Thefe have alfo the regular as well as the irregular form; and the regular form fhould always be preferred.

Befides the irregular verbs, there are alfo others called defective verbs; which are not only irregular in their forms, but also wanting in fome of their forms; fome have no past time, fome no participle, and others neither..

Most of the auxiliary verbs are of this class.

The whole number of verbs in the English language, regular and irregular, fimple and compounded, taken together, amount to about 4300: whereof fifty-two are irregulars of the first clafs, eight irregulars of the fecond clafs, and 102 irregulars of the third clafs; which, with the ten defec tive verbs, make 177: all the rest are regular verbs, and have the paft time active, and participle perfect or paffive, formed alike, and ending in d or ed, as was before obferved. Of the irregular verbs there are not fo many as 100, which have different forms for the past time active, and the participle. This has given occafion to introduce a great corruption, by confounding the different forms of the past time and participle with each other, in irregular verbs. Thus, the participle is fometimes used for the paft time: as, he run, for he ran; he drunk, for he drank : but the past time is very frequently ufed infead of the participle: as,

I have rode, for I have ridden; I have fat, for fitten; I have got, for gotten. This error is frequently committed by our beft writers, and the vulgar tranflation of the Old and New Teftament, which is the best standard of the English grammar, is not free from this fault; held is there often used for holden ; hid fometimes for hidden; and bid for bidden; and begot is twice used for begotten. This error is, however, an enormous folecism; and the impropriety of it will appear by the abufe of some verbs which have not been fo corrupted: as, I have faw, for I have feen; I have did, for I have done; I have went, for I have gone; which are not a whit more ungrammatical than any other verbs which have the past time, inftead of the participle, after the auxiliary have.

In the formation of the prefent participle, it is to be obferved, that if the verb end in a fingle confonant, following a fingle vowel, and accented on the last fyllable, if it confifts of more than one syllable, it doubles the last consonant in forming the prefent participle; alfo in every other form of the verb in which a fyllable is added; as, cut, cutting, regret, regretting, regretteth, regretted. Verbs which end in omit the e in the prefent participle: as, increafe, increasing: all other verbs form the prefent participle by barely adding ing to the verb in its original form': as, turn, turning.

The ADVERB, as its name imports, is added to the verb, and alfo to the adjective, to exprefs fome modification, or other circumstance of the action expreffed by the verb, or the quality expreffed by the adjective: as, the time, he reads, now;-distance, the countries lie wide apart;-relation, they are closely united ;-quantity, an exceeding high mountain-quality, to live foberly-comparifon, they are much alike;-doubt, poffibly, perhaps ;-affirmation, yes, certainly; -negation, no-demonstration, evidently-interrogation, how, what';-manner, well, ill;-order, regularly;-place, here, there; motion, flow, fwift.

The adverb in English has no variation, except a few, which have the degrees of comparifon; and in these the degrees

D 2

SECT. IV.

OF SYNTAX.

SYNTAX is the right ordering and framing of words, in order to form fentences with grammatical propriety. And for this purpose, words are faid to govern, or agree with each other.

When a word governs another, it caufes that particular word which it governs, to be in fuch a particular number, gender, cafe, perfon, time, or mode.

When a word agrees with another, it is in that particular mode, number, cafe, &c. which is required by the word that governs it. Thus: "And she shall bring forth a Son, and thou fhalt call his name Jefus; for he fhall fave his people from their fins."-Matt. i. 21. In this fentence he is a pronoun of the third perfon, fingular, feminine gender, and ought to agree with the subject foregoing, namely, the Virgin Mary-hall bring, the future time of the active verb bring (referring to the time of the birth of the child), the thirdperfon, fingular number, to agree with the pronoun fhe, and indicative mode, as it fimply declares the event;-forth, a prepofition added to the verb bring, and which alters its meaning from bring, to bring forth, which fignifies to bear or produce;-a, the indefinite article ;-Son, noun fubftantive, fingular number, mafculine gender, objective case ;—and, a conjunction copulative, connecting the following and foregoing fentences together ;-thou, the pronoun of the second perfon, fingular, and agent of this fentence;-halt call, the future time of the active verb call, fecond perfon, fingular, being governed by thou, indicative mode, as it only foretels or declares the name of the child, but does not command it; -his, a poffeffive pronoun, third person, fingular, masculine gender, governed by the noun Son ;-name, a substantive

common,

common, and the object of the fentence;-Jefus, a fubstantive proper, mafculine gender, agreeing with the noun Son, and nominative cafe; for, a copulative conjunction;-he, a pronoun, third perfon, fingular, mafculine gender, nominative cafe, being a fubftitute for the noun Jefus, and governed by it, and the agent of this fentence;-skall fave, the future time of the active verb (agreeing in time with the other verbs in the fentence, which are all future), third perfon, fingular, governed by the pronoun he, indicative mode;-his, a poffeffive pronoun;-people, a plural noun, neuter gender, objective cafe ;-from, a preposition, fhewing the relation between the nouns people and fins ;—their, a poffeffive pronominal adjective, and as such joined to the plural noun fins, objective case.

SENTENCES are either fimple or compounded.

A fimple fentence hath but one fubject, or agent, and one verb in the indicative, imperative, or fubjunctive mode; and confifts of three parts, if the verb be active; the agent, the attribute, and the object: as was feen page 12.

A compound fentence confifts of two or more fimple fentences united together by the aid of conjunctions, as hath been fhewn before: or by relatives, as will be feen hereafter. As language and style is only an affemblage of sentences, too much attention can hardly be bestowed upon their construction. We will therefore take a view of the rules of English Syntax, as they regard the feveral parts of speech refpectively.

The ARTICLE, as hath been feen, if definite, is placed before both the fingular and plural noun: as, the man, the men: the indefinite article a is placed before the fiugular moun only: as, a man.

The SUBSTANTIVE governs both the pronoun and the verb for if the fubftantive be plural, it requires both the pronoun and verb to be plural alfo; and it fingular, they muft alfo be fingular: as, "nothing has fo much expofed men of learning to contempt and ridicule, as their ignorance `of things which are known to all but themselves."―Johnson's

Rambler.

Rambler. Example of the fingular: "Seneca Speaks in the natural and genuine language of a man of honour, when he declares, that were there no God to fee or punish vice, he would not commit it."-Guardian.

There are fome nouns called nouns of multitude, which fignify many, and have the pronoun and verb agreeing with them, either in the fingular or plural number; but if they convey a plural idea, the verb and pronoun fhould be plural likewife; if they convey a fingular idea, the verb and pronoun fhould be fingular: as, "the assembly of the wicked have enclofed me"-Pfalm xxii. 16. instead of hath enclosed me. "My people is foolish"-Jer. iv. 22. inftead of are foolish.

Two or more fingular nouns, joined by copulative conjunctions, have the verbs, nouns, and pronouns agreeing with them in the plural number: as, "Shakespeare and Milton were the most eminent poets of the English nation.”

But fometimes the verb follows in the fingular number, and refers to each of the preceding nouns taken feparately; as, "fand, and falt, and a mass of iron is eafier to bear than a man without understanding."

Nouns of number, weight, and measure, are often used in the fingular form, when they are joined to numeral adjectives; though they denote plurality: as, an hundred thousand, inftead of thousands; an hundred pound weight; fix foot; forty fathom.

Nouns, whether of the mafculine, feminine, or neuter gender, always govern the fame gender in the pronoun : as, "I have a friend, who, because he knows his own fidelity and usefulness, is never willing to fink into a companion." "I have a wife, whose beauty first feduced me, and whofe wit confirmed her conqueft."-Johnson's Rambler.

Every noun in the nominative case belongs to fome verb, either expreffed or understood, except the cafe abfolute, as will be feen hereafter; and when an address is made to a perfon, called the vocative cafe. Thus in the answer to this queftion, Who conquered the Perfians?-Alexander; that" is, Alexander conquered them.