118 



THE POPULAR EDUCATOR. 



131. REMARKS ON THE FOREGOING RULES. 



(1.) Although the compound tenses of the reflective and 

 reciprocal verbs [ 44, (6.), 47, (2.), 57] take etre as an 

 auxiliary, the past participle of those verbs comes under the 

 same rules as those conjugated with avoir, and agrees in 

 gender and number with their direct object when it precedes 

 the auxiliary, remaining invariable when it follows the past 

 participle : 



Votre sceur s'est acliete de 

 belles robes. 



Cette feinme s'est rendue mol- 

 heureuse. 



Us se sent injuries. 



Tour sister has bought (lierself) 

 handsome dresses, i.e., for lierself. 



That woman has rendered herself 

 unhappy. 



They abused each ot7ier. 



Achete in the first example does not vary, because se, placed 

 before the auxiliary, is indirect object, while the direct object, 

 robes, is placed after the participle. Rendue in the second 

 example varies, because the word se, representing femme, is a 

 direct object, and precedes the auxiliary. Injuries in the third 

 example agrees with se, the reciprocal pronoun, because it is 

 direct object and precedes sont, the auxiliary. 



(2.) The past participle of naturally pronominal verbs agrees 

 with the subject: 



La maison s'est e"croula"e. 



The house fell down. 



(3.) However, the naturally pronominal verb s'arroger is 

 an exception ; its reflective pronoun being indirect object, and 

 this verb admitting of a direct object, its past participle agrees 

 with the latter according to the rules given above (1.) : 



Les privileges QUO la reine 

 s'etait arrog<S excitaient un 

 me'contentement ge'ne'ral. 



II y avait un an que le Prince 

 s'etait arrog ces droits. 



The privileges that the queen had 

 arrogated to herself caused general 

 dissatis/action. 



It was a year since the prince had 

 arrogated tlutst rights to himself. 



(4.) When pronominal reflective verbs, of which the second 

 pronoun is indirect object, are accompanied by another pronoun, 

 or by a noun used as direct object, the participle agrees with 

 this pronoun or noun when it precedes the auxiliary, and remains 

 invariable when the direct object follows it. See Rules (4.), (5.) 

 of the preceding paragraph : 



Fariobla. 



L'indiscretion que nous nous 

 somrnes reprochee. 



The indiscretion with which we 

 have reproac7icd ourselties. 



Invariable. 



Nous nous sommes reproche 

 1'lndiscretion. 



We have reproached ourselves with 

 the indiscretion. 



(5.) The verb avoir, followed by a past participle placed 

 before an infinitive, may be preceded by the object of the past 

 participle or by that of the infinitive : in the former case, the 

 past participle agrees with the object ; in the latter, it does 

 not : 



Voici la dame que vous avez 

 entendue chanter. 



Voici la chanson que vous avez 

 enteudu chanter. 



Here is t7te lady u-hom you heard 

 sing. 



Here is the song which you heard 

 sung. 



In the first sentence, que, standing for dame, is object of 

 entendue, which it governs. In the second, que, standing for 

 chanson, is object of chanter, and does not govern entendu, 

 which has an object understood, viz. : quelqu'un : Voici la 

 chanson que vous avez entendu (quelqu'un) chanter, i.e., Here 

 is the song which you heard (somebody) sing, or which you heard 

 sung (by somebody). 



To ascertain to which verb the object belongs there is only 

 to change the order of the sentence : 



Vous avez entendu une dame 

 chanter, la voici. 



Vous avez entendu Chanter une 

 chanson, la voici. 



Tou have heard a lady sing, here 

 she is. 



You have heard (somebody) sing a 

 song, here it is. 



or else the French sentence should be translated into English, 

 and if then the French infinitive may be expressed in English 

 by a past participle, the French past participle cannot agree : 



Variable. 



Je les ai VUS repousser les en- 

 nemis. 



I saio them repel (repelling) the 

 enemies. 



Invariable. 



Je les ai VU repousser par les 

 ennemis. 



I saui them repelled by the enemies. 



Variable. 



Je les ai VUS preudre la fuite. 

 I saw them taking flight. 

 Je les ai VUS frapper. 

 I saw them striking. 

 Les personnes que j'ai enten- 

 dues chanter. 



The persons whom I heard singing. 



Invariable. 



Je les ai VU prendre sur le fait. 

 I saw them ta/;en in the deed. 

 Je les ai VU frapper. 

 J saw them struck. 



Les chansons que j'ai entendu. 



chanter. 



The songs which I heard sung. 



Exception to Rule 5 above : When the verb avoir, followed 

 by a past participle placed before an infinitive, is preceded by 

 a direct object referring to a thing, and a personal pronoun 

 referring to a person, the latter is indirect object, and the past 

 participle does not agree : 



Sing the song t?wt we have heard 

 sung by her (i.e., that we have heard 

 her sing). 



(6.) The past participle fait, when followed by an infinitive, 

 the past participles du, voulu, pu, when an infinitive is under- 

 stood after them, do not agree : 



Chantez la chanson que nous 

 lul avons entendu chanter. 



La maison qu'il a fait batir est 

 belle. 



II a obtenn toutes les graces 

 qu'il a VOUlU (obtenir). 



II u'a pas fait tous les efforts 

 qu'il a pu (faire). 



Elle n'a pas rempli tous les 

 devoirs qu'elle aurait du (remplir). 



The house he has had built is 

 beautiful. 



He has obtained all the favours 

 lie wislted (to obtain). 



He has not used all the endeavours 

 he could (-use). 



She has not fulfilled all the duties 

 which s7ie ought (to have fulfilled.) 



(7.) When, however, no infinitive is understood after du and 

 voulu, they agree with their object : 



On lui a accord^ toutes les 

 faveurs qu'il a voulues. 



II m'a paye 1 les sommes qu'il 

 m'a dues si longteinps. 



They hare granted to htm all the 

 favours he wanted. 



He lias paid to me the sums he 

 owed me so long. 



(8.) The past participles coute, valu do not agree when 

 used in their literal sense, but they do agree when used figura- 

 tively : , 



La somme que ce cheval m'a 

 COUte, il ne 1'a jamais valu. 



Quels avantages cctte charge 

 vous a-t-elle valus ? 



Que de peines elle vous a 

 coutees ! 



The sum that this horse has cost 

 me, he was never worth it (i.e., that 

 horse was never worth the sum it 

 cost me). 



What advantages has this office 

 procured to you ? 



What troubles it cost you / 



(9.) A past participle preceded and followed by que, or 

 between que and qui, does not agree : 



La chimie que vous avez VOUlU 

 que j'etudie. 



Avez-vous recu les estampes 

 que je vous ai inform^ qui vous 

 avaient ete' expe'die'es ? 



Chemistry which you wished mo 

 to study. 



Have you received the engravings 

 which, as I informed you, had been 

 forwarded to you 1 



(10.) The participles past of neuter verbs, conjugated with 

 avoir, and those of impersonal verbs, are always invariable : 



Que de bien n'a-t-elle pas fait, 

 pendant le peu de jours qu'elle a 

 regne ! FLECHER. 



Les chaleurs excessives qu'il a 

 fait, out causd beaucoup de mala- 

 dies. CONDILLAC. 



How muc7i good has she not done, 

 during the few days that she reigned ! 



The excessive heat which we liave 

 had, has caused nnich sicfcness. 



(11.) A past participle having the pronoun en as object does 

 not agree : 



Have you eaten some fruits ? I 

 have eaten some. 



Everybody tendered me services, 

 and no person rendered me any. 



Avez-vous mange 1 des fruits ? 

 J'en ai mange. 



Tout le monde m'a offert des 

 services, et personne ne m'en a 

 rendu. MME. DE MAINTENON. 



It does not agree either when, en being used with an adverb 

 of quantity, the latter follows the auxiliary or the past par- 

 ticiple : 



Je n'avais plus d'liamecons, mais 

 j'en ai beaucoup achets. 



II n'avait plus de chevaux, mais 

 il en a achets plusieurs. 



I hod no more fish-hooks, but I 

 have bought many. 



He had no more horses, but he has 

 bought several. 



