MOODS of VERBS. 227 



fledlions, partly too from the obvions difEculty of remember- 

 ing and employing accurately even fuch a number as might 

 undoubtedly be contrived, but much more from there being 

 no urgent occafion for fuch a variety of them ; many of the 

 combinations of thoughts to be expreffed by verbs being fo 

 near akin, that they would naturally be clafTed together, and 

 might be denoted by one grammatical mood, vvithout danger of 

 any ambiguity or obfcurity ; as for inftance, the various moods 

 of thought which are occafionally exprefled by the grammatical 

 imperative, or by the future tenfe of the indicative ; all the 

 diftindlions of which moods of thought, both in kind and in 

 degree, may be fully underftood by thofe to whom the dif- 

 courfe is addrefled, from a variety, of well known or obvious 

 circumftances. Hence I think it appears very natural, that 

 though the pofllble number of grammatical moods be very 

 great, (though by no means infinite) the number of adlually 

 fubfifting moods in different languages fhould be very fmall ; 

 and that fome, even of thefe few, fhould occafionally be em- 

 ployed with little diflindlion ; the ingenuity and labour of man- 

 kind in contriving, and their precifion and fteadinefs in em- 

 ploying fuch moods, being chiefly regulated by the experience 

 of what they daily had occafion for. 



V. The fifth of thofe conclufions refpe<5ling the importance 

 of grammatical moods towards the perfedlion and beauty of 

 language, by the quicknefs, animation, and force, which they 

 give to the expreffion of our mofl familiar and mofl interefting 

 modifications of thought, can require no other proof but mere 

 illuflration by proper examples, any number of which may 

 eafily and readily be found. And froni thefe it will plainly ap- 

 pear, that the moods of verbs are in a manner effential to elo- 

 quence of almofl every kind. " L'eloquence" (as M. d'Alem- 

 BERT very juflly obferves, and propofes to define it) " eft le 

 " talent de faire pafTer avec rapidite, et d'imprimer avec force, 



F f 2 " dans 



