TiiK Tkachi\<; ok Latin. 1^27 



Substantival clauses consist of reported questions, statements and 

 commands. It is not necessary to say more here on these clauses than 

 to state that a lc>ng narrative can be told clearly in the oratio obliqua 

 in Lsitin, its reportefl charact<er being in evidence all the time. This 

 is a considerable achievement. The following extract from an Ulster 

 narrative will illustrate son\e of the difficulties of the man who wrestles 

 with the problem of indirect speech. 



" 8es I to him, ses I, ' That coo o' yours,' ses I, I ses to him — like 

 that, d'ye mind ! 



" 'Och,' ses he, 'the coo's all right,' ses he, he ses to me. 



" 'All right,' ses I, 'all right.' But ses I, 'I don't think,' ses I, 

 'as she's pertikler comfortable,' ses I ; 'I wudn't say she was,' ses I. 



"'Don't bother yerself,' ses he, he ses, 'the coo's strange, that's 

 all,' ses he. 



" ' She's strange,' ses I, ' av coorse ; but,' ses I, I ses, ' I wudn't 

 call it comfortable,' .ses I, 'hingin' wi' a broken leg between two powls,' 

 ses I, just that, d'ye mindl" 



The word " ses " occurs twenty times in the above lines. 



Adverbial clauses are by far the most important, and are of many 

 types. But a general survey of the adverbial clause, sufficient for our 

 purpose, will be effected if we consider that the principles on which 

 events are associated in uur minds must foUuw the great law.s of the 

 association of ideas. Hume, one of the great exponents of these laws, 

 classified them under three headings : (i) contiguity ; (ii) similarity ; 

 (iii) cau.se and eflfect. 



Contiguity is not of gi-eat importance in this connection. It gives 

 us clauses of jilace and time. 



Similarity gives us the important clauses of manner dtxvd comparison. 

 But the idea of the cause and effect is of predominating importance, 

 as nothing produces a stronger feeling of connection in the human mind 

 than the sense of this relatioTiship. 



Under this heading would be classified all the numerous cum 

 cansa'e clauses, which give the precedent circumstances from which 

 the main action springs, and the equally numerous iit clauses of pur- 

 pose and consequence, which give the subsequent actions that ari^e or 

 are intended to ari.se out of the main action. Under this heading also 

 would come the si clauses, which represent the idea of cause and effect 

 in its most highly de\eloped form — that of condition. 



It may be remarked that Hume's threefold division does not cover 

 all the ground. A clause of concession finds no place under any one 

 of his three headings. 



We are now in a position to apply our principles to the reading of 

 an elaborately constructed sentence, such as a Ciceronian period. It 

 will help us if we realise that these long sentences, which seem .so 

 complicated to the average student, must, as a matter of fact, have 

 been easy to follow. This can be readily shown. Many of Cicero's 

 most celebrated speeches wore addressed to political meetings in the 

 Forum, and were delivered to large miscellaneous audiences. Now 

 the orator who addresses such meetings must at all costs be clear. 



