CONTRIBUTIONS TO AVESTAN SYNTAX. 581 



The Latin stands nearer to the Indo-Germanic syntax in this 

 form of the conditional sentence than the Greek, e. g., Cicero, de 

 Senect. 1 1 : 



quae si exeqiii ncquirem, tavien me lectiibis oblectaret mens. 



In Hke manner we find the Subjunctive and not the Indicative 

 in Unfulfilled Conditions in Germanic, c. g., Otfrid 2. 3.46 : 



tJiaz eina iiiidri mis niizsi, Jidbetin iniir tliic imizzi. 



' that one thing were good for us, had we that knowledge ' 

 (cf. also Erdmann, Untersuchungen iiber die Synt. der Sprache 

 Otfrids i. 1 08- 1 1 1). 



C. DEFECTIVE CONDITIONS. 



Under this rubric we may place those conditional sentences 

 whose Protasis contains no finite form of the verb. Such sen- 

 tences are 'defective' in so far as they cannot be classified un- 

 der any of the classes already discussed, since we have seen that 

 the verb of the Protasis determines the class to which a condi- 

 tional sentence belongs. The omitted verb in Indo-Iranian as 

 well as in Indo-Germanic is generally the copula as ' to be.' 

 The following examples from the Avesta may serve to illustrate 

 the Defective Condition. 



a. Indicative in the Apodosis. 



ys. 31. 2 (GAv. verse) : 



jesi dis noit_ uri'dne adva aibi-djrjstd vaJiya, 

 at va vispdng dyoi yad-a ratuni aliuro vacdd. 



' if through these things the better path for the soul (is) not 

 in sight, then I come to you all, as Ahura knows the judge.' 



(For aibi-d3r3Std as locative cf the Pahlavi translation madam 

 nikezismk, sim.i\a.r\y also ys. 50. 5. See further, Jackson, A 

 Hymn of Zoroaster, 22-24). 



