MOODS of VERBS. 225 



thought, which cannot be fuppofed to take place in a folitary 

 Being. 



But there are fome moods of thought denoted by the gram- 

 matical moods of verbs, (more or lefs perfectly) which are not, 

 ftridly fpeaking, focial adls of the mind ; for inftance, wifli- 

 ing, fuppofing, wondering. Thefe may all be fuppofed to take 

 place in a folitary being, like Robinson Crusoe in his ifland, 

 as well as in Cicero in the Forum of Rome. 



The greateft part, even of common converfation, confifls 

 of propofitions; and whole volumes, both in hiftory and in fci- 

 ence, may be, and perhaps have been written, confiding en- 

 tirely of propofitions, and of courfe requiring no other mood 

 but the indicative. 



But in common converfation, anci ftill more remarkably in 

 all buflling and interefting fcenes, commands and queftions 

 muft occur, and, of courfe, the interrogative and imperative 

 moods, however formed and marked, become necefTary. 



Next to thefe purely focial ads of the mind, or poflibly not 

 lefs frequent or important even than them, is the familiar and 

 interefting emotion of wiftiing. And this emotion or energy 

 of thought we often have occafion to exprefs or communicate 

 to thofe among whom we live and with whom we converfe j 

 fo that although it be not of itfelf, ftridtly fpeaking, a focial 

 adl of the mind, yet it is plainly very near akin to one, and 

 may almoft be faid to become one when combined with that of 

 affirmation, as it is when expreflTed by the optative mood in 

 common difcourfe ; for it would not be fo in foliloquy. Now, 

 thefe are the modifications of thought, which; in moft lan- 

 guages that are tolerably perfect, are exprefled by grammatical 

 moods in one way or another, 



III. The third conclufion, " That the grammatical moods 

 " of verbs are concife modes of expreffing the moft frequent 

 " modifications of thought, (and the moft important or in- 



Voi,. II. F f " terefting 



