh at imma rodjandin quam Judas" (and immediately, while he yet spake, cometh Judas). Ibid. xiv. 43. Old Norse. See Grimm, Deutsche Grammatik, iv. 9O6. 1 So much for the Old English construction. 412. In Middle English the surviving of the absolute participle (with the nominative or accusative, of course) is probably due, at least partly, to the French model of the same construction. "Eus toz veanz = cunctis videntibus"; "tesmonianz les bons et les feoz hommes = bonis ac fidelibus viris attestan- tibus." It is, however, worth noting that, in French, the absolute participle is always connected with the oblique case, while, in English, the nominative replaced the Old English dative case. Instances abound. THE VERBAL NOUN. Functions of the Verbal Noun. 413. The verbal noun with its functions of noun and verb has been for a long time the great puzzle of the gram- marians, a real crux philologonim. In fact, it has absorbed the functions of : 1. The Old English verbal noun in -ung (ing), e.g., sceawung (showing). 2. The present participle. 3. The Latin gerund. 4. The French participle in -ant. 1 A similar construction occurs in Modern English. See above Nominative, 154. S 2 260 ENGLISH SYNTAX But from an etymological point of view the verbal noun may be traced back to only two sources, viz., the Old English verbal noun and the present participle. The Verbal Noun used Substantively, " Returning were as tedious as go o'er." SHAKSPERE. 414. In this function the verbal noun simply derives from the Old English abstract in -ung. Instances of it are very common in all the periods of the language. The Verbal disguised as a Predicate. "The house is building . " 415. This use was brought about by the analogy of intransitive verbs. In Middle English the verbal noun both of transitive and intransitive verbs was preceded by in or on (later on a}. " Vor J>ine men J>at bej> ygo to day avissinge " (for thy men that are to-day gone a fishing). ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 5351. "The church was in byldynge" ROBERT OF BRUNNE'S Chronicle. I. cxcvii. (Quoted by Morris, Accidence, p. 179.) "he founde the chirche of saynte peter a makynge." CAXTON, Ay man, 576, 8. " As he rode in huntings." Gesta Rom. 136. "And as he was in making of his lamentacion. " Ibid. 231. " She wyst not what she sholde saye or thynke thereof, whether she was a wakyngor a slepe." CAXTON, Blanch. 152, 34. Now, the preposition preceding the verbal noun of intransitive verbs, was quite superfluous, and was dropped accordingly: "he is in hunting" became "he is hunting," but false analogy extended this proceeding also to the transitive verbs : " the house is in building " became " the house is building." SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 261 Tlie Verbal Noun preceded by Prepositions. " I never did repent for doing good" SHAKSPERE. 416. In this instance the verbal noun borders on the nature of the present participle in so far as it governs an object without the help of the preposition of. Considering the substantival nature of the verbal noun we should expect " for the doing of good," a construction which really appears pretty frequently in Middle and Modern English times. But " doing good " without of was probably modelled on the older type "good-doing," which was continued to the last of the Middle English period. ' ' Biscopas mid folcum buton stnigre are scedwunge fornumene wseron " (bishops and people without any mercy-showing were destroyed). BED A, I. 5. "bi his clones wrixhmge" (by changing his clothes). Old Eng. Horn. i. 207. " by his side openunge " (opening his side). Ibid. " late usage be sowre solace of seyntes lyues redynge " (derive comfort from reading lives of Saints). Piers Plowman, Text B, VII. 87. "without any money payenge. " Early Eng. Wills, 170, 2O (A.D H36). In Wycliff's writings both constructions are met with : almes doynge 116, doyng almes 83. 417. Note. We now use ( wMe' with the verbal noun, where, in Old English, the simple participle was preferred, e.g.: " ealo drincende oSer saedon " (= others said while drinking ale). Beow. 1946. I suppose that in, imitated from the French, was grafted upon the old participle, so that it kept its verbal function. Therefore it was not followed by of, even in the earliest periods of its use. " And thei seye, that we synne dedly, in schavynge oure Berdes" MAUNDEV. p. 19. 262 ENGLISH SYNTAX "He was a dedly creature, such as God hadde formed, and duelled in the Desertes, in purchasynge his Sustynance" Ibid. p. 47. Verbal Noun interchanged with the Present Participle. 41 8. " What's the use of me speaking ? " " Do not mind me coming so late." This expression is older and decidedly more concrete than the modern "my speaking," "my coming." The principle is the same which accounts for the so-called absolute participle. See above, 411. " To-janes J>o sunne risindde " (= at the time of sunrise). Old Eng. Miscellany, 26. " Alle waters als )>ai sail rynne And ]>at sal last fra )>e son rysyng Till J>e tyme of e son doungangyng. " HAMPOLE, Pricke of Conscience, 4777/. "After the sunne goyng down." WYCLIFF, Genesis, xxviii. u. In later times this use began to decay, as indeed in every respect abstraction supplanted intuition, and the verbal noun took the place of the old present participle. Thus Purvey alters the instance quoted above to "aftir the goyng down of the sunne." Cf. Exod. xxii. 26, Deuteronomy, xi. 30. There are parallel constructions in Old French writers, and even in Corneille. "Li rois les fera pendre dins le sohil escoiis" (the king will have them hanged before sunset : literally, before the sun gone down). de Montauban, ed. Michelant, 189, 19. " Ains le soleil col chant " (before the sun going down). Ibid. 387, 34- " A la lune luisant " (at the moon shining). La Chanson des Saxons (par JEAN BODEL), i. 158. " Avant cejour fini, ces mains, ces propres mains, Laveront dans mon sang la honte des Remains. " CORNEILLE, Les Horaces, iii. 6. Cf. TOBLER, Vermischte Beitrage zur frz. Graminatik (Leipzig, 1886), p. 94 SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 263 A few instances which answer exactly to those quoted at the head of this section occur in Caxton. " Moost humblie besekyng my sayd most drad souerayn & nature! liege lorde the kyng and also the Quene to pardon me so presumyng. " CAXTON 's Prologue to Life of Jason (Blades, p. 140). " Humbly requyryng and besechyng my sayd lord to take no display- sir on me so presumyng." CAXTON'S Epil. to Dictes and Sayings of the Philosophers (Blades, p. 148). " Humbly besechyng his hyenes to take no displesyr at me so presu- myng." CAXTON'S Epil. to Godefroy of Bologiie (Blades, 165). 419. Note. The editor of the Spectator having con- demned this use as ungrammatical, a correspondent replied (May 26th, 1890) in the following way: "It is amusing that we have only to look back to the preceding column in order to find that you yourself, Mr. Editor, must be classed with penny paper writers. . . . Remarking on a previous letter, you say : ' We do not wonder at governments hesi- tating ' ; and the context requires ' governments ' to be plural, as it is printed, and not a possessive singular 'government's.' Hence hesitating must be a participle, not the participle noun which alone the principal could tolerate in such a connection. Now, present participles signify ' in the act of doing ' or ' while doing ' this or that ; so that ' What is the use of me speaking ? ' means of what use am I or shall I be while, or if, I speak ? ' He heard of us coming,' ' I can prevent him doing it.' What in the world is the matter with these? We can see one coming, and also one doing a thing; why not, then, hear of one corning, and prevent one doing ? hear of or prevent the self-same thing that we can see ? At any rate, if ' what is the use of me ' is not ungrammatical, the addition of ' speaking ' as a participle, does not make it so." In fact, the old expression has been gaining ground for the last decades in a surprising manner. 264 ENGLISH S YNTA X " We have no right to be hurt at a girl telling me what my faults are" (not "a girl's"). THACKERAY, The Virginians, iii. 186. " There is always danger of this disease appearing in the sound eye." HUGH CONWAY, Called Back, 13. "There are plenty of instances on record of a key having opened a strange lock. " Ibid. 25. " He was the only son of an only son, which fact accounts for Pauline having no near relatives on her father's side." Ibid. 718. "I had no patience with Croisette talking such nonsense." WEY- MAN, House of the Wolf, 45. "Don't fear me being any hindrance to you, I have no more to say." DICKENS, David Copper-field^ ii. 290. " I ask where possibly at Compton Green there could be pictures without me knowing it." BESANT AND RICE, Ready Money Mortiboy, i. 289. " Would you mind me asking a few questions?" R. L. STEVENSON, The Wrong Box, p. 80. The Verbal Noun in Compounds. "This is the wandering wood, this Error's den." SPENSER, Faerie Qtieene, I, I, 13. 420. The extremely free use of the verbal noun as an adjective to substantives, which is the characteristic of Elizabethan English ("undeserving praise," " unrecalling crime," in Shakspere) is not met with in older periods. It is simply a shift to make up for two wants. 1. The passive participle present. 2. Composition of nouns with verbal roots, as it was common in the old languages, and is still kept in Modern German to such a great and advantageous extent, e.g., Fahrweg, Singhalle, Tanzsaal. In the French both wants were made up for awkwardly enough by the present participle. " Seance tenante ; argent comptant ; ecole payante ; ville passante ; noble parure pas trop voyante ; chemin bien roulant, bien tirant ; cafe chantant ; morceau chantant ; soiree dansante ; salle dansante." SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 265 In English the much more appropriate verbal noun was introduced. Hence the following expressions. Middle English. ' ' And si [>en J>ai sal you cast in brine As men do wit salting swine. " Cursor Mundi, 26775 (Cotton MS.) i.e. swine destined to be salted. " Anon go gete us fast into this in A knedyng trowh or else a kemelyn."- CHAUCER, Miller's Tale, 362, cf. ibid. 378, 408. Elizabethan English. "Tell him, from his all-obeying-breath I have The doom of Egypt." Antony, iii. 13, 77. i.e. obeyed by all. " My lady to the manner of the days In courtesy gives undeserving praise." Lovers L. L. v. 2, 366. i.e. undeserved. Cf. Sheridan, The Rivals, iii. 3. " Let me now conjure my kind, my condescending angel to fix the time when I may rescue her from undeserving persecution." "And ever let his unrecalling crime Have time to wail th' abusing of the time." Lucrece, 993. " I am no breeching scholar in the schools." Taming of the Shrew, iii. i, 1 8. " Which raised in me an undergoing stomach." Tempest, i. 2, 158. THE ADVERB. Relation between Adjective and Adverb. 421. THE adverb stands in the closest relationship to the adjective. Logically speaking, the department of the former is accurately separated from that of the latter, but just as the line of demarcation between noun and verb is often 266 ENGLISH SYNTAX scarcely recognizable (cf. verbal noun, infinitive, participle), so the adverb often borders on the adjective and vice versa. In the phrase "an early riser," ' early' is from the grammatical point of view an adjective ; but psychologically and logically speaking it is an adverb, and the uncertainty is due to the fact that "riser" too ranges between a noun and a verb. In consequence of this close relationship between the two parts of speech there are several cases in which both are interchanged. Adverbs used in the form of Adjectives. " Some will dear abide it." SHAKSPERE. 422. The adverb occurring in this instance, ended in older periods in the adverbial suffix -e (debre) ; later on, the e was dropped, but the adverbial use was kept. Next, analogy introduced adjectives of romance origin in an adverbial use. This accounts for the form ; but as for the syntactic use, the language would certainly have made up for the loss of e by some suffix, e.g., by -ly (as it did, in fact), if the dis- tinction between the two parts of speech had not been partly dimmed. Middle English. " & he siker slepte. " LAYAMON, i 171. "]KI )>is child vizsfeir muche." Ibid. i. 12. "So vuel bi-5ete." Ibid. ii. 506. "Sanct Andrew wass Richht god and ha5herr hunnte " (St. Andrew was a right good and dexterous hunter). Orm, 13470. "This hille is not rig/it gret, ne full highe." MAUNDEVILLE, p. 31. Modern English. "Which the false man does easy." Merchant of Venice, ii. 3, 143. "Thou didst it excellent." Taming of the Shrew, i i, 89. "Which else should />-&? have wrought." Macbeth, ii I, 19. "Raged more fierce." Rich. II. ii I, 173. The sun shines bright. Instances abound. SYNTAX OF THE PAKTS OF SPEECH 267 Adjectives used instead of Adverbs. "And slow and sure comes up the golden year." TENNYSON. 423. This use is due to the same principle which we saw at work increasing the so-called absolute participle and the gerund with personal pronouns. Cf. above, 411 and 418. Here again the sensuous imagination sees the quality rather in the concrete person or thing than in the abstract action or state. Thus, instead of the moon shining brightly it sees a bright moon shining. The same use is frequent in other languages. Greek: "euSov Trawv^toi" (Homer); " KprjvTj a#ovos pe'oucra" (Xenophon) ; "KAe'wv TTOAVS CVC'KCITO Xe'ywv " (Thucydides). Latin : " domesticus otior ; " "vespertinus pete rectum" (Horace) ; "altero duce nocturno Syracusas introitum erat " (Virgil) ; " Aeneas se matutinus agebat " (ibid.). Middle English. " And lejliy 5ho him fedde" (and lovingly she fed him). Orm, 3181. " If ye listen hfful to me Ic wile min folc owen be. " Story of Genesis and Exodus, 3447. Modern English. " (She) lept fierce upon his shield." SPENSER, Faerie Queene, I. I, 18. " Clear shone the skies." THOMSON, Spring. "While the billow mournful rolls." TH. CAMPBELL, Battle of the Baltic. "My wedding-bell rings merry in my ear." SHERIDAN KNOWLES, Hunchb. I, I. Adverbs used as Adjectives. " Thy sometime brother's wife." SHAKSPERE. 424. On the other hand, adverbs are used predicatively as adjectives, e.g., " he is down in the world," the construction being felt by the instinct of the language as identical with the corresponding adjective. 268 ENGLISH SYNTAX From its predicative position the adverb next proceeds to be used even as an attribute preceding the substantive, e.g., the above instance = the instance above (sc. quoted above). Thus in Greek : " TT/V e/cet Trcu'Sevo-iv, TTJV TrXrjcriov rvxn v > T< ? v yw**-" Latin: "nunc hominum mores vides?" (Plautus) ; "ignari sumus ante malorum" (Virgil) ; " discessu turn meo " (Cicero). Middle English. " My saulle lufes my lord abuf." Tvwnley Myst. p. 82. " For hys er dedes wys and vvyght." Octouian, 1807. " Thou v\ oldest undoing Of thi to-nightes meting. " Seityn Sages, 2405. Modern English. " Say first, of God above, or Man belo~M, What can we reason, but from what we know." POPE, Essay on Man, \, 17. "The seed of the then -world" BYRON, Cain, i, i. " In the then condition of my mind, his former protection of me appeared so deserving of my gratitude." DICKENS, David Copperfield, II. 52. THE PREPOSITIONS. Close relation between Prepositions and Conjunctions. " All were gone save him, who now kept guard." ROGERS. " None, save thou and thine, I've sworn, Shall be left upon the mom." BYRON. 425. BOTH the prepositions and conjunctions are con- nective elements, the former being used only in connection with nouns (or other parts of speech in the same function), the latter serving to link together not only single nouns, but also sentences and clauses. This distinction, however, is not essential ; hence we see many particles used in the functions both of preposition and conjunction. "He has been about me since my arrival " = " he has been about me SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 269 since I arrived." In a few cases it is even difficult to decide whether the particle is to be considered a preposition or a conjunction, and, in fact, we see the use vacillating between both. Thus the particles but and save are sometimes used governing an oblique case, and sometimes with the nominative. " Ond eallum dagum butan sunnan dag/////" (all days save Sunday). BEDA, 3, 23. " Nsefd" he nan J>ing J>e ne si on mi'num amvealde biiton J>//" (he hath nothing that is not in my power but thou). Genesis xxxix. 3. "None but I have seen it." CAXTON, Blanch. 43, 32. Cf. above, Interchange of Cases, 207. Cf. German. " Niemand kommt mir entgegen ausser tin Unverschamter " (Nobody comes to meet me but an insolent man). LESSING. "Dass ich nicht nachdenken kann ohne mit der Feder in der Hand " (I cannot think but with pen in hand). Id. " Kein Gott ist ohne ich " (there is no God but I). LUTHER. Development from Local to Temporal and Modal Meaning. 426. Most of the prepositions serve originally to denote local relation ; from this function they pass by degrees also to that of expressing relation of time, cause, and modality. A few instances will suffice to illustrate this development. At denotes proximity of space. " Peter stood at the door without."^////, xviii. 16. It next refers to objects of all kinds with which a subject is thought to be implicated and engaged : " We were at the meeting." " We are hard at work." The notion of proximity of space is then applied to proximity of time: " They returned at sunrise." "I saw him at our last meeting." At last at is employed to express also modal relation. " My life is yours, I humbly set it at your wilL" Cymbeline, 4, 3, 13. 2 70 ENGLISH S YNTAX From means at first, with regard to space, movement from an object : " I came from town." " He is from home." Transferred to time, from denotes an activity extending from a starting-point in time to another. "From morn to noon he fell." MlLTON. The next step is to denote origin. "This offer comes from mercy, noifrom fear." SHAKSPERE. At last it comes to denote cause. "From my respect for his father, I'll be calm." GOLDSMITH, S/ie Sloops to Conquer, 4. The Prepositions make up for the Case-endings. " Gilpe5 J)u girnest " ( = for fame thou yearnest). BOETHIUS, 32. " StiSes werig ? ' (=: weary am reoum witum and sume eac ablende of J>am bysmor-fullum )>enum " (but God delivered them from the cruel torments, and even blinded some of the blasphemous servants). , Lives of Saints, 397-8. We should expect either ' \d ra ' instead of ' of \am,' or of ' sume \a ; ' Cf. 175- Other instances : an of \&m (one of them), Lindisfarne Gospels (quoted by Kington Oliphant, Old and Middle SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 271 English, p. 87); yef of his gaste (gift of his spirit), Chronicle, 1095 (ibid. p. 136) ; eie of him (awe of him), ibid. p. 141 ; san/e of him, ibid. 150. For other instances, see above Genitive, passim. 429. To replacing the Objective Genitive. " (He) forgiaf hire hire sinnen for two )>inge, an is muchel le'cWe to hire sunne, offer muchel luue to him " (he forgave her her sins for two reasons ; the first is her great hatred to her sins, the second is her great love to him). Old English Homilies, II. 141. Cf. ibid. I. 107, II. 159. . To replacing the Dative. 430. There are faint beginnings of this use in Old English. " (Hagar) j>olian ne wolde yfel and ondlean, j>a:s )>e cer dyde to Sarran " (Hagar would not suffer the evil and recompense for what she had done to Sarah). C^EDMON, Genesis, 2265. Later on, instances become more frequent. ba binges J?e birisef to seiche kinge (the things that befit every king). LAYAMON, i. 418 ; Orm has ' herrsumm tiir (obedient to) (quoted by Mr. Oliphant, I.e. p. 199) ; Ancren Riwle ' lufsum to ein ' (lovely to the eyes), ibid. p. 239- But still, throughout the thirteenth century, ' to ' replacing the dative is far from being generally accepted. Cf. the following instance : ' ' For no man ne mai synnes beten er Jjanne he hem forlete and shewe(h)em his prest " (for no man may repent of his sins, before he has forsaken them, and shown them to his priest). Old English Homilies, //. 57- "And ]>eh ure drihten be mild-heorted \o J>e him biddeo", he is noSeles rihtwis togenes |>o )>e his milce biseche'3 " (though our Lord be merciful to those who pray to Him, yet He is just to those who beseech His mercy). Ibid. 59. 272 ENGLISH SYNTAX Cf. ibid. 97, 99, 125, 127, 135, 183, 219. I do not remember any such ' to ' in the Story of Genesis and Exodus (A.D. 1250), nor is it frequent in ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, (A.D. 1290). In Chaucer ' to ' is common. With replacing the Instrumental Case. 431. The use of the preposition instead of the instru- mental case is met with also in Old English, only here it is always mid, while later comes with. Old English. " he mid handum befing wuldres wynbeam " (he with his hands seized the glorious tree). Elene 843. ' ' )>a geseah he Crist sylfne mid )>y ilcan hraegle gegyredne, j>e he aer J>aem ]>earfan sealde " (he saw Christ himself clad in the same garment which before he had given to the poor man). Blickling Homilies, 215, Middle English. " Mid sweord and mid spere Al he todrof J>es Ringes here." LAYAMON, I. 24. "Thesu, mit ti swete blod J>u bohtest ful me deore " (Jesus, with thy sweet blood thou boughtest me full dear). Old English Miscellany, 196, 32. "fram Aflfric hii wende varj> mid J>e wind )>at was so god." ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 345. " Mid him he hadde an strong axe, |>at maniman bn>5te to de|>e. Corineus \>ssmide harde smot. " ibid. 390. Thus MS. a ; others have ' her wi\>.' With = mid is found as early as the beginning of the thirteenth century. "To wurj>en god wip bedes and ivip lakes" (to worship God with prayers and offerings). Orm. 905. It becomes frequent in the second half of the thirteenth century. " Al was Sat firme oYosing in nigt, Til he wit hise word made light " (all that first chaos was in night till he with his wand made light). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 44, A.D. 1250. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 273 " He was so faste -wit yuel fest )>at he ne mouthe hauen no rest. ' Havelock, 144, A. D. 1280. " But on J;at he nouth wit his hend Ne drejje him nouth, J>at fule fend." (but with his hands he killed him not, that foul fiend). ibid. 505. In Robert of Gloucester, A.D. 1290, the MSS. vary between mid and wi\. 432. Quite exceptionally we find to and at used in the same way as Old English mid. "[J*^] scrveden me to fote and honde." Alexius (ed. Schipper) I. 161. " I shal amende aftere thys Ryght as thin owyn wyl is To serve the at foot and honde." Coventry Mysteries, 123. Note. The old instrumental case survived throughout the Middle English period in the idiom ' his own hand (hondes) ' = with his hand. " ]>e pope bitok him armes, and his cette Hselend ware Uvcled on Eesten, and j)aet he ware costod/rw;/ deofle " (here says Matthew the wvangelist, that the Saviour was led into the wilderness, and that he was tempted by the fa\'i\.).Blickling Homilies, 27. 2 74 ENGLISH S YNTA X 434. But there are a few instances with ' of instead of 'fratn.' "Ae)>elstan wres of Myrcum gecoren to cinge" (Athelstan was chosen king by the Mercians). Chronicle, 925. ' ' He wear J> par ofslagen of his agenum folce " (he was killed there by his own people). Ibid. 1030. Quoted by Matzner, II. 252. 435. In Middle English there are three prepositions to introduce the agent, namely, of, with, and by. Of these *0f' is the rule, especially in early Middle English, with (mid) is not unfrequent, while ' by ' is the exception. 1 . . . " Jrast be pare cennendra gefyrhtum paes bearnes weorpe ongyten ware be )>ysum eallum oj>rum mannum " (that by the doubts of the parents the child's dignity should be understood by all these other men). Blickling Homilies, 163. (a) Of. ' ' Ne hit nes nefere ifuled of nanre oSre assa " (nor had it ever been denied by any other ass). Old English Homilies, I. 5, A.D. 1200. " Abel an hundred ger was old San he was of is broSer wold. " (Abel was a hundred years old when he was killed by his brother). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 420, A.D. 1250. " Suppe has Engelond ibe iwerred ilome Of )>e folc of Denemarch " (Since England has been often invaded by the people of Denmark). ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 52, A.D. 1290. " Galle hit was cald pat tyme of alle." ROBERT DE BRUNNE, Story of England, 1600. A.D. 1338. " pese novelries maad of ydiotis and synful wracchis." WYCLIFF, Unprinted English Works, p. 3, A.D. 1380. " His sowle in helle ful peynfully Of develis is al to-torn." Coventry Mysteries, 187, A.D. 1440. (b) With (mid). " Heo is dust and unstable ping )>et mid a lutel wind of a word is anon toblowen." Ancren Riwle, 122, A.D. 1220. 1 There are a few instances of this last in Old English. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 275 " If erf or man Sor-one take, It deafc fcolen, wifc stones slagen, Or to deafc ivfe gores dragen " (If cattle or man touch it [the mountain], they shall suffer death, slain with stones, or drawn to death by darts). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 3458, A.D. 1250. "Now sith that maydens hadde such despit To ben defouled with mannes foul delit, Wei aught a wyf rather hir-self to sle, Than be defouled, as it thenketh me." CHAUCER, The Frankeleynes Tale, 660. " I trow your prison shuld not be so harde to me as it shulde be, and I were take with Englisshe men." Knight of La Tour-Landry, 18, A.D. 1440. (<) By. " J>es psalm is iwriten bi Davide." EADWINE'S Canterbury Psalter, p. 268, A.D. 1150. Quoted by Mr. Kington Oliphant, Old and Middle English, p. 1 60. ..." and it may be prouyd be men of )>e self gyld, he shal payyn di. li. (\ Ib.) wax." English Gilds, 63 A.D. 1329. " Yet eft, be huam ]>et angel is ymad, be him is ymad )>e smale werm." Ayenbite of Inwyt, 270, A.D. 1340. " This child Maurice was siththen emperour I-maad by the pope." CHAUCER, Man of Lawes Tale, 1024. In Caxton's time ' of still prevails. The proportion of the three prepositions in Caxton's ' Blanchardyn and Eglan- tine' 1 is as follows : of : by : with = 20 : 3 : 2. In the sixteenth century ' by ' rapidly comes to the fore. In Hugh Latimer's Sermons on the Card, A.D. 1529, ' by is the rule, and in Shakspere it is extremely common, although ' of in the same function is frequent. ' For ' + Accusative + Infinitive. 436. "For Coriolanus neither to care whether they love or hate him, manifests the true knowledge he has." SHAKSPERE, Coriolanus, II. 2, 13- T 2 276 ENGLISH S YNTA X For this use, see 71. ' With ' in connection with Participles. 437- " With the enemy invading our country, it was my duty to go on the campaign." THACKERAY, The Virginians. For this use, see 154. Prepositions Omitted. 438. In many idioms of Elizabethan and modern times, there is a striking want of prepositions, which was somewhat rashly termed ' ellipsis of preposition.' Thus Dr. Abbott devotes several sections of his Shakspearian Grammar to that point. But in examining closely the instances quoted by Dr. Abbott, we find that they do not justify such an appellation. ' Ellipsis ' of a preposition implies that a preposition was generally used for a time, but was dropped in a following period, or that is was generally used, but was omitted by Shakspere or other poets ; but the history of English shows that, in most of the quoted instances, this is not the case. 439. After 'worth' and 'worthy' "Some precepts worthy the note." Alts Well that Ends Well, III. 5, 104. Worthy like worth governs here the accusative of measure, originally genitive. Instances of worth + accusative are met with in the first period of Middle English. " Jni art best ivur%> my luue j>at for my luue deidest " (thou art most worthy of my love, thou that didst die for the love of me). Old English Homilies, I. 285, A.D. 1 200. "J)is Hues blisse nis ivur^f> a sloe." Old English Miscellany, 160, 28, A.D. 1 220. " We shalle see if he is worthi mede " (reward). Gesta Romanontiii, 248, A.D. 1440. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 277 440. After ' listen ' and ' hearken? "To listen our purpose." Much Ado About Nothing, III. i, 12. In Middle English this construction is the rule. " He ]>e luueliche >hliste$ godes lore, he shal hauen eche lif on blisse " (he who joyfully listens to God's lore, shall have everlasting life on bliss). Old English Homilies, II. 155. " Jacob listenede So frendes red " (Jacob listened to a friend's advice). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 1597. Cf. ibid. 2222, 3403. Hearken exhibits the same construction. " Hefly he ]>onkes Jesus and Saint Gilian, J>at ... his cry herkened." Sir Gawayne and the Greene Knight, 775. " The pepul [should] wyth more dylygence herken the storys of the Bibul." STARKEY, England in the Time of Henry VIII. 212, 568. The editor unnecessarily inserts [to]. Cf. Hearken the end. 2 Henry IV. ii. 4, 305. 441. After ' swear. 1 " Thou swearest thy gods in vain." Lear, i. i, 193. This too is very frequent in Middle English. " [>e mariner swore his faye (faith)." Sir Tristrem, 318. " Huo J?et zuerc\ wi]>-oute skele pane name of oure Ihorde, he him forzuer]) " (who swears without motive by the name of our Lord, he forswears himself). Ayenbite of Inwyt, p. 6. " I swere to the my troth." CAXTON, Charles the Crete, 50, 29. "The swore God." CAXTON, Aymon, 38, 4; 73, 14. Cf. Thackeray, The Virginians, II. 197 ; 'he swore his great gods that henceforth he would be Harry's truest, humblest friend.' 442. But there seems to be ' omission ' in the following idioms. (a) "Spite of thy hap, hap hath well hapt." WYATT, Poems, 38. Cf. French : en depit. 278 ENGLISH SYNTAX (6) " ]>ey haue a vestment, a chalys, and a massebok, pris of x. marks." English Gilds, p. 8. (f) " What occupation are you?" Mucedori4$, 213, A.D. I59O(?) " What trade art thou ?" 2 Henry IV. iii. 2, 160. (d) "She was his (nun age." WALTER BESANT, Such a Good Man, 20. "I had fought a dozen times, when I was your age." WEYMAN, House of the Wolf, 35. (e) " We three sat down, Turkish fashion.' 1 ' Ibid. 12. " She lifted her head, Pythoness fashion.''' MRS. EDWARDS, Pearl- Pinuder, 241. 443. Dependent Prepositions. " He lent me his horse to escape upon." SCOTT, Lay of the Last Minstrel, 4, n. This use of the prepositions may be traced back to the oldest periods of English. Old English. "He behead 5"set menn namen hiora sweord Codes andan mid to ivreccanne " (he bade men take their swords to avenge God's anger with). Cura Pastoralis, 381. "Donne bringe he of hriSerum an unwemme oxan cealf to ]>aere halgan stowe dura Drihten mid to gladienne " (then let him bring of cattle a male calf without blemish to the door of the holy place to please the Lord with). Leviticus, i. 3. Middle English. " Swylke an hors . . . I wolde have to ryde upon. " Richard Cceur de Lion, 5470. "Thei han a spere in here hond to fighte with." MAUNDEVILLE, p. 197. NOTE. In Middle English with is always near its verb : " Such weddynges to worche, to wratthe with treuthe " (i.e. to anger Truth with). Piers Plowman, ii. 116. Modern English. Instances abound. SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 279 THE CONJUNCTIONS. Development from the Concrete to the Abstract. 444. What we have stated with regard to prepositions holds good with regard to conjunctions both start from a concrete, demonstrative meaning, afterwards denote abstracts (time, manner), and at last become purely formal, that is, mere symbols of connection between notions and thoughts. The conjunctions when, then, Old English ^(German da) are good illustrations of that development. Relation between Prepositions and Conjunctions. 445. Even in Modern English there are particles which serve both as prepositions and conjunctions, e.g. after, before, ere, till. But they are more numerous in the older periods. Again = about the time that. ' ' Bot Leyl ageyn J>at he schold deye, Preyed faste in his elde. " ROBERT DE BRUNN ? E, Story of England, 2216. fro = from the time that, since. "forfra )>is lagh was J>ar bigunnen Son oueral )>an was it runnen " (since this law was introduced there, it soon was accepted everywhere). Cursor Mundi, 2299. ' ''fro she come to here above, Her thought no prynce her pere." Ipomadon, 103. Bituix and is often used with (he meaning of ' until.' " Bituix and j)ou again be gan Unto J>at erth )>ou was of tan " (until thou art gone again to the earth thou wert taken from). Cursor Mundi, 297. Thus Cotton MS. ; Trinity MS. has ' til J>ou turne,' &c, Mid (with) is often used for 'and.' 280 ENGLISH SYNTAX Old English. " Biscopas mid folcum huton renigre are sceawunge retgaedere mid iserne and lige fornumene wa;ron " (bishops and people, without regard for mercy, were destroyed together by fire and sword). BEDA, I. 15. Middle English. " Hwer beafc )>ine dihsches Mid Jnne swete sonde ? " (Where are thy dishes and thy sweet messes ?). Old English Miscellany, 174, 1 06. forto, to, unto = until. " J>ereuore leoue lefdi long hit jmnche'S us wrecchen, Vort )>u of )>isse erme Hue tofce suluen us fecche " (Therefore, dear lady, long will it appear to us wretches Until thou from this poor life to thyself us fetch). Old English Homilies. I. 195. " ]>are stoden l>is 3eordene grene : more )>ane a Jxmsend 5er, forto seint Daui ]>e Kyng cam : }>at was of so gret power " (There stood these green yards more than a thousand years until the holy King David came who was of such a great power). Legendary, (HORSTMANN), I, 8, 243-4. ' ' And there the spottis is, to the body that hathe done the synne be confessed." Knight of La Tour-Landry, II. " He slepeth, and he fareth in his gyse All nyght, unto the sonne gan arise. " CHAUCER, The Man of Lawes Tale, 693. 446. And, used redundantly is often met with in older periods. " Sumceth this example oon or tuo, And though I couthe reken a thousend mo." CHAUCER, Knightes Tale, 1096. " The vertu of the broche is this, that who so ever ber hit upon his brest, late him thinke what he wolle, and he shalle mete perewith at his likinge." Gesta Romanorum, p. 181. " O brother Reynawd, and what doo you here ? " CAXTON, Agmoit, 235, " " Warre would he haue? and he shall haue it so." Gorbodnc, 689. Cf- Abbott, A Shaksperian Grammar, 97, SYNTAX OF THE PARTS OF SPEECH 281 447. That used redundantly before the direct speech (oratio recta). " I said that ' all the years invent ; Were this not well to bide mine hour ? ' " TEXXYSOX, The Two Voices. For this use see 107. 448. That as a substitute for other Conjunctions. Like 'yue' in French 'Mat' often serves to supply the place of other conjunctions in the second part of a clause. " IVhen they of the cyte had seen the manere and the rewle of their enmyes, and that all wyth leyser they had seen their puyssaunce and their manere of doynge, the captayne and the proooste of the towne dyde ordeyne a stronge and a bygge worde." CAXTON, Blanchardyn and Eglantine, 58-17. " And after that the worke was ended, and that all their enmyes were taken or slayn, they brought hym and entred wythin the cyte." Ibid. 195-26. "thother laborers had so grete enoy by cause he dide better his devour than thei, and that he was better loved than thei." CAXTON, Ay man, 575-16. " And that no lawful means can carry me Out of his envy's reach, I do oppose My patience to his fury." SHAKESPERE, Merchant of Venice, IV. \, 9. " //"he think it fit to share them again and that the complaint they have to the long concerns him nothing, let him call me rogne for being so far officious." Ibid. IVinier's Tale, IV. 4, 869. " You see, Sir, by the long letter I have transmitted to you, that, though I do most heartily wish that France may be animated by a spirit of rational liberty, and that ( = though) I think yon bound, in all honest policy, to provide a permanent body in which that spirit may reside, and an effectual organ, by which it may act, it is my misfortune to entertain great doubts concerning several material points in your late transactions." BURKE, Reflexions, Second Paragraph. PART III. ORDER OF WORDS. PART III. ORDER OF WORDS. General Remarks. 449. THERE is a great difference between the natural and artificial arrangement of words. The former is uttered unconsciously, and is, generally speaking, a true image of the psychical process in the speaker's mind, the latter is more or less consciously altered. If we uttered the words in the order in which they come into our mind, we should hear the strangest sentences. Thus, for instance, instead of " May I trouble you for the butter ? " we should most probably hear, "The butter, trouble you may I? " this order answering to that in which the ideas come into our mind. We do not, however, speak ingenuously on the spur of the moment, but either our mode of speaking (and thinking) is modelled on old patterns (analogy), or we arrange our words with constant regard to our interlocutor, sometimes speculating on his feelings, sometimes on his mind. In tracing, therefore, historically, and explaining psycho- logically the arrangement of words, we must keep in mind three principles. 1. Analogy (the most usual type of arrangement). 2. The psychical order of words. 3. Conscious arrangement with regard to the recipient. 286 ENGLISH SYNTAX Of course, all the three principles may give in certain cases the same result, but this is not the rule. Generally, there is some discrepancy between the psychical order of words and the two other principles, and the shape of the sentence in good prose and poetry is the result of a com- promise between all the three. Subject and Predicate. 450. As the psychological subject is that idea or group of ideas which first comes to the speaker's mind, and as there is no predicate without an underlying subject, the natural order of words in the simple sentence is : first sub- ject, then predicate. In fact, the oldest Teutonic dialects exhibit, as a rule, this arrangement. Inversion, " Passed he who bore the lions and the cross." BULWER. " He is a good man, is Mr. Brown." 451. But the inverted order is by no means rarely to be met with. From the oldest times down to Modern English the predicate may under certain circumstances precede the subject. This inversion of the regular order is brought about in several ways. 452. r. The subject is present before the eyes of the speaker, as in the imperative. Then there is either no need of mentioning the subject at all, or, if mentioned, it occupies the second place. Hence : go I stay ' or go thou ! There are, however, many exceptions to this rule. Old High German. "th&, druhtin, rihli wort min " (thou, O Lord, arrange my words). OTFRID, i. 2, 32. Old English. " |> to heofenum beseoh " (look thou to the heavens). Elene, 83. " nu^v? isfye gangafy " (go ye now quickly). Ibid. 372. ORDER OF IVOA'DS 287 Middle English. This order of words is very frequent in poetry, and is found here and there also in prose. " Almigtin louerd, hegest kinge, S giue me seli teminge " (almighty Lord, highest king, give thou me propitious opportunity). Story of Gen. andExod. 31. "Adam, Wiu kncnve cue din wif " (Adam, know thou Eve, thy wife). Ibid. 397. Cf. ibid. 737, 1492* 20 7 2 - ' ' Jw teche him of alle J>e liste fat ]>u euere of wiste." King Horn, 235. Cf. ibid. 207, 322. " A schip \ou bring me tille, Mine harp to play me )>are." Sir Tristrem, 1147. Very frequent ibid, and in the Cursor Mundi. "But weljv knowe that he was not hadde sore ferre from the kynge his fadre " (original : sachiez}. CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 13, I. ' ' A, fayr damoysels, said Amand, ye recommannde me unto la Beale Isoude." MALORY, Morte d' Arthur, 436, 1 6. Perhaps the modern colloquial English order has kept this use : " You do what I tell you." 453. 2. For the same reason the subject is either omitted altogether, or inverted in interrogative sentences, "Are you ready ? " Cf. omission of the personal pronoun. 454. 3. The object placed at the head of the sentence draws the verb immediately after it, both being intimately connected. Old English. " Feala worda gespraec se engel " (many words spoke the angel). Genesis, 271. MiJdle English. " Weorre makede Turnus." LAYAMON, i. 8. Modern English. " Friends have I none." WARREN, Diary, i. 4. 288 ENGLISH SYNTAX " Much hast thou learnt, my son, in this short journey." COLERIDGE, rUcolomini, i. 4. 455. 4. A verb in the negative has, as a rule, more weight than the subject ; this accounts for the tendency to use negative predicates in the inverted position. In Old English, as in the other Teutonic languages, the inverted position is the rule. Middle English. " Ne ma;; nan man her wurrjri ben." Or HI, 17158. "Xaes tiicuere king nan.'' LAYAMOX, ii. 563. Very frequent. Modern English. " Never was there a mind keener or more critical than that of Middleton." MACAULAY, Essays, iii. 4. "Never were such thrice magnificent carnival amusements. "- CARLYLE, Frederick the Great, 6, 3. 456. 5. The principal sentence following the clause sometimes shows inverted order. This use may be traced back to the oldest periods, but while German has developed it into a rule, English has more and more replaced it by the usual arrangement. Old English. "SySSan he com ofer Waetlinge-stnxte, ivorhton hi Jwet moeste yfel" (since he came over W. they did the most evil). Chronicle, 1013. Middle English. "Forr well biforr J>att Sannt Johann wass borenn of his moderr, Cnew he full well J>e Laferrd Crist I Sannte Mar5ess wambe." Orm. 10382. Modern English. " Wherever flagged his own, or failed the oppos- ing force, glittered his white robe, and rose his bloody battle-axe." - BULWER, Rienzi, 5, 3. " While the government of the Tudors was in its highest vigour, took place an event which." MACAULAY, History of England, i. Two other cases of inversion are worth mentioning, though they belong almost entirely to the past. 457. 6. In epic poetry the second of two co-ordinate sentences is often inverted. For the most part, the inverted ORDER OF WORDS 289 position serves to replace a conjunctive, or adversative particle, answering to Latin enim, autetn, tamen, &c. A few instances from the Tale of Gamelyn, wrongly attributed to Chaucer, will illustrate this use. " Tho made they Gamelyn to sitte, might he nat stonde." The Cokes Tale of G. 381. "They hyeden faste, wold they nought bylynne." Ibid. 557. "He was wonder sory, was he nothing light." Ibid. 732. " And sithen was Gamelyn graven under molde, And so schal we alle, may there no man flee." Ibid. 900. This use may be traced back also to the oldest periods. Old Saxon. " Johannes was er themu heroston kuS, be thiu mosta he an thena hof innan thringan mid theru thiod : sto.l allaro thegno betsto Pctnis thar ute " (John was known of old to the captain, therefore could get in with the multitude : stood the best of men, Peter, outside) Heliand, 4950. "Than ligid eft 63ar engira mikilu weg an thesro weroldi, ferid ira werodes hit " (there is another much narrower path in this world : walk it few}. Ibid. 1782. Old English. " Swa j>a drihtguman dreamum lifdon eadiglice, 69 J)Det an ongan fyrene fremman, feond on helle : wees se grimma ge hehe tur of Jeru- salem. And safS syon ase muchel on englishe leodene ase heh sihSe, U 290 ENGLISH SYNTAX and bitacneft ]>is tur J>e hehschipe of meidenhad " (S. was once called the high tower of Jerusalem, and says S. as much in English as high sight and betokens this tower the elevated state of maidenhead). Hali Meidenhad, p. 5. "And tanne comm he si)>en ut All dumb and butenn spceche, And toe to becnenn till ]>e folk, And space he nohht wij>J> tunge " (and then came he out all dumb and without speech, and began to beckon to the folk, and spoke not with tongue). Ornt. 224. ' ' For moche he langed that he myght there be arryued for to shew hym all the tydynges. Anddurednol \ongthescarmoush." Mehisine, 127, 4. Elizabethan English. We meet with traces of this use in the literature of the sixteenth century. "The day is spent, and comet h drowsy night." SPENSER, Faerie Qiieene, i. 3, 15. " High Amurack is lulled fast asleep, And doubt I not but, ere he wakes again, You shall perceive Medea did not gibe. " GREENE, Alphonsns, 235, a. For the arrangement of words in a sentence with a double subject or predicate, see Contraction, 471. Place of t/ie Verb in Clauses. " As much as in them lay." fftion, 25. 459. In dependent sentences inversion is still rare ; in older periods not only the regular position was the rule, but the verb, especially the auxiliary verb to be, used to be placed at the end of the clause. This means of expressing subordination was probably common to all the Teutonic languages, as it occurs frequently in Old High German, Old Saxon, and Old English. But there must have been a sudden stop in the development of this use in English ; the Chronicle, for instance, is rather inconsistent in this respect. ORDER OF WORDS 291 Old English. " J>set wass ymb twa ger }>aes J>i hie hider ofer s< comon " (that was about two years since they had come over sea). Chronicle, 895. "and }>a ieldestan men ealle mreste. Se to Bedan forda hierdon. and eac monige l>ara J,e to Hamtiine hierdon " (and the oldest men who bylonged to Bedford, and also some of those who belonged to Hampton). Ibid. 918. But there are instances in the Chronicle of modern arrangement. " Da mynte Laurentius ]>e Sa waes ercebiscop on Cant, he wolde su'3 ofer SEK " (there intended Laurentius, who was archbisbop in Canterbury, to go southward over sea). Ibid. 616 Middle English. " J>es we ahte to beon }>e edmoddre . . . and {>on- kien hit ure drihten )>e hit us lende " (the meeker ought we to be . . . and thank our Lord for it who hath given it). Old Eng. How. i. 5. " forSon heo ne mei abeoren alia ]>a sunne J>e \>e mon uppon hire deS " (because she may not endure all the sins that man putteth upon her). Ibid. "Nuyehabbet i-herd J>o signefiance of ]>o offringes J>et maden J>o prie kinges " (now you have heard the signification of the offerings which the three kinges made). Old. Eng. Misc. 28. " Swa summ itt wollde Godd " (as God would it). Orm. 749. In Modem English the old use has scarcely survived ; cf. however, the expression, "as much as in me lies." 1 Position of the Object. "I thee anointed king in Israel." PEELE. 460. We must distinguish between the object when a noun and when a personal pronoun. When the object is a noun in an independent sentence, its place is, as a rule, behind the verb : " Thou gavest me my being." But there are exceptions. 1 "By Richard that dead is." I Henry IV. I. 3, 146. U 2 292 ENGL 1SH S YNTAX (a) The object is emphatically placed at the head of the sentence. " One thing thou lackest." Mark, x. 21. (b} In poetry it is placed between subject and verb, especially before infinitives. " Draw me your sword, if he your way withstand. " GREENE, James IT. 210, a. " I mean the wounds, which do the heart subdue." Ibid. 212, a. " Your presence to behold." PEELE, Arraignment of Paris, 354, a. 461. The personal pronoun as an object is not bound by this rule. In Old English its place was generally before the finite verb, as may be seen from the BUckling Homilies and the Chronicle, where more than eighty per cent, of the pronouns in the oblique case precede the verb. In Middle English prose the modern arrangement carries the day ; in Modern English it is only in poetry that we meet with the old tradition. A few instances will illustrate this use. Middle English. " Dere frende, god the yelde for the gentilnesse that thow seist to me." Gesta Rom. 199. " Holi Scripture it not dooth only or al oon. " PECOCK, Represser, \ i. "and therfore as in that he not hem groundith." Ibid. " I me recommende ryght humbly vnto your good grace." CAXTON, Blanch. 133, 18. " \ you supplye wyth all myn herte." Charles the Crete, 49, 28. " I you commande that ye cesse of this heuynes." Melusine, 155, 8. Modern English. "The whiche syngularly not [only] themselfe applyed dayly to pronounce the wordes of our blyssed sauyour . . . but also the sayd doctours them endeuoyred wyth dylygent labour. " JOHN FISHER, Eng. Works, r. ". . . . since that I me repent Of my lost years." \VYATT, Poems, p. 2. * or youth led me, and falsehood me misguided. " Ibid. p. 3. ORDER OF WORDS 293 PLACE OF THE ATTRIBUTIVE DETERMINANT. Place of the Article. " If you should need a pin, You could not with more tame a tongue desire it. " Meas. for Meas. ii. 2, 46. 462. The place of the indefinite article in connection with an adjective qualified by so was fixed at a very early date. In analogy of this use we sometimes find the indefinite article between the adjective and substantive, even when the former is qualified by other adverbs than so. "It nedith not to be doubted that he is come . . . wythout that amours hathe be the cause in the persone of some hyghe a piyncesse." CAXTON, Blanc hardy , 72, 20. "which is the most fayr, and the most noble, and the most complete rtlady." Ibid. 156, 13. "I would have been much more a fresher man." SHAK. Troilus and Cr. v. 6. 2O. "What poor an instrument." Antony, v. 2, 236. In connection with all, both, half, &c., the article is placed between the adjective and the substantive from the oldest periods. Cf. Gothic: "Alia sa hairda" (all the troop); besides Greek: TrScrav rrjv aXrjOtiav epw (I shall tell the whole truth) ; French: "tout le troupeau." Place of the Numerals. "They pass the planets seven." MILTON. 463. The place of the numerals is commonly before the substantive ; but the poetry of old and modern times often deviates from this rule. Old English. "yEj;elwulfes suna tuegen" (/EthelwulPs two sons). Chronicle, 855. " Comon |>ner scipu six to Wiht " (there came six ship ; to Wight). Ibid. 897. 294 ENGLISH SYNTAX "Gone God in persons thru." Town. Myst. p. I. Modern English. "And thank the gracious ladies three" PEELE, Arr. of Paris, 353 b. "Myself and children three." COWPER, John Gilpin. Place of the Adjective. "There was no reason why Lady Mabel Grex should not be good enough wife for the son of the Dake of Omnium." TROLLOPE. 464. From Old English down to modern times the adjective, as a rule, is placed before the noun, exceptions being only poetical licences, remnants of French phrases, &c., e.g., "The Lords spiritual" "The Lords temporal" and adjectives preceded by adverbs, e.g., " A liberty of discussion and of individual action never before known " (Macaulay). 465. The arrangement exhibited in the last instance is being replaced, it seems, by the regular position, viz., the adjective preceding the substantive. This Modern English way of overcharging the adjectival phrases, by putting too many qualifying words between the article (or pronoun) and the substantive is frequent in Carlyle and Dickens. " Under the to me unmeaning title." Sartor Resarlus, 173. "He also informed me that our principal associate would be another boy whom he introduced by the to me extraordinary name of Mealy Potatoes." David Copperfield, i. 202. "I had still no other clothes than the anything but ornamental garments." Ibid. i. 269. "That never enough to be celebrated capture." Life of Frederick the Great, 8, 7. " It was the great, the precious, the never-to-be-sufficiently-impressed- upon-a-chikl Duty of Discontent." Such a Good Man. The last two instances are an imitation of "the-never- enough-to-be-celebrated knight " (Don Quixote). ORDER OF WORDS 295 There are a few instances of the same use in Pecock's Represser; "sitmme of the bifore setdmen" ... 5. "thilk now seid schorl compendiosc logik were ful preciose." 9. " which is the bifore s-:t first principal conclusioun. " 12. "of alle these, and allc to hem lyk mannis witt can teche." 13. "thou5 ech of hem hath \us> propre to him limytid boundis. " 33. If more than two adjectives qualify the substantive, their usual place is before the substantive. But the older periods exhibit another arrangement; cf. "This is a foul custom and a shameful." This occurs sometimes also in modern writers. See Contraction, 472. 466. Adjectives separated from their Adverbial Determinants. " Bring me a constant woman to her husband." SHAKSPERE. This bold construction, which is well known from Shak- spere, is scarcely to be found in the older periods. There are, however, a few examples in Middle English. "ful fain war ];ai, pai sua had spedd, J>aa Kinges thre are broght to bedd, Thre weri Kinges o \air wai " thre Kinges weary of their way. Cursor Mundi, 11521. "A louly lady on leor" (a lady lovely of face). Piers Ploiuman, c. ii. 3. "holy prestis of lif priests holy of life. WYCLIF, English Works, 78. Tudor and Elizabethan Englis'-. "Thatmynyng fraude shale find no way to crepe into their fensed ears with grave advise " ears fensed with grave advise. Gorboditc, 433. "Th^ir tempered youth with aged father's awe." Ibid. 200. " And wort hie work of infinite reward." SPENSER, F. Qu. III. ii. 2. " Thou little better thing than earth." Rich. II. III. iv. 77. "As a long-parted mother with her child." SHAKSPERE, Ibid. III. 296 ENGLISH SYNTAX 467. Place of the Possessive Pronoun. " How saidst thou, good my friend? " BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER. While in common prose the place of the possessive pronoun is after the substantive, it often occurs before in poetry and elevated style. Old English. ")>onne broSor \>in onfeng . . . fulwihtes baefc " (when thy brother received the bath of baptizement). Elene, 489. Middle English. " Lording mync" Gesla Rom. 23. " frende myn" Ibid. 140. Modern English. "Nay, sweet lady mine." BULWER, Rienzi, 3, 2. The position of the possessive pronoun between the adjective and substantive, which is so frequent in Elizabethan writers, does not, it seems, outlive the eighteenth century. But it is still frequent in Richardson. " Good your honour, said the well-meaning gentlewoman." Pamela, 28 a. " Good your ladyship." Ibid. 180 b. Cf. ibid. 37, />; 183, a; 183, b. The following passage from Beaumont and Fletcher seems to ridicule this use. " Good my lady's gentlewoman, or my good lady's gentlewoman this trope is lost to you now), leave your prating." The Scornful Lady, iv. I. Place of the Preposition. " The corn-sheaves whisper the grave around" HEMANS. 468. As a rule, the preposition precedes the noun or pronoun to which it belongs : round the grave, notwith- standing his faults, above us. But the exceptional arrange- ment of noun (pronoun) + preposition is met with in all the periods of English. ORDER OF WORDS 297 (a) The preposition is placed immediately behind the >ioun or pronoun. Old English. "Dacr mon Hygelac sloh . . . Freslondum on" (when Hygelac was slain in Friesland). Beowulf, 2358. ' ' Ne gefeah he Jwure faihSe, ac he hine feor forwrsec metod for ]>y mane man-cynne fram" (he did not enjoy the enmity, but the Lord removed him, for his crime, from mankind). -Ibid. no. "Judas hire ongen ]>ingode" (Judas spoke against her). Elene, 667. Middle English. " ForSi, leofe breoSre, haldeS brofterreddene eow biiivenen" (therefore, dear brethren, hold brotherly love among you). Old English Homilies, i. 41. " God sette Sis fail folk Iritwen Dai of blisse and of reste ben " (God set this clay among people to be day of bliss and rest). Story of Genesis and Exodus, 251. "He saf it all for Cristes sake ]>at sittej) us alle aboue." Alexius (ed. Schipper) i. 1 20. Tudor English. "Have they not gotten into theyre hondes more londes sins then eny duke in ynglond hath, the statue notwithstanding ?" SIMON FISH, A Supplication for the Beggars, p. 9. "Ye know right well the greate tyme and space that I haue bene kyng of Fraunce and emperour of Rome, the whicketymt dnrynge I have bene seruyd and obeyed of you." LORD BERNERS, Huon, 3. Modern English. " She must lay her conscious head A husband's trusting heart beside." BYRON, Parisina, 5. " She has a generous feeling towards you, your /aw//.? notwithstand- ing." MRS. EDWARDS, Pearl- Powder, 94. (U) The predicate is inserted between the noun (pronoun) and preposition. Old English. " Se here him fleah beforan" (the army fled before him). Chronicle, 1016. " Drihten him cwosS to" (the Lord said to him). Job, v. 10. Middle English. "Two thefys hang thei me bitwene." Toivnlcy ilfysf. p. 26(1. 298 ENGLISH SYNTAX Modern English. " Who join'st thou 'vith but with a lordly nation That will not trust thee but for profit's sake." SHAK. 7. Henry VI. iii. 3, 62. " Logic I made no account of." SMOLLETT, Roderick Random, 6. (c) Place of the Preposition in Adjective Clauses. In Old English adjective clauses the place of the pre- position was invariably after the indeclinable \e. This probably accounts for the Middle and Modern English use of placing the preposition after the relative pronoun, or, when this is omitted, after the substantive to which it belongs. Old English. " Sig se man ofslagen beforan us eallum ]>e ]>u ]>ine ha.'oenan godas mid finde " (the man be slain before us all with whom thou find'st thy heathen gods [idols]). Genesis, xxxi. 32. Cf. Chronicle, 885, 893, 904, 1070. Middle English. "}>at Ilde >ou hast se on alle halue is sperd " (the island which thou hast heard of is on all sides surrounded by the sea). ROBERT DE BRUNNE, The Story of England, 1399. "They that be crokyd, he xal cause hem to goo In the wey that John Baptyst of prophecy ed." Coventry Mysteries, 254. Modern English. " To him will I give the land thai he has trodden upon." Deuteronomy, i. 36. " He ended, or I heard no more ; for now My earthly, by his heavenly overpowered, Which it had long stood under, strained to the highth In that celestial colloquy sublime." MILTON, Paradise Lost, viii. 554. Apposition. " Gweneuer, the Kynges dotihtcr Lodegrean" MALORY. 469. A word in apposition to a possessive genitive is, in Middle English, put after the noun governing the genitive, e.g., " The kynges douhter Lodegrean " = " The kyng Lode- ORDER OF WORDS 299 grean's doubter " ; " For the kynges loue of heuen " = " The kyng of heuen's love." This arrangement is very old, though the modern one may be found exceptionally as early as the Chronicle (A.D. 890). Old English. "for his wed broSeres luuen Oswi" (for the love of his Christian brother Oswin). Chronicle, 656. "for Saxulfes luuen ]>es abbodes " (for the love of the abbot Saxulf). Ibid. Middle English. " ]mr davitfes muS ]>e prophete " (through David's the prophet's mouth.). Old E. Horn. i. 139. " my lords sone |>e emperowere." Guy of Warwick, 2827. "lie saw his broders sheld syr Lyonel." MALORY, Morte fi 1 Arthur > 185, 6. Place of the Adverbial Determinants. " I was by Him eased of my burden." BUNYAN. 470. The place of the simple adverb has undergone no essential change ; its position was perhaps more free in older periods, but on the whole it has remained the same. It is different with the adverbial phrases, as, for instance, in passive construction. A construction like that exhibited in the above-quoted instance is scarcely found in Modern English prose ; in the older periods as late as the seventeenth century, this arrangement is frequently met with. Old English.-^ "her Paulinus fram Justo Jiam ercebisc. wscs gehadod NorJ)hymbrum to biscepe " (in this year Paulinus was by the arch- bishop Justus installed bishop to the Northumbrians). Chronicle, 625. Middle English. " This is not sufficient cause forto therbi thus seie and holde." PECOCKE, Represser, 24. " tho branchis grewen out of the bowis upon whiche they in Bischopis ivode stoden. " Ibid. 28. "So was he by the two daughters brought into a chambre."- CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 50, 21. Tudor English. " Water whiche of his nature is very colde is not sodeynly by'the fyj-e made hote to the vttermost." FISHER, English Works, 46, 35. 300 ENGLISH S YNTA X ' he shewyd and declaryd ... the great damage that by Huon he had sufferyd." LORD BERNERS, Huon, 388, 12. "hyt hath plesyd me well to here you, with such phylosophycal resonys out of nature drawne, confyrme the same." STARK EY, England in the Reign of K. Henry VIII. 21, 714. " Ourself, by monthly course, With reservation of an hundred knights By you to be sustained, shall our abode Make with you by due turns." Lear i. I, 132. Arrangement of Words in Contracted Sentences. " They were young men and strong." BUNYAN. " There is his country before him and its welfare." TROLLOPE. 471. Instead of saying, "the father came, and the son came," as primitive tribes still do, we use the contraction, " the father and the son came." The older periods exhibit several interesting traces of that state of the language, which takes the middle course between the primitive repetition (anaphora) and the modern contraction. 472. i. Two Adjectives and one Noun. Old English. " Gif senig man haebbe modigne sunn and rancne'^ (if a man have a refractory and rebellious son). Deuter. xxi. 1 8. The Vulgate has : " filium contumacem et protervum." "he gefor . . . god man and clsene and swiSe aeSele" (he died ... a good man and a pure and a very noble). Chronicle, 1056. Middle English. "heo wulle under fon siua he 3 tyng and swa hali swa is cristes licome " (he will receive so high and so holy a thing as is Christ's \Mfrf). Old Engl. Horn. i. 25. " Rihhtwise men and gode" Orm. 116. " A young wif and a fair." CHAUCER, Marchaundes Tale, 313. Tudor English. "Some grete mater and -weyghty." STARKEY, England in the Reign of King Henry VIII., 19. " A plain truth and manifest." Ibid. 132. "Why, sir, an ancient lineage and a princely." BEN JONSON, Every Man in his Humour, 5 a, (i. 4). ORDER OF WORDS 301 Modern English. "A long road and a strange." CARLYLE, Frederick the Great, iv. 426. " A strenuous march and a well-schemed." Ibid. viii. 172. " She is a good girl, God help me, and a beautiful." THACKERAY, The Virginians, iv. 8. 473. 2. Two Subjects and one Predicate. Old English. "ond aefter ]>am Hengest feng to rice, ond Aesc his sunu " (after that Hengest succeeded to the kingdom, and Aesc his son)." Chronicle, 455. "her AldferJ). . . for])ferde, ond Seaxulf biscep " (in this year Aldfer}> died and the bishop S. ) Ibid. 705. Middle English. "He suanc and swet, and ate his wif" (he worked and sweat, and Eve his wife). Cursor Mundi, 1047. " Abram went ham, and his wiJfsXK." Ibid. 2437. " Thar louerd liggeth, and lavcdi " (there the lord lies and the lady). Owl and Nightingale, 957. " (He answered) that he sholde putte peyne that his honoure sholde be kepte, and his body agenst hym." CAXTON, Blanchardyn, 48, 19. Modern English instances are rare. ' ' My mother I trust be a lyue, and a brother of myn whom I haue left with her." LORD BERNERS, Huon, 61/30. Modern English. " The curate of the parish is a gentleman, and the medical man who comes here from Bradstock." TROLLOPE, Duke's Children, i. 95. 474. 3. One Verb and two Objects. Old English. " And hie ]>a ymb ]>a gatu feohtende wceron ojjj'set hie f>?er inne fulgon, and \one e\eling ofslogon and ]>a men J>e him mid weerun " (and they were fighting at the gates, until they got in, and slew the etheling and the men that were with him). Chronicle, 755. Middle English. "}>at bihald as of heh alle widewen under hire and weddede baSe " (that beholds as from on high all widows under her, and wedded ones too). Hali Meidenhad, 5. " Salues haj> he soft and drinkes. " Sir Tristrem, 1244. " he toke his sone with him, and a sworde." Gesta Rom. 22$. Tudor English. " When the goode Abbot saw hys nephew depart, and hys companye, he had grete petye." LORD BERNERS, Huon, 22, 9. 302 ENGLISH SYNTAX 475. 4. One Object governed by two Verbs. " Her for se here of Cirenceastre on East Engle, and gestzt \>xt lond, and gediilde " (in this year the army marched from C. to E. and invaded the country and divided [it]. Chronicle, 880. Middle English. " To hifen Godd and dredtnn." Orm. 852. " To gladenn hire and frofrenn " (to gladden and support her.) Ibid. 2180. " To froffrenn himm und wissen." Ibid. 10823. "A Is ye haue sene inogh and herd." 1 Curs. M. 92 ; cf. ibid. 13015, 20103. " But yit will I cry for mercy and called TOWXL. Myst. 21. 476. Chiastic (crosswise) Arrangement of Words. "for why he is god and lorde of our helth, gyuynge temporall hclth to our bodyes, and to our smiles the helth of grace in this lyfe.'' JOHN FISHER, 90, 92. This position appears not only in poetry and modern rhetorical prose, but seems to have been relished in English from the oldest times, so that the ordinary arrangement of words was often altered in favour of it even in prose. Old English. " Se }>e God ne ongit, ne ongit God hine " (he that cares not for God, God cares not for him). Cura Pastoralis, 28. " )>3et we lufien geswinc, and orsorgnesse we us ondneden" (that we love hard work, and be afraid of ease). Ibid. 34. Middle English. "ant te }>ridde is meao". rightwisnesse J>e feorSe " (and the third is moderation. Righteousness is the fourth). Old Engl. Horn. i. 247. " \Vhillc lac wass offredd forr J>e preost, whillc forr |>e biscopp offredd " (which sacrifice was offered for the priest, and which for the bishop). Orm. 1132/3. "Biforr J>att 5ho wij>b child wass,' and whil 5ho wass wij)J> childe ; ' (before she was with child, and while she was with child). Ibid. 2087, 8. " Wisdome also hit haj> in wille ]>e good to do and leue pe ille." Cursor Mundi, 568. "(they) spenden lijt and oj>ere costis maken." WYCLIF, English Works, 133. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION PERIODS OF ENGLISH SYNTAX. 477. Internal Development of Syntax,. The development of English syntax is, like that of English sounds, inflexions, and words, in the main due to internal causes ; it is spontaneous. The reduction of Old English final a, o, u to the uniform e ; the raising of Old and Middle English long e to ee ; the decay of case- endings ; the bringing down of the two different vowels in the preterite singular and plural of strong verbs to one ; li-ith supplanting mid, take coming in for niman all these changes would, in all probability, have taken place, even if English had been left to itself, and had not been subject to the influence of Latin and French. The English sentence would have become what it now is, even if the Latin had not, in the sixteenth century, served to hasten its development, for the natural progress from the concrete to the abstract took place in spite of Latin and French. The Old English idiom ' before the sun going down ' changed into the more abstract one 'before the going down of the sun, before sunset, although the French with its ' avant le soleil couchant ' tended to preserve the old expression. Prepositions became more and more important as case-endings tended to decay, 304 ENGLISH SYNTAX and the Nominative supplanted the Dative in consequence of the same process. When the genitive- ending began to disappear, of stepped in to fulfil its functions ; when in the idiom " the King is woe " the King was no longer recog- nisable as a dative, a new idiom was coined " he is woe." Cf. 210. The use of auxiliaries to denote tenses and moods also developed spontaneously, and the gradual dis- appearance of the subjunctive took place in spite of Latin and French. Cf. 347359- 478. External Influences. Besides this principal organic development there is another of less importance, but which has given to English syntax some of its most characteristic peculiarities I mean the external influence of foreign languages, chiefly of Latin and French. It is by no means an easy matter to say, such and such a construction is due to such and such influence, and dates from such and such a time. First, the Old English texts have not yet been sufficiently investigated ; and secondly, what we find in literary language is generally only the result of a long development which has been going on for some time in the spoken language, and thus naturally escapes our observation and research. The Objective Absolute ( 206), which is very frequent in the fourteenth century, is generally attributed to the influence of the French : aloit en pelerinaige a Mahomet, sa teste des- couverte (he went on pilgrimage to Mahomet, his head bare). Now it is true that this construction is extremely rare in Old English, but there are some instances, and we are not justified in saying that this idiom was forgotten and borrowed anew from the French, simply because we do not see the development in the literary language of Early Middle SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 305 English. Cf. 206. We should be inclined to attribute the later and Modern English development of the Order of Words to French influence, and in fact there is good ground for this assumption. The Old English order of words in a sentence corresponded generally to that of German, as in the following instance from King Alfred's Orosius "Sonne ]>y ilcan doege hi hine to ]>xm ade beran willaft, ftonne todrelaS hi his feoh, )>aet ]>XT to lafe biS sefter ]>xm gedrynce and J>sem plegan, on fif oSfte syx, hwilum on ma, swa swa J>ses feos andcfn is (then the same day [that] they him to the pile bear will, then deivid they his property that there to remainder is, after the drinking and the sports, into five or six, at times into more, according as of the property the value is) quoted by Dr. J. A. H. Murray in the Encyclopaedia Britannica, s.v. English Language, p. 392. But long before the Norman invasion, this order of words ceased to be the rule; and in the Parker MS. of the Chronicle there are nearly as many instances of the French as of what we are inclined to call the German order of words. Cf. 459. Another instance. When we find " I me repent " (Caxton) we put it down as a Gallicism (je me repens), but the history of English syntax shows that this order of words, namely, the personal or reflexive pronoun before the verb, ' is the rule in the Old English, and that this rule survived as late as the sixteenth century. The development from the Old English rule to the modern usage again took place in spite of French. Cf. 461. I also object to an eminent scholar's attempt at deriving the Omission of the Relative Pronoun from the French. There are instances of this usage in Old English, and it is frequent in the thirteenth century ; as for the gap which lies between the two periods, it is sufficiently explained by the scarcity of colloquial texts in the time of the first Norman Kings. Cf. in. x 306 ENGLISH SYNTAX Statements with regard to foreign idioms are therefore more or less probable, never certain. 479. Latin Influence, Latin influence seems to have prevailed to a certain extent in Old English Prose. The so called Absolute Participle is generally assumed to be imitated from Latin. Cf. 56. The Accusative with the Passive Infinitive which is rare in other Old English writings but occurs several times in the Old English version of Bede's Ecclesiastical History is probably due to Latin influence. In Middle English, scarcely any idioms were borrowed from Latin ; but in the first period of Modern English, and even in the time of Milton, Latin idioms abound in poetry and prose, and some of these have been preserved to this day. The Accusative with the Infinitive, which, in Old and Middle English, was restricted to a certain number of verbs, was extended so as to have the same range as in Latin. Moreover, the Passive Infinitive became quite common. Cf. 401 404. The use of the Relative pronoun instead of the demon- strative is not found in older periods, but occurs in Elizabethan writers. Cf. 122. The plural of abstracts is often obviously an imitation of Latin models : /reo geteled rimes swylce xxx eac )>ing5emearces wintra for worulde, pass J>e wealdend god acenned wearS cyninga wuldor in middan5eard Jmrh mennisc heo, soo'fcestra leoht, J>a wses syxte 5ear Constantines caserdomes J>aet he Romwara in rice wearS ahafen hildfruma to hereteman." (There was gone in the years' course two hundred and three, told by number, also thirty, in order, of winters for the world, since ruling God born was, the Kings' splendour, into the earth in human shape, of the faithful the light, there was the sixth year of Constantine's reign, that he of the Romans in the empire [in the empire of the Romans] was raised, the warrior, to general). 1 1 Literal translation. X 2 308 ENGLISH SYNTAX Compare with this Orm, in his first Homily (lines 109 118) : " An preost was onn Herodess da53 Amang Judisskenn peode, & he wass, wiss to fulle so]>, 5ehatenn Zacari5e, & haffde an duhhti5 wif, J>att wass off Aaroness dohhtress ; & 500 wass, wiss to fulle so];, ElysabseJ) 5ehatenn. & te55 wseren biforenn Godd Rihhtwise menn & gode." (A priest was in Herod's day among the Jewish people, and he was, certainly in full truth, called Zacharias, aud had a good wife, that was of Aaron's daughters ; and she was, certainly in full truth, called Elizabeth. And they were before God righteous men and good.) The " innate love of order and regularity, sobriety and economy," which was peculiar to the Conquerors (Thomas Duffus Hardy, Descriptive Catalogue of Materials relating to the History of Great Britain and Ireland^ Vol. II., from A.D. 1066 to A.D. 1200, p. xvii.) seems to have communi- cated itself to the English writers of the thirteenth century, Besides the new order of words, French influence introduced a great number of new phrases and idioms, such as "he came to the above of his enemies " = he got the better of his enemies (French : venir au-dessus de quelqu'un) ; " as who would say " (French : comme qui dirait) etc. But the influence of French on Syntax Proper has been over-rated. English syntax, in the main, is still Germanic, just as English sounds, inflexions, and word-formation are. In the following details French influence may be assumed with much probability. The so-called Absolute Constructions are due, to a certain extent, to French. The Nominative Absolute. " They failing I must die your debtor." cf. 153- SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 309 The Infinitive Absolute. "I am content that any man amend it, or, if I have said too little, any man that will, to add what him pleaseth to it." ASCHAM, Toxophilns, p. 17. The Adjective Clause used as a conditional one was hardly known in Old English. " Who touches pitch, will be defiled." Cf> T 33- The Possessive Pronoun has, in some cases, supplanted the personal one. We say in Modern English (as in French) " he had in his hand fire and sword " ; in Old English it was put differently: "he hoefde him on handa fyr and swurd." Cf. 313. The use of the Possessive Pronoun in " My Lord," " My Lady " is probably also due to French. Cf. 306. Verbs used both as intransitives and causatives can be explained without any external influence, cf. 339 seq.\ yet the same use, which was frequent in Old French, may have favoured the development of the English verb in that direction. The following verbs were, and are still, used both as intransitives and transitives : abimer (to sink), amender (to mend), approcher (to approach), arreter (to stay, to stop), assembler (to gather), augmenter (to increase), briser (to break), changer (to change), clore (to close, to shut), deriver (to derive), descendre (to go down, to put down), diminuer (to decrease), epandre (to spread), e'touffer (to choke) flechir (to bow), fondre (to melt), guerir (to cure, to recover), hausser (to raise, to rise), joindre (to join), monter (to mount), pousser (to push, to sprout), etc. The development of the Gerund shows marked traces of French influence. There are Middle English instances which show that, in certain cases, people did not know whether they ought to translate French idioms by a verbal 3io ENGLISH S YNTAX noun or a participle present. Cf. the following instances from Dan Michel's Ayenbite : Guo into helle ine jnne libbinde, fet )>ou ne guo ine fine stenti>ige r p. 73. French : en ton vivant, en ton morant. Bearing in mind the Old English construction " be him lifiendum " - in his life-time, >$ 41 r, we cannot but assume that the Possessive Pronoun with the Verbal Noun is due to the French. Cf. 309 and my Introduction to Caxtoris Blanchardyn and Eglantine, 8, c. In some points in which Middle English favoured the French, Modern English has returned to the old Germanic construction. In the fifteenth century we find " he toke the his" (French : le sien). Cf. 222. The which was quite common even in the first period of Modern English (French : lequel). The idiom " hwat he is good " = how good he is (French : qu'il est bon), was frequent in the fourteenth century, but was scarcely ever used in the spoken language. Without as a conjunction occurs in Middle English, and did not die out before the end of the sixteenth century. "Takith ensaumple...that ye tume not youre hede hedirward and thedirward, tuithoute ye turne the body with." Knight of La Tour- Laudry, p. 17. "Without you were so simple, none else would." SHAKSPKKT, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, II. I, 38. Bishop Fisher, English Works, p. 89 ; Berners, Huon dc Burdeux, p. 37. For other points, see 224, 254, 309. PERIODS OF ENGLISH SYNTAX. 48 1 . The results at which we have arrived in dealing historically with English Syntax enable us to draw marked lines between the three great periods of English, and to SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 311 give, from the point of syntax, the chief characteristics of Old, Middle, and Modern English. 482. I. OLD ENGLISH (A.D. 5001200). (1) Old English syntax is, on the whole, genuinely Germanic, and not yet influenced by any other language. There were, however, attempts at introducing Latin constructions, made chiefly by prose-writers, or rather translators (see 479), and further investigation will per- haps trace back certain idioms to Danish sources. (2) The order of words is, in poetry, very free, and, in prose, nearly the same as in Modern German. In clauses the verb is often placed at the end, and dependent sentences are often marked by the inverted order of words (see 457, and 459). The Pronoun-Object is placed before the verb ( 461). (3) Concrete constructions are frequent (see 12, 13, 20 24). (4) The structure of sentences is in its infancy ; co-ordin- ation is frequent, conjunctions are not always made use of in connecting sentences and clauses ( 96 103). (5) The noun-clauses are still redundant, as in the phrase "he saw the light that it was good r> ( 104 106). (6) The adjective-clause is (from a modern point of view) wanting in unity and apt to be tautological ( 109-113). (7) The cases are strictly synthetic : their functions are expressed by the case-endings. (8) The genitive has a very wide application ( 158). (9) The indefinite article is hardly beginning to develop out of the numeral ( 225). 312 ENGLISH SYNTAX (10) Any adjective can be used substantively ( 237 248). (u) The personal pronoun as subject is frequently omitted ( 268 273). (12) Thou is the only pronoun used from one person to another, no matter whether from superiors to inferiors, or the reverse ( 277). (13) Self is used adjectively and appositively only: ic self (I myself), we seolfe (we ourselves) ( 291). (14) Intransitive and transitive verbs are strictly kept apart with regard to meaning : sincan (to sink) is clearly distinguished from, and never interchanged with, sencan (to cause to sink) ( 340 342). (15) The use of the auxiliary to be is restricted to in- transitive verbs, as in Modern German ( 348). (16) The present tense is also used for the future ( 367), and the preterite for the pluperfect. (17) The subjunctive mood has about the same range as in Latin ( 380391). (18) The simple infinitive prevails. ( 392 393, 401). (19) The preposition of the agent in passive construe tions is/ram (from), exceptionally of ( 433 434). 483. II. MIDDLE ENGLISH (A.D. 12001500). The inflexions (noun and verbal endings) tending to decay, language introduces new means to supply the old functions. This is the chief characteristic of Middle English syntax. The following changes are due to this principle. (i) When the dative-ending was dropped, the nominative and dative became alike ; hence substantives which were objects were mistaken for subjects. In the phrase " Wo wes Brutus J>er fore," Brutus was originally a dative-object ; but there being no dative-ending to mark it as such, it was SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 313 looked upon as a nominative-subject. This accounts for the gradual decrease in the number of Impersonal Verbs ( 151. 337)- (2) The passive of intransitive verbs is due to the same cause : " Our Lord be thanked " was quite correct, our Lord being a dative ; but in analogy to this seeming nomin- ative was formed "we are thanked," "we are answered" ( 152, 363)- (3) In such instances as " Good is therefore a man to hide his pride" (Gower, Confessio Amantis, I., 131), we look upon a man as an accusative or nominative ; but in Old English it was the dative See 70, 405. (4) The nominative in absolute construction (" he being there, I retired ") was also originally an oblique case. (5) Such constructions as "he was bound, hand and foot" come under this head. In Matthew (Old English) xxii. 13 we read : gebindaS him fet and honda, where him is of course a dative, fet and honda accusatives. In Middle English, when him had absorbed the function of the accusative Jiine, the word him, in the instance quoted was mistaken for an accusative ; hence we have : he wolde me binden, hond and fet. Havelok, 1916 ; (he was) al to-brised, bac and }>e (he was bruised, back and thigh). Ibid. 1950. I am heavy, heed and foote. Coventry Mysteries, 170. (6) As soon as the case-endings began to decay, prepo- sitions came in to take their place : of (like French de) stands for the genitive, to for the dative, with for the instru- mental ( 427432). (7) Juxtaposition instead of the partitive genitive is, to a certain extent, due to the decay of the genitive-endings ( '74). (8) The strictly observed order of words (subject + predi- 314 ENGLISH SYNTAX cate + object) is partly due to the desire of making up for the want of visible marks of subject and object. (9) The gradual weakening of verbal endings is followed by the gradual decay of the subjunctive mood ( 380 391), and (10) The importance of auxiliaries increases ( 347). (it) The dropping of the final e in adverbs pulls down to a great extent the old boundary line between adjectives and adverbs ( 422 423). Other characteristics of Middle English syntax are : (12) " It is I " instead of the older expression " it am I." ( 79). (13) Substantives used adjectively : " I have a pris presant, to plese wi]> Jji hert " (I have a valuable present to please thy heart with). WILLIAM OF PALER XE, 411. Cf. J>at choys child. Ibid. 399, 400 ( 135). (14) The pseudo-partitive genitive: "a friend of his" ( 180). (15) The objective absolute : " Hii come barefoot, hor heued bar ]>erto " (they come barefoot, their heds, moreover, uncovered). ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, 10827. ( 206). (16) Comparison of the adjective by means of more and most; double comparison ( 254). (17) Substantives followed by one ( 256). (18) " Him one" = he alone, "his one" (same meaning) are peculiar to Middle English. (19) The plural of courtesy ye, later you, instead of Old English thou, is met with in the thirteenth century ( 277). (20) Myself, thyself, instead of Old English ic self, \u sdf, SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 315 or me self, \e self, appear in the first half of the thirteenth century ( 290 298). (21) Omission of the relative pronoun, which occurs rarely in OFd English, becomes quite a feature of English at the end of the thirteenth century ( 109). (22) Verbs are used indiscriminately as intransitives, reflexives, and causatives ( 340 346). (23) The auxiliaries can (gan), and do are used redundantly ( 353)- (24) The passive use of the infinitive comes in ( 365). (25) The gerundial infinitive tends to restrict the simple one ( 392) ; for, and for to with the infinitive ( 395). (26) The absolute infinitive is introduced ( 396 400). (27) The gerund absorbs the functions of the verbal noun and the present participle ( 416 417). 28) Adjectives are used instead of adverbs ( 423). 484. III. Modern English (A.D. 1500 Present). The most characteristic feature of Modern English syntax imperfection in the structure of sentences. Both Old and Middle English sentences are wanting in unity and proportion ; in Modern English both are attained, favoured, in all probability, by the models of Greek and Latin prose-works ( 8, 97). This perfection of structure appears in several details. (1) Anacoluthic sentences disappear ( 8). (2) Direct and indirect speech are strictly kept apart ( 108). (3) In adjective clauses, the redundunt personal pronoun, which was frequent, not to say the rule, in Old and Middle English, is dropped ( 112 119). Such sentences as " The land that they hold, give // to Charles" ( 117) got out of use. 3 i6 ENGLISH SYNTAX (4) The double negative which was common in Old and Middle English, and still frequent in Elizabethan writers, was given up in the seventeenth century, and is now con- sidered vulgar. (5) The concord between subject and predicate is strictly observed ( 84 89). (6) The sequence of tenses is regulated by the Latin rule. Principal tenses depend on principal tenses ; historical on historical ( 371 375). (7) The well-constructed period is of comparatively recent date. Other characteristics of Modern English syntax are : (8) The accusative with the infinitive preceded by for : "// is better for a sinner to suffer tribulation " ( 71). (9) With preceding the (once absolute) participle : " With the enemy invading our country, it was my duty to go on the campaign" ( 154). The beginning of this innovation reaches back to the end of the fourteenth century. "Alle \>e prisoneres schulde folwe ]>e chaar wty hire hondes i-bounde byhynde her bakkes " (Latin original : ligatis post terga manibus). Trevisa, Higden's Polychronicon, I. 239. (10) Such constructions as " What occupation are you? " are scarcely to be met with before the sixteenth century ( 136442). (n) The oblique case supplanting the nominative may be traced back to the last period of Middle English, but it does not become common before the sixteenth century. (a) You instead of ye ( 212). (b) It is me ( 214). (12) Adjectives used indiscriminately with active and passive, transitive and intransitive meaning ( 249 251). (13) One used after adjectives which refer to preceding SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 317 nouns occurs here and there in Middle English, but it is not established before the seventeenth century ( 256). (14) Themselves comes in in the first half of the sixteenth century ( 300). (15) What used adjectively = qualis is of recent date ( 326). (16) Who as a relative, although there are instances as early as the tenth and twelfth centuries, does not become general before the sixteenth century ( 336). (17) The auxiliary do is restricted to emphatic interro- gative and negative phrases ( 352). (18) The idiom " I am going, writing" etc. comes to be generally used in Modern English. (19) The tendency to restrict the subjunctive, which appears already in Middle English, goes so far as nearly to get rid of it altogether ( 376, 380 391). (20) The accusative with the infinitive (as object,) develops rapidly in the time of Queen Elizabeth ( 402 404). (21) " The house is building " is a sixteenth century growth, and " The house is being built " of a still more recent date ( 415). (22) " Would you mind me asking a few questions?" " We have no right to be hurt at a girl telling me what my faults are." These idioms, although very old, had become obsolete and were introduced again into literary language about the middle of our century ( 419). (23) Such idioms as " rambling passion" "undergoing stomach " were developed in Shakspere's time ( 420). (24) The tendency to be terse and curt is characteristic of the English prose of our own time. This tendency appears in several sorts of omission. (a) The copula to be is, as a rule, omitted in such ex- pressions as "no matter" "no doubt" etc. 3i8 ENGLISH SYNTAX (b) " It was no use trying " is now very common ; in older authors we always find " It was of no use." (c) "She sat down, Turkish fashion " ( 442). (d) " He will go, though I advise him not to." This ellipsis is of a very recent date, and is getting fast into literary language. LIST OF ENGLISH TEXTS QUOTED IN THIS BOOK. I. OLD ENGLISH. ^Elfred, King (1) The oldest English version of Bede's Ecclesiastical History, Ed. Dr. T. Miller. Early English Text Society, 1890, 1891. (Attributed, probably falsely, to Alfred.) (2) King Alfred's Anglo-Saxon version of Boethius, de Consolatione Philosophise, with an English Translation and Notes. Ed. Fox (Bonn's Library). London, 1864. A.D. ab. 888. (3) King Alfred's Orosius. Ed. H. Sweet. Early English Text Society, 1884. A.D. ab. 893. (4) West-Saxon version of Gregory's Pastoral Care. Ed. H. Sweet. E.E.T.S., 1872. A.D. ab. 897. /Elfric, Abbot (1) Genesis. Ed. Grein (Bibliothek der angelsachsischen Prosa. Erster Band, 1872). A.D. ab. IOOO. (2) Exodus. Ibid. (3) The Homilies of Elfric, with an English Translation. Ed. Benj. Thorpe. Elfric Society, 1843, 1845. A - D - a b. 1000. (4) ^Elfric's Metrical Lives of Saints. Ed. Rev. Prof. Skeat. E.E.T.S., 1881, 1886, 1890. A.D. ab. 1000. Andreas, Ed. Grein (Bibliothek der angelsachsischen Poesie). A.D. ab. 1000. Apollonius of Tyre. Ed. Benj. Thorpe, London, 1834. A.D. ab. IOOO. Basil, Hexameron. Ed. Norman. A.D. ab. looo. Beda, see ^Elfred. Beowulf. Ed. M. Heyne. Paderborn, 1879. A.D. ab. looo. Blickling Homilies. Ed. Rev. Dr. R. Morris. E. E. T. S., 1874, 1876, 1880. A.D. 971. Boethius, see Alfred. Byrhtnoth. Ed. Grein. Bibl. der ags. Poesie. A.D. 991. Caedmon (?), Genesis, Exodus. Ed. Grein, Ibid. A. u. ab. 1000. Chronicle. Two of the Saxon Chronicles parallel. Ed. with Intro- duction, Notes, and a Glossarial Index. T. Earle, 1865. Parker M.S. A.D. 905. 320 ENGLISH SYNTAX Cura Pastoralis, see -,-Elfred. Cynewulf (1) Crist. Ed. Grein, Bibl. der ags. Poesie. A.D. 730-750. (2) Juliana. Ibid. A.D. 730-750. (3) Elene. Ed. Zupitza. A.D. ab. 750. Lindisfarne Gospels. Ed. Skeat (The Holy Gospels in Anglo-Saxon, Northumbrian, and Old Mercian Versions synoptically arranged) Cambridge, 1871-1887. A.D. ab. IOOO. Orosius, see ^Elfred. Salomon and Saturn. Ed. Grein, Bibl. der ags. Poesie. A.D. ab. IOOO. Wulfstan, Homilies. Ed. A. Napier. Berlin, 1883. II. MIDDLE ENGLISH. Alexius. Alexiuslegende, herausgegeben von J. Schipper (Quellen und Forschungen). A.D. ab. 1340. Alisaunder. King Alisaunder. Ed. Weber (Metrical Romances, I.). A.D. ab. 1300. Amadas. Ed. Weber (Ibid. III.). A.D. ab. 1440. Ancren Riwle. Ed. T. Morton. Camden Society. A.D. ab. 1225. Ayenbite. Dan Michel's Ayenbite of Inwyt. Ed. R. Morris E.E.T.S., 1866. A.D. 1340. Aymon, see Caxton. Bevesof Hampton. Ed. E. Kblbing, E.E.T.S. 1885-6. A.D. 1350. Blanchardyn, see Caxton. Boece, see Chaucer. Caxton, William (1) The Foure Sonnes of Aymon. Ed. Octavia Richardson. E.E.T.S., 1884, 1885. A.D. ab. 1489. (2) Blanchardyn and Eglantine. Ed. L. Kellner. E. E.T. S., 1890. A.D. ab. 1489. (3) Book of Curtesye. Ed. F. J. Furnivall, E.E.T.S., 1868. A.D. ab. 1478. (4) Charles the Crete. Ed. S. J. Herrtage, E.E.T.S., 1880, 1881. A.D. ab. 1485. (5) Alain Chartier's Curial. Ed. F. J. Furnivall, and Paul Meyer. E.E.T.S., 1888. A.D. ab. 1484. (6) Eneydos. Ed. M. T. Culley and F. J. Furnivall. E.E.T.S., 1890. A.D. ab. 1490. (7) Prologues and Epilogues. Ed. Blades in " The Life and Typography of William Caxton." London, 1861, 1863. LIST OF ENGLISH TEXTS QUOTED 321 Chaucer, Geoffrey, Poetical Works. Ed. R. Morris, 1866. (1) Boke of the Duchesse. A.D. ab. 1369. (2) Canterbury Tales. A.D. ab. 1386. (3) House of Fame. A.D. ab. 1384. (4) Legend of Good Women. A.D. ab. 1385. (5) Troylus and Cryseide. A.D. ab. 1374. Chaucer, Boece. Ed R. Morris, E.E.T. S. and Chaucer Society, 1866. A.D. ab. 1374. Coventry Mysteries. Ed. J. O. Halliwell, 1844. A.D. ab. 1468. Cursor Mundi. Ed. R. Morris, E.E.T.S., 1874-1878. A.D. ab. 1300. Ferumbras, Sir. Ed. S. J. Herrtage, E.E.T.S., 1879. A.D. ab. 1380. Gamelyn. The Coke's Tale of Gamelyn (Chaucer's Works, Canterbury Tales). A.D. ab. 1400. Gawayne, Sir, and the Green Knight. Ed. R. Morris, E.E.T.S., 1864. A.D. ab. 1360. Gesta Romanoram. Ed. S. J. Herrtage, E.E.T. S., 1879. A.D. ab. 1440. Gilds. English Gilds, their Statutes and Customs, 1389, A.D. Ed. Toulmin Smith, and Miss L. T. Smith. E.E.T.S. 1870. Gower's Confessio Amantis. Ed. R. Pauli, 1860. A.D. ab. 1393. Guy of Warwick, 1 5th century Version. Ed. J. Zupitza, E.E.T.S. 1873, 1876. A.D. ab. 1440. Ilali Meidenhad. Ed. O. Cockayne, E.E.T.S., 1866. A.D. ab. 1230. JIampole, Richard Rolle de Ilampole (1) Prick of Conscience. Ed. R. Morris, Philological Soc. 1863. A.D. ab. 1340. (2) Prose Treatises. Ed. G. G. Perry, E.E.T.S., 1866. A.D. ab. 1350. Havelok the Dane. Ed. W. Skeat, E.E.T.S., 1 868. A.D. 1280 (or 1300). Horn, King. Ed. J. R. Lumby. E.E.T.S., 1868. A.D. 1250. Ipomadon. Ed. E. Kolbing. Breslau, 1889. A.D. 1340. Knight of La Tour Landry. Ed. T. Wright, E.E.T.S., 1868. A.D. 1440. Layamon. Ed. Madden, 1847. Text A ab. 1205. Text B. ab. 1275. Legendary. Early English Verse Lives of Saints (earliest version) Ed. C. Horstmann. E.E.T.S. 1887. A.D. 1290. Malory, Morte Darthur. Ed. O. H. Sommer. London, 1889, A.D. Manning, see Robert de Bmnne. Y 322 ENGLISH SYNTAX Marherete, Seinte. Ed. O. Cockayne. E.E.T.S., 1866. A.D. 1 220. Maundevillc. The Voiage and Travaile of Sir John Maundeville. Ed. T. O. Halliwell, 1839. A.D. 1400. Melusine, the prose Romance. Ed. A. K. Donald, E. E.T. S. A.D. 1500. Old English Homilies and Ilomiletic Treatises of the I2th and I3th centuries. Ed. K. Morris, E.E.T.S., I. 1867. II. 1868. Second Series 1873. A.D. 1150-1230. Old English Miscellany, containing a Bestiary, Kentish Sermons, Proverbs of Alfred, and Religious Poems of the 1 3th century. Ed. R. Morris, E.E.T. S., 1872. A.D. 1200-1270. Orm. The Ormulum by Ormin. Ed. White-Holt, 1878. A.D. 1200. Owl and Nightingale. An Old English Poem of the Owl and Nightingale. Ed. . II. Stratmann, 1868. A.D. ab. 1225. Pecock, Reginald, The Represser of Over Much Blaming the Clergy. Ed. Churchill Babington, 1860 (Rerum Britannicarum Medii Aevi Scriptores). A.D. 1449. Piers, Plowman. The Vision of William (Langland) concerning Piers the Plowman. Ed. W. W. Skeat, E.E.T.S., 1867-85. A- Text ab. 1362, B-Text 1377, and C-Text 1393. Poema Morale (contained in Old English Homilies, Old English Mis- cellany, Zupitza's Lesebuch, and lastly ed. by Levin). A.D. 1200. Richard Coeur de Lion. Ed. Weber, Metrical Romances, II. A.D. ab. 1330. Robert de Brunne (1) Peter Langtoft's Chronicle, as illustrated and improved by Robert of Brunne. Ed. Th. Hearne, Oxford, 1725. A.D. 1330. (2) The Story of England by Robert Manning of Brunne. Ed. F. J. Furnivall, 1887. (Rerum Brit. Medii Aevi Scrip- tores.) A.D. 1338. Robert of Gloucester, The Metrical Chronicle of. Ed. William Aldis Wright, 1887. (Ibid.}. A.D. 1297. Romaunt of the Rose (falsely" attributed to Chaucer, and therefore printed in Chaucer's Poetical Works. Ed. Morris). A.D. ab. 1408. Sawles Warde (in Old English Homilies, II.). A.D. ab. 1235. Seuyn Sages. Ed. Weber, Metr. Romances, III. A.D. ab. 1320. Townley Mysteries. Ed. Surtees Society, 1836. A.D. ab. 1450 Trevisa. Polychronicon Ranulphi Higden, together with the English Translation of John Trevisa. Ed. Churchill Babington and R. Lumby, 1865-86. (Rer. Brit. Medii Aevi Scriptores.) A.D. ab. 1387- LIST OF ENGLISH TEXTS QUOTED 323 Tristram. Die Nordische und Englische Version der Tristansage, herausgegeben von E. Kolbing. Heilbronn, 1883. A. D. ab. 1320. William of Palerne. Ed. Skeat, E.E.T.S., 1867. A.D. ab. 1340. Wills (1) Wills and Inventories from the Register of the Commissary of Bury St. Edmunds. Ed. S. Tymms, 1850. Camden Society. A.D. 1380-1450. (2) The 50 Earliest English Wills in the Court of Probate. Ed. Furnivall, E.E.T.S., 1882. A.D. 1387-1439. Wohunge of Ure Lauerd (in Old English Homilies, II.). A.D. ab. 1240. Wyclif (1) The English Works of John Wyclif, hitherto unprinted. Ed. F. D Mathew, E.E.T.S., 1880. A.D. ab. 1380. (2) The Holy Bible in the earliest English versions made from the Latin Vulgate by John Wycliffe and his followers. Ed. Forshall and Madden, 1850. A.D. ab. 1380. York Plays. Ed. Miss L. T. Smith, 1885. A.D. ab. 1430. III. MODERN ENGLISH. Addison (1) Cato. A.D. 1713. (2) Essays. Ed. J. R. Green. London, 1880. A.D. ab. 1711. Arcadia, see Sidney. Ascham, Roger (1) Toxophilus. Ed. Arber. A.D. 1545. (2) The Schoolmaster. Ed. Arber. A.D. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. A.D. 1813. Bacon, Advancement of Learning. Ed. Skeat. A.D. 1605. Beaumont and Flefrcher, Works. Ed. George Darley. London, 1839. (1) The Scornful Lady. A.D. 1609. (2) The Faithful Shepherdess (by Fletcher). A D. 1610. Ben Jonson, Works. Ed. W. Gifford. London, 1838. (1) Every Man in his Humour. A.D. 1598. (2) Cynthia's Revels. A.D. 1600. (3) The Poetaster. A.D. 1601. Berners, Lord - (1) Froissart's Chronicles. A.D. 1523, 1525. (2) The History of the moost noble and valyaunt Knight, Arthur of Lyttil Brytaine. A.D. 1533. (3) Huon of Bordeaux Ed. S. L. Lee, E.E.T.S., 1882-1887. A.D. 1534. Y 2 324 ENGLISH SYNTAX Besant and Rice (1) Ready Money Mortiboy. (2) The Monks of Thelema. (3) Such a Good Man. Boorde, Andrew (1) Dyatary of Health. Ed. Furnivall, E.E.T.S., 1869. A.D. 1542. (2) Introduction of Knowledge. Ibid. A.D. 1547. Braddon, Miss, Ishmael. A.D. 1885. Bulwer (1) Pelham. A.D. 1828. (2) Rienzi. A.D. 1835. (3) Money. A.D. 1840. Bunyan, John, The Pilgrim's Progress. London, Nimmo, 8vo. A.u. 1684. Butler, Samuel, Hudibras. Ed. H. Morley. A.D. 1678. Byron, Lord (1) English Bards and Scotch Reviewers. A.D. 1809. (2) Bride of Abydos. A.D. 1813. (3) Childc Harold (IV.). A.D. 1818. (4) Cain. A.D. 1817. Carlyle, Thomas (1) Sartor Resartus. A.D. 1831. (2) French Revolution. A.D. 1837. (3) Heroes and Hero- Worship. A.D. 1841. (4) Frederick the Great A.D. 1865. Clyomon, Sir, and Sir Clamydes (attributed to Peele). Ed. Al. Dyce in Peele's Works. A.D. I599(?). Coleridge, S. T. Wallenstein. A.D. 1800. Cowper, Works. Globe Edition. Defoe, Daniel, Robinson Crusoe. A.D. 1719. Dickens, Charles (1) Chimes. A.D. 1844. (2) Christmas Carol. A.D. 1843. (3) Cricket on the Hearth. A.D. 1845. (4) David Copperfield. A.D. 1849-1850. (5) Pickwick Papers. A.D. 1836. (6) Sketches. A.D. 1836. Drayton, Michael, Polyolbion. A.D. 1613 Dryden, John, Poetical Works. London, Macmillan. Edgeworth, Maria, Popular Tales. A.D. 1832. Eliot, George, Silas Marner. A.D. 1861. Fielding, Henry, Joseph Andrews. A.D. 1742. LIST OF ENGLISH TEXTS QUOTED 325 Fisher. Bishop Fisher's English Works. Ed. J. E. B. Mayor. E.E.T.S. 1876. A.D. 1509. Fletcher, see Beaumont and Fletcher. Gammer Gurton's Needle. Ed. Dodsley-Hazlitt. A.D. 1575. Gay, John, Beggar's Opera. A.D. 1727. Gascoigne, George, The Steel-Glasse. Ed. Arber. A.D. 1576. Goldsmith, Oliver (1) She Stoops to Conquer. A.D. 1773 (2) The Vicar of Wakefield. A.D. 1766. Greene, Robert. Ed. Al. Dyce (The Dramatic and Poetical Works of Robert Greene and George Peele), London, 1861. (1) Alphonsus, King of Arragon. A.D. ab. 1599. (2) Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay. A.D. ab. 1592. (3) George-a-Grecne, the Pinner of Wakefield. A.D. ab. 1593. (4) James the Fourth. A.D. 1592. (5) A Looking-Glass for London and England. A.D. ab. 1593. (6) Orlando Furioso. A.D. 1591. Irving, Washington (1) Bracebridge Hall ; or, the Humourists. A.D. 1822. (2) The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus. A.D. 1828. John Halifax, Gentleman. A.D. 1857. Knowles, Sheridan, The Hunchback. A.D. 1834. Latimer, Hugh, Sermons on the Card. Ed. H. Morley. A.D. 1555. Lewes, George Henry, Life and Works of Goethe. A.D. 1855. Lodge, Thomas, The Wounds of Civil War. Ed. Dodsley-Haziitt. A.D. ab. 1590. Lyly, John. Euphues, Ed. Landmann (Englische Neudrucke, Heilbronn). A.D. 1530. Macaulay, Lord. History of England. A.D. 1848. Marlowe, Christopher. Ed. Al. Dyce. London, 1858. (1) The Tragedy of Dido, Queen of Carthage. A.D. ab. I586(?) (2) Edward II. A.D. ab. 1592. (3) The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus. Ed. Breymann, (Englische Neudrucke). A.D. 1590. (4) The Jew of Malta. Ed. Alb. Wagner (Engl. Neudrucke). A.D. 1592. (5) Tamburlaine the Great. Ed. Alb. Wagner (Ibid.} First Part A.D. 1587. Second Part 1590. Massinger, Philip. A New Way to Pay old Debts. Ed. Hartlcj Coleridge (The Dramatic Works of Massinger and Ford), London, 1839. A.D. ab. 1633. Milton, John, Paradise Lost. A.D. 1667. Mucedorus. Ed. Dodsley-Hazlitt. A.D. ab. 1598. 326 ENGLISH SYNTAX Payn, James, Found Dead. Peele, George. Ed. Al. Dyce. See Greene. 1 i ) The Arraignment of Paris. A. D. ab. 1 584. (2) The Battle of Alcazar. A.D. ab. 1591. . (3) The Old Wives' Tale. A.D. ab. 1594. Pepys s Diary. Ed. Lord Braybrooke. A.D. 1659-62. Pope, Alexander. Ed. William Roscoe, London, 1824. (1) Essay on Man. A.D. 1732. (2) Universal Prayer. Puttenham, George, The Arte of English Poesie. Ed. Arber. A.D. 1589. Ralph Royster Doyster. Ed. Dodsley-Hazlitt. A.D. 1553. Reade, Charles. A Terrible Temptation. Richardson, Samuel, Pamela ; or, Virtue Rewarded. Ed. Ballantyne's Novelist's Library. Vol. VI. A.D. 1741. Scott, Sir Walter. . (i) Guy Mannering. A.D. 1815. (2) The Lady of the Lake. A.D. 1810. (3) The Lay of the Last Minstrel. A.D. 1805. (4) Marmion. A.D. 1808. (5) Rob Roy. A.D. 1818. Shakespeare, William Globe Edition (1) Antony and Cleopatra. A.D. 1606. (2) As You Like It. A.D. 1600. (3) All's Well that Ends Well. A.D. 1601. (4) Comedy of Errors. A.D. 1590. (5) Hamlet. A.D. 1602. (6) King Henry VI. First Part. A.D. I59 ' L. Latinisms, 56, 122, 144, 248, 251, 252; 255, 401-404, 479 learn teach, 343, 344 leren = learn, 347 let us go, 351 like used impersonally, 334 lines creature = living creature, 158, 166 lively = enlivening, 251 lose = ruin, 343, 344 luckless fatal, 251 M. Make it strange, 283 make merry, 345 maner followed by " of," 170 not followed by "of," 171 manner, what manner musick, 171 may as a modal verb, 359 me instead of my in such phrases as " don't mind me leaving so soon," 13 " it is me" 79 for "I, "214 meltan = to melt ; to make melt, 342 merry =producing merriment, 251 7/rf = and, 445 miscarry = to be miscarried, 346 mister, " what mister wight," 171 mixed construction, 18, 176 modal clauses become causal ones, 127 used in a concessive sense, 128 mortal = deadly, 251 my tetters, elders, equals, 241, 304 lord, 306 used as a term of courtesy, 306 myself, 296 N. " Nearivian " instead of " nyrwan," 342 negative sentences, order of words in 455 never his life, 204 INDEX 333 never too late to mend, 339 noun. See also substantive noun in apposition, 37 noun clause and adjective clause inter- mixed, 120 replaced by the interpolated principal sentence, 120 noun clauses dependent on impersonal verbs, 378 after verbs expressing wish, 379 nouns, classes of nouns interchanged, 137- 141 nominative instead of the dative, 19, 41, 151, 152, 210 functions of the, 149-150 instead of the accusative after " hatan," 150, 202, 208 instead of the oblique case in old impersonal verbs, 151 absolute, 153, 154 with the infinitive, 155, 406 in apposition, 156 supplanted by the oblique case, 157, 211 instead of the oblique case, 207 after "but" and "save," 207 anacoluthic, 209 with verbs once impersonal, 210 with verbs in passive constructions, 210 number, subjective character of the, 142 number of abstracts, 143 of common nouns, 147 numerals, fractional, 266 place of the, 463 o. Object of impersonal and transitive verbs turned into subject, 59 double, 201, 202 placed at the head of the sentence, 454. 460 placed before the verb, 461 order of words in sentences with two objects, 474 order of words with one object and two verbs, 475 pronoun omitted, 275 objective relation, 48 genitive, 164 absolute, 206 oblique case supplanting the nominative, 157, 211 the absolute pronoun in the, 2ti instead of the nominative, in connection with "all" and numerals, and after "than" " as >" 2I 5 "of mine," 311 ed as passives, 346 " ]>e" supplanted by " that,'' 332 U. Undergoing stoviac'i, 420 undeserving praise, 420 unhappy = mischievous ; fatal, 251 unrecalling crime, 420 unto = until, 445 unwiste (unconscious). 408 V. Verbal noun, 413-420 verbs of movement omitted after auxili- ary verbs, 83 used both as transitives and intrans- itives, 339 336 INDEX verbs with causative and intransitive meaning, 341 reflexive and passive,closely related, 360 passive of, with a double object, 363 w. Wandering wood, 420 "we " instead of "/," 276 iveak = weakness, 248 iveary= wearying, becoming weary, 251 well-spoken, 408 lueorGan (to become) with the dative of the substantive predicate, 189 "w'tat " used substantively, 324 "what news," 324 ' what " referring to persons, 325 who instead of. 325 used adjectively, 326 as an exclamation, 327 used in the relative sense, 335 "which," the indefinite relative which becomes a proper one, 336 " who is who" 328 " who" used in the relative stnse, 333 the indefinite relative who becomes a proper one, 336 " will" expressing customary . 350 used elliptically, 358 forming the future tense, 357 " vaitk " in the absolute construction, *54 replacing the instrumental case, 431 in passive constructions, 435 in connection with participle?, 437 wo " I am ful wo," 151 tvorldes thing = worldly thingcs, 166 wylde = wild beasts, 244 V. Yokf=\o be yoked, 346 "you " supplants '"ye" 212 " your fat king," 307 youthful suit = suit of a youth, 252 travel travel made in youth, 25 THE END. RICHARD CLAY AND SONS. LIMITED. LONDON AND BUNGAY. University of California SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024-1388 Return this material to the library from which it was borrowed. MAILING ADDRESS I54 qutst ADDRESS.. A 000144493 4 CSC McHENRY-LIB --- SRLF 002/002 3 REQUBiTPpRWETURNED JUL 1 9 ]093 "lease Print or Type) (CANCEL REQUEST IF NOT RECEIVED BY (