first place. The seven subsequent rules are so intimately connected with the principle of the first rule, that they necessarily follow it, without admitting the intervention of any other. By this arrangement, the pronouns are presented in a distinct point of view, and in regular succession. The English adjectives, having but a very limited syntax, is classed with its kindred article, the adjective pronoun, under the eighth rule. It has, however, an appropriate section under that rule. After this special disposition, the syntax of the remaining parts of spcech, is exhibited according to their etymological arrangement. The whole is closed by two rules of a mixed and general nature. By this order, the first nine rules accord with those which respect the rules of Concord; and the remainder include, though they extend beyond the rules of Government.

To produce the agreement and right disposition of words in a sentence, the following rules and observations should be carefully studied.

RULE I.

A VERB must agree with its nominative case, in number and person: as, "I learn;" "Thou art improved;""The birds sing."

rule.

See vol. ii. part. 3. Exercises, Chap. 1. Rule 1.

:

there "I have

THE following are a few instances of the violation of this "What signifies good opinions, when our practice is bad?" "what signify. "There's two or three of us, who have seen the work:"" there are.' "We may suppose was more impostors than one ""there were more. considered what have been said on both sides in this controversy "" what has been said." "If thou would be healthy, live temperately:" "if thou wouldst." "Thou sees how little has been done:" "thou seest." "Though thou cannot do much for the cause, thou may and should do something :" "canst not, mayst, and shouldst." " Full many a flower are born to blush unseen :" " is born." "A conformity of inclinations and qualities prepare us for friendship:"" prepares us." "A variety of blessings have been conferred upon us:" "has been."

"In piety and virtue consist the happiness of man:"

"consists." "To these precepts are subjoined a copious selection of rules and maxims :" is subjoined."

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*1. The infinitive mood, or part of a sentence, is sometimes put as the nominative case to the verb: as, "To see the sun is pleasant;""To be good is to be happy" "A desire to excel others in learning and virtue is commendable ;""That warm climates should accelerate the growth of the human body, and shorten its duration, is very reasonable to believe ;" "Promising without due consideration, often produces a breach of promise;" To be temperate in eating and drinking, to use exercise in the open air, and to preserve the mind free from tumultuous emotions, are the best preservatives of health." These sentences, or clauses, thus constituting the subject of an affirmation, may be termed nominative sentences.

2. Every verb, except in the infinitive mood, or the participle, ought to have a nominative case, either expressed or implied: as, "Awake; arise;" that is, "Awake ye; arise

ye."

We shall here add some examples of inaccuracy, in the use of the verb without its nominative case. "As it hath pleased him of his goodness to give you safe deliverance, and hath preserved you in the great danger," &c. The verb "hath preserved," has here no nominative case; for it cannot he properly supplied by the preceding word, "him," which is in the objective case. It ought to be, "and as he hath preserved you;" or rather," and to preserve you." "If the calm in which he was born, and lasted so long, bad continued;" "and which lasted," &c. "These we have extracted from an historian of undoubted credit, and are the same that were practised," &c.: " and they are the same." "A man whose inclinations led him to be corrupt, and had great abilities to nanage the business;"" and who had," &c. "A cloud gathering in the north; which we have helped to raise, and may quickly break in a storm upon our heads;' "and which may quickly.'

3. Every nominative case, except the case absolute, and when an address is made to a person, should belong to some verb, either expressed or implied: as, "Who wrote this book?" "James;" that is, "James wrote it." "To whom thus Adam," that is, "spoke." "Who invented the telescope?" "Galileo;" that is, "Galileo invented the telescope."

The chief practical notes under each Rule, are regularly numbered, that they may correspond with the examples in the volume of Exercises.

One or two instances of the improper use of the nominative case, without any verb, expressed or implied, to answer it, may be sufficient to illustrate the usefulness of the preceding observation.

"Which rule, if it had been observed, a neighbouring prince would have wanted a great deal of that incense, which hath been offered up to him." The pronoun it is here the nominative case to the verb "observed;" and which rule, is left by itself, a nominative case without any verb following it. This form of expression, though improper, is very common. It ought to be, "If this rule had been observed," &c. "Man, though he has great variety of thoughts, and such from which others as well as himself might receive profit and delight, yet they are all within his own breast." In this sentence, the nominative man stands alone and unconnected with any verb, either expressed or implied. It should be, "Though man has great variety," &c.

4. When a verb comes between two nouns, either of which may be understood as the subject of the affirmation, it may agree with either of them; but some regard must be had to that which is more naturally the subject of it, as also to that which stands next to the verb: as, "His meat was locusts and wild honey;" Cs A great cause of the low state of industry were the restraints put upon it;""The wages of sin is death." In such sentences as those which follow, either of the clauses may be considered as the nominative to the verb. "To show bow the understanding proceeds herein, is the design of the following discourse." This sentence may be inverted without changing a single word: "The design of the following discourse is to show how the understanding proceeds herein." "To fear no eye, and to suspect no tongue, is the great prerogative of innocence." This sentence may be inverted but, according to the English idiom, the pronoun it would, in that case, precede the verb: as, "It is the great prerogative of innocence, to fear no eye, and to suspect no tongue."

"Shame

5. When the nominative case has no personal tense of a verb, but is put before a participle, independently on the rest of the sentence, it is called the case absolute: being lost, all virtue is lost;" "That having been discussed long ago, there is no occasion to resume it.'

as,

As in the use of the case absolute, the case is, in English, always the nominative, the following example is erroneous, in making it the objective. "Solomon was of this mind; and I have no doubt he made as wise and true proverbs, as any VOL. I.

T

body has done since; him only excepted, who was a much greater and wiser man than Solomon." It should be, "he only excepted."

The nominative case is commonly placed before the verb; but sometimes it is put after the verb, if it is a simple tense; and hetween the auxiliary and the verb or participle, if a compound tense: as,

1st, When a question is asked, a command, given, or a wish expressed: as, "Confidest thou in me?" "Read thou;" "Mayst thou be happy !" "Long live the King!"

2d, When a supposition is made, without the conjunction if: as, "Were it not for this;" "Had I been there."

3d, When a verb neuter is used: as, "On a sudden appeared the king." "Above it stood the seraphim."

4th, When the verb is preceded by the adverbs, here, there, then, thence, hence, thus, &c.: as, "Here am I;" "There was he slain;" "Then cometh the end;" "Thence ariseth his grief;" "Hence proceeds his anger;" "Thus was the affair settled."

5th, When a sentence depends on neither or nor, so as to be coupled with another sentence: as, "Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die."

6th, When an emphatical adjective introduces a sentence : as,Happy is the man, whose heart does not reproach him."

Grammarians differ in opinion, respecting the propriety of the following modes of expression: "The arguments advanced were nearly as follows;" "the positions were, as appears, incontrovertible."-Some maintain that the phrases as follows, as appears, form what are called impersonal verbs; and should, therefore, be confined to the singular number: the construction being, "as it follows," "as it appears." They assert, that if we give the sentence a different turn, and instead of as, say such as the verb is no longer termed impersonal; but properly agrees with its nominative, in the plural number: as, "The arguments advanced were nearly such as follow" "The positions were such as appear incontrovertible." Of this opinion is the learned Dr. Campbell, who, in his "Philosophy of Rhetoric," says, "When a verb is used impersonally, it ought undoubtedly to be in the singular number, whether the neuter pronoun be expressed or understood. For this reason, analogy and usage favour this mode of expression: The conditions of the agreement were as follows,' and not, as follow. A few late writers bave inconsiderately adopted the last form,

through a mistake of the construction. For the same reason, we ought to say, 'I shall consider bis censures so far only, as concerns my friend's conduct;' and not, so far as concern."

Other writers contend, that the word as is equivalent to it, that, or which; and that as in the phrases mentioned, is the true nominative to the verbs follows and appears; which should consequently be written, as follow, as appear. They assert that as is used either in the singular or the plural number: in the singular: as, "His insensibility is such as excites our detestation" in the plural thus: "His manners are such, as are universally pleasing." That, in the former example, such as is equivalent to that which, and in the latter to those which. That if as be either singular or plural, and synonomous with it, that, or which, it must, when it refers to a plural antecedent, like which, be considered as plural, and joined to a plural verb. That it is more consonant with analogy to say; "The circumstances were, which follow," than it follows, or that follows. They further observe, that when the demonstrative such precedes, and is joined to a plural noun, it is universally admitted, that as must then be followed by a plural verb: if so, the construction of the word as cannot be, in the least degree, affected by the ellipsis of the correlative term.

The diversity of sentiment on this subject, and the respectability of the different opponents, will naturally induce the readers to pause and reflect, before they decide. They who doubt the accuracy of Horne Tooke's statement, "That as, however and whenever used in English, means the same as it, or that, or which ;" and who are not satisfied whether the verbs, in the sentences first mentioned, should be in the singular or the plural number, may vary the form of expression. Thus, the meaning of the sentences alluded to, may be conveyed in the following terms, or in other equivalent expressions. "The arguments advanced were nearly such as follow;" "The arguments advanced were nearly of the following nature;" "The following are nearly the arguments which were advanced," "The arguments advanced were nearly those which follow;" "These, or nearly these, were the arguments advanced :" "The positions were such as appear incontrovertible;""It appears that the positions were incontrovertible;""That the positions were incontrovertible, is apparent;" "The positions were apparently incontrovertible;" "In appearance, the positions were incontrovertible."

It has been advanced as a rule of grammar, that "When the nominative consists of several words, and the last of the