the first future and first aorift; and that they are the present and imperfect of fome obfolete theme of the verb, and, when the other theme came into use, happened to be retained, for the fake of variety perhaps, or by mere accident, with a preterite and future fignification. Be this as it will; as these tenfes are peculiar to the Greek, and have nothing correfponding to them in other tongues, we need not fcruple to overlook them as fuperfluous.

Different nations may make ufe of different contrivances for marking the times of their verbs. The Greeks and Latins diftinguish their tenfes, as well as their moods, and the cafes of their nouns, adjectives, and participles, by varying the termination, or otherwife changing the form, of the word; retaining, however, thofe radical letters, which prove the inflection to be of the fame kindred with its theme. The modern tongues, particularly the English, abound in auxiliary words, which vary the meaning of the noun or attributive, without requiring any confiderable varieties of inflection, Thus, I did read, I fhall read, I fhould read, have the fame import with legi, legam, legerem. It is obvious, that a language, like the Greek and Latin, which can thus comprehend in one word the meaning of two or three, must have some advantages over those which cannot. Perhaps indeed it may not be more perfpicuous: but, in the arrangement of words, and confequently in harmony and energy, as well as in concifenefs, it may be much more elegant. Every fentiment that Greek or Latin can exprefs, may in one way or other be expreffed in English. But if we were to attempt the fame varieties of arrange

arrangement, we fhould fee a wonderful fuperiority in the former. Virgil could fay,

Formofam refonare doces Amaryllida filvas:

But we cannot fay, Fair to refound thou "teachest Amaryllis the woods." Had the poet's verfe permitted, the fyntax of his language would not have hindered him from changing the order of these five words in many different ways, with equal fignificancy. But when we attempt more than two or three modes of arrangement, we are apt to fall into ambiguity or nonfenfe. Nay in many cafes we are limited to one particular arrangement. A Roman might have faid, Achilles interfecit Hectorem, or Hectorem interfecit Achilles, or Achilles He&torem interfecit, or Hectorem Achilles interfecit, or Interfecit Hectorem Achilles, or Interfecit Achilles Hectorem: but we muft fay, Achilles flew Hector; for, if we vary the fentence ever fo little, we produce ambiguity, nonfenfe, or falfehood; ambiguity, as Achilles Hector few nonfenfe, as Slew Hector Achilles ; falfehood, as Hector flew Achilles.

It has been obferved of the English, that they are much inclined to fhorten their words into monofyllables; which a certain author wittily afligns as a proof, that taciturnity is natural to the people. It may alfo be remarked, that we are not friendly to inflection: for, few as the terminations of our verbs are, we feem inclinable to reduce their number. Thus, fome authors confound wrote with written, or rather abolish written, and use wrote instead of it; and fay, not only," he wrote a book," which is right; Vol. II. but

I

but alfo," the book is well wrote," instead of "well written." To mistake the aorift of the paft for the preterite participle, would have a ftrange effect in Latin or Greek; and is not lefs ungrammatical in Englifh. In like manner, fome of our writers feem to forget, that English verbs have in the indicative mood a fecond perfon fingular; for they fay, thou writes, instead of thou writeft: which is as improper in our language, as tu fcripfit would be in Latin. And, both in fpeech and in writing, it has been too customary, of late years, to difcontinue the use of that conjunctive or fubjunctive mood, which was formerly, by our beft writers, introduced after fuch words as if, though, before, whether, unlefs, &c. as, "If he write, I will anfwer him,' "Though he lay me, I will truft in him,""I expect to fee him before he go away," &c. instead of which phrafes, many people would now fay, lefs properly, "if he writes-though he Mays-before he goes," &c.*This, however, is the more excufable, because the indicative may fometimes be elegantly used in such a nection as, "If there is a Power above us, he "muft delight in virtue." For the first clause, though introduced by if, is not meant to express what is in any degree doubtful, indefinite, or dependent and therefore, it has not that character, which diftinguishes the fubjunctive from the indicative. As our language has too little inflection, it is pity it fhould lofe any of the little it has.

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con

Paft time being prior to prefent, and prefent to future, one would think, that grammarians, in arrang

This, and the preceding, and fome other grammatical

and verbal improprieties, are frequent in Sterne.

arranging the tenfes, fhould have given the first place to the preterites. Yet in the Greek and Latin, and all modern grammars, the order is different, and the prefent has the precedency: which by Scaliger is thus whimsically accounted for. What ftands connected with prefent time is perceived hy fenfe alone, and may therefore be known in fome degree to all animals; but memory, as well as fenfe, is requifite to give information of what is pat; and, in order to anticipate the future, fenfe, memory, and reafon are all neceffary.-The true reafon 1 take to be this. The Prefent is put firft, because in Greek and Latin, it is confidered as the theme or root of the verb; every other tenfe being derived from it, and it derived from no other tenfe; and the Preterites take place of the Future, in Latin, on account of the natural precedency of paft to future time; and, in Greek, the Future takes place of the Preterites,,because from the Future the Preterites are derived.

Having finished the subject of Tenfes, 1 proceed to explain the nature of Moods, and to inquire, in what refpects they are effential to language.

SECT. IV.

The Jubject continued.-Of the modes, or Moods of verbs.-Gerunds and Supines.-Species of

verbs.

peculiar affections, or mental energies, by which we are determined to think and fpeak. Hence the origin of Modes or Moods in verbs. They are fuppofed to make known our ideas, with fomething alfo of the intention, or temper of mind, with which we conceive and utter them.

In most languages, the ufe of moods is a matter of fome difficulty; and the fource of much elegance, in marking with a fignificant brevity certain minute varieties of meaning, which without this expedient would produce awkward circumlocutions. This will appear from fome of the following examples. And the advantages here hinted at are more confpicuous in Greek and Latin, than in English. For in those languages the moods are marked by particular inflections of the verb; and the rules for their use are afcertained more exactly than in our tongue, and better adapted to the varieties of human thought.

As