forts; or for forts, containing many individuals under them; as, Animal, Man. And thefe Common Names, whether of kinds or forts, are applied to exprefs individuals, by the help of Articles added to them, as hath been already fhewn; and by the help of Definitive Pronouns, as we fhall fee hereafter. Proper Names being the Names of individuals, and therefore of things already as determinate as they can be made, admit not of Articles, or of Plurality of number; unlefs by a Figure, or by Accident: as, when great Conquerors are called Alexanders; and fome great Conqueror An Alexander, or The Alexander of his Age: when a Common Name is understood, as The Thames, that is, the River Thames; The George, that is the Sign of St. George: or when it happens, that there are many persons of the fame name; as, The two Scipios. Whatever is spoken of is reprefented as one, or more, in Number: these two manners of reprefentation in refpect of number are called the Singular, and the Plural, Number. In English, the Subftantive Singular is made Plural, for the most part, by adding to it s; or es, where it is neceffary for the pronunciation: as king, kings; fox, foxes; leaf, leaves; in which laft, and many others, fis alfo changed into v, for the fake of an eafier pronunciation, and more agreeable found. Some 7. Some few Plurals end in en; as, oxen, children, brethren; and men, women, by changing the a of the Singular into e [7]. This form we have retained from the Teutonic; as likewife the introduction of the e in the former fyllable of two of the laft inftances; women, (for fo we pronounce it,) brethren, from woman, brother [8] fomething like which may be noted in fome other forms of Plurals; as moufe, mice; loufe, lice; tooth, teeth; foot, feet; goofe, geese [9]. The words sheep, deer, are the fame in both Numbers. Some Nouns, from the nature of the things which they exprefs, are ufed only in the Singular, others only in the Plural, Form: as, wheat, pitch, gold, floth, pride, &c. and bellows, scissars, lungs, bowels, &c. The English Language, to express different connexions and relations of one thing to another, ufes, for the most part, Brepofitions. The Greek and Latin among the antient, aad fome too among the modern languages, as the German, vary the ter [7] And antiently, eyen, fhoen, boufen, bofen; fo likewife antiently fowen, cower, now always pronounced and written fine, king. [8] In the German, the vowels, 4, 9, u, of monofyllable Nouns are generally in the Plural changed into diphthongs with an e: as die band, the hand, die hände; der but, the hat, die büte; der knopff the button, (or knob,) die knöpffe; &c. [9] Thefe are directly from the Saxon: mus, mys; lus, lys; tatb, terb; fet, fet; gos, gesa B 3 mination mination or ending of the Subftantive, to answer the fame purpose. These different endings are in thofe languages called Cafes. And the English being derived from the fame origin as the German, that is, from the Teutonic [1], is not wholly without them. For inftance, the relation of Poffeffion, or Belonging, is often expreffed by a Cafe, or a different ending of the Subftantive. This Cafe anfwers to the Genitive Cafe in Latin, and may fill be fo called; though perhaps more properly the Poffeffive Cafe. Thus, "God's grace:" which may also be expreffed by the Prepofition; as, "the grace of God." It was formerly written, "Godis grace;" we now always fhorten it with an Apoftrophe; often very improperly, when we are obliged to pronounce it fully; as, "Thomas's book:" that is, "Thomasis book," not "Thomas his book," as it is commonly fupposed [2]. [1]Lingua Anglorum hodierna avitæ Saxonicæ formam in plerifque orationis partibus etiamnum retinet. Nam quoad particulas cafuales, quorundam cafuum terminationes, conjugationes verborum, verbum fubftantivum, formam paffivæ vocis, pronomina, participia, conjunctiones, et præpofitiones omnes; denique, quoad idiomata, phrafiumque maximam partem, etiam nunc Saxonicus eft Anglorum fermo." Hickes, Thefaur. Ling. Septent. Præf. p. vi. To which may be added the Degrees of comparison, the form of which is the very fame in the English as in the Saxon. [2] "Chrift his fake," in our Liturgy, is a mistake, either of the Printers, or of the Compilers. "Nevertheless, Afa bis heart was perfect with the Lord." I Kings xv. 14. "To fee whether Mordecai bis matters would ftand." Either iii. 4. When When the thing, to which another is faid to befong, is expreffed by a circumlocution, or by many terms, the fign of the Poffeffive Cafe is commonly added to the last term; as, "The King of Great Britain's Soldiers." When it is a Noun ending in s, the fign of the Poffeffive Cafe is fometimes not added; as, “for righteoufnefs' fake [3]; nor ever to the Plural Number ending in s; as, "on eagies wings [4]." Both the Sign and the Prepofi 1 Donne. "Where is this mankind now? who lives to age "The' Pope's Odyffey. "My Paper is the Ulyffes his bow, in which every man of wit or learning may try his ftrength." Addifon, Guardian No. 98. See alfo Spect. No. 207. This is no flip of Mr. Addifon's pen: he gives us his opinion upon this point very explicitly in another place. fame fingle letter (s) on many occafions does the office of the whole word, and reprefents the bis and ber of our forefathers." Addifon, Spect. No. 135. The latter inftance might have fhewn him, hów groundlefs this notion is: for it is not eafy to conceive, how the letter s added to a Feminine Noun fhould reprefent the word ber; any more than it fhould the word their, added to a Plural Noun; as, "the children's bread." But the direct derivation of this Cafe from the Saxon Genitive Cafe is fufficient of itfelf to decide this matter. [3] In Poetry, the Sign of the Poffeffive Cafe is frequently omitted after Proper Names ending in s, or x: as, "The wrath of Peleus' Son." This feems not fo allowable in Profe: as, "Mofes' minifter.". Josh. i. 1. "Phinehas' wife." 1 Sam. iv. 19. "Feftus came into Felix' room." Act's xxiv. 27. [4]"It is very probable, that this Convocation was called, to clear fome doubt, that King James might have had, about the law B 4 tion tion feem fometimes to be used; as, "a foldier of the king's" but here are really two Poffeffives; for it means," one of the foldiers of the king." The English in its Subftantives has but two different terminations for Cafes; that of the Nominative, which fimply expreffes the Name of the thing, and that of the Poffeffive Cafe. Things are frequently confidered with relation to the diftinction of Sex or Gender; as being Male, or Female, or Neither the one, nor the other. Hence Subftantives are of the Mafculine, or Feminine, or Neuter, (that is, Neither,) Gender: which latter is only the exclufion of all confideration of Gender. The English Language, with fingular propriety, following nature alone, applies the diftinction of Mafculine and Feminine only to the names of Animals; all the reft are Neuter: except when, by a Poetical or Rhetorical fiction, things Inanimate and Qualities are exhibited as Perfons, and confequently become either Male or Female. And this gives the English an advantage above most other languages in the Poetical and Rhetorical ftyle: for when Nouns naturally Neuter are con fulness of the Hollanders their throwing off the Monarchy of Spain, and their withdrawing for good and all their allegiance to that Crown. Welwood's Memoirs, p. 31. 6th Edit. In this Sentence the Pronominal Adjective their is twice improperly added; the Poffeftive Cafe being fufficiently expreffed without it. verted |