GRAMMAR. 
«f it, in mofl languages, would be what we now call 
the imperfonal verb j “ It rains ; it thunders ; it is light; 
it is agreeable and the like ; as this is the very fim- 
pleft form of the verb, and merely affirms the exiftence 
of an event, or of a date of tilings. By degrees, after 
pronouns were invented. Inch verbs became perfonal, 
and were branched out into all the variety of tenfesand 
moods. 
Tiie tenfes of the verb are contrived to imply the fe- 
veral diflinblions of time. Of thefe we muft take fome 
notice, in order to (how the admirable accuracy with 
which language is conltnuiled. We think commonly of 
nomorethanthe threegreatdivifionsof time, intothe/x^, 
the prejent, and the future: and we might imagine, that 
if verbs had been lo contrived as fiinply to exprefs 
thefe,. no more was needful. But language proceeds 
with much greater fubtilty. It fplits time into its fe- 
veral moments. It confiders time as never Handing 
dill, but always flawing; things paft, as more oriels 
perfertly completed ; and things future, as more or lefs 
remote, by different gradations. Hence the great va¬ 
riety of tenfes. 
The prefent may indeed be always confidered as one 
indivifible point, fulceptible of no variety. “ I write, 
or I am v/r'iung fcribo. But it is not lo with thtpajl: 
there is no language lo poor, but it hath two or three 
tenfes to exprefs the varieties of it. Ours hath no 
fewer than four. j. A pall; attion may be confidered as 
left unfinilhed ; wliich makes the imperfect tenfe, “ I 
was writing 2. As juft now finilhed : tliis 
makes the proper perfeft tenfe, which in Englilh is al¬ 
ways exprelfed by the help of the auxiliary verb, “I 
have writtet).” 3. It may be confidered as finillied 
fome time ago; the particular time left indefinite ; “I 
wrote ; fcripji ; which may either fignify, I wrote yefter- 
day, or I wrote a twelvemonth ago.'’ This is what 
grammarians call an aorijl, or indefinite paft. 4. It may 
be confidered as finilhed before lomething elfe, which 
is alio paft. This is the plulquamperfect : “I had 
written ; fcripjeram : I had written belore I received his 
letter.” Here we obferve, with fome pleafure, that we 
have an advantage over the Latins, who have only three 
varieties upon the paft time. They have no proper 
perfedt tenfe, or one whicli diftinguifties an action juft 
now finilhed from an adtion that was finilhed fome time 
ago. In both thefe cafes they muft fay fcripf, though 
there be a manifeft difterence in the tenles which our 
language exprelfes by this variation, “ I have written,” 
meaning, I have juft now finilhed writing; and “I 
wrote,” meaning at fome former time, lince which other 
things have intervened. This difterence the Romans 
have no tenfe to exprefs; and therefoie can only do it 
by a circumlocution. 1 he chief vai ieties in the future 
time are two. A fimple or inaerinite future ; “ 1 ihall 
'Vfxxt.z-f fcribam: and a futuie relating to lomething 
elfe which is alio future ; “I Ihall have written ;” fcrip- 
fer'o\ I Ihall have written before he arrives. On tire 
tenfes of verbs, Mr. Harris’s Hermes may be confultcd 
by Inch as delire to fee tliem ferutinized with metaphy- 
fical accuracy ; and alfo, the Treatife on the Origin and 
Progrefs of Language, vol. ii. p, 123. 
Bcfides tenfes, or the power of exprelling time, verbs 
admit the diltindtion of voices as they are called, the 
aEiive and the pajfive ; according as the affirmation re- 
fpcdls fomething ciiat is done, or fomething that is fuf- 
fered ; “1 love,” or “I am loved.” Neuter verbs nydy 
be known by this, that a paliive verb cannot be formed 
from them, as from a verb active. Verbs admit allo the 
diltindtion of moods, wiiich are deligned to exprefs the 
affirmation, whether adtivc or palhve, under difterent 
forms, 'i'he indicative mood, tor initance, limply declares 
a proppfition, “1 write; I have wiitten;” l\\xe imperative 
requires, commands, threatens: “Write thou; let him 
write.” The fubjunciive exprelfes the propolition under 
Uie form of a condition, or in i'ubordination to fome 
Voh.VlII, N0.J43. 
7^9 
other thing to which a reference is made: “I miglu 
write, I could write, I fhould write, if the cale were lo 
and fo.” This manner of exprelling an affirmation un¬ 
der fo many different forms, together alfo with the dil- 
tindtion of the three perfons, /, thou, and he, conliitutes 
v.'hat is called tlie conjugation of verbs, which makes lo 
great a part of the grammar of all languages. 
It now clearly appears, as before oblerved, that of all 
the parts of fpeech, verbs are by far the molt artificial 
and complex. Conlider only, how many things are de¬ 
noted by this fingle Latin word, amavijfem, “ I would 
have loved.” Pirft, The perfon who fpeaks, “I.” 
Secondly, An attribute or adfion of that perfon, “ lov¬ 
ing.” Thirdly, An affirmation concerning that adtion. 
Fourthly, The jiall time denoted in that affirmation, 
“ have loved.” Fifthly, A condition on which the ac¬ 
tion is fufpended, “ would have loved.” It appears cu¬ 
rious and remarkable, that words of this complex im¬ 
port, and with more or lefs of this artificial lirudfure, 
are to be found, as far as we know, in all languages of 
the world. Indeed, tlie loxwx oi conjugation, or the man¬ 
ner of exprefling all thefe varieties in the verb, difters 
greatly in difterent tongues. Conjugation is efteemed 
moll perfect in thole languages which, by varying either 
the termination or the initial fyllable of the verb, e:<- 
prefs the grealcft number of important circuinltanccs 
without the help of auxiliary words. In the oriental 
tongues, the verbs are laid to have few tenfes or ex- 
preflions of time ; but then their moods are fo contrived 
as to exprefs a great variety of circuiuftances and rela¬ 
tions. In the Hebrew for inftance, they fay, in one 
word, without the help of any auxiliary, not only “I 
have taught,” but, “ I have taught exadtly, or often ; 
I have been commanded to teach ; I have taught my- 
felf.” The Greek, which is the nioft perfedt of all the 
known tongues, is very regular and complete in all the 
tenfes and moods. Tiie Latin is formed on the fame 
model, but more imperfect ; cfpecially in the paliive 
voice, which forms moll of the tenfes by tlie help of 
the auxiliary fum, I am. 
In all the modern European tongues, .conjugation is- 
very defedlive. They admit few varieties in the ter¬ 
mination of the verb itfelf; but have almoll conftant 
rccourfe to their auxiliary verbs throughout all the 
moods and tenfes, both addive and paliive. Language 
has undergone a change in conjugation perfedfly limilar 
to that which it underwent with refpect to declenlion. 
As prepolitions prefixed to the noun luperfeded the life 
of cafes ; lo the two great auxiliary verbs, to have, and 
to be, with thole other auxiliaries which we tile in Eng- 
lilli, do, flail, will, may, and can, prefixed to the parti¬ 
ciple, luperfede in a great mealure the different termi¬ 
nations of moods and tenfes which formed the ancient 
conjugations. The alteration, in both cafes, was owing 
to the fame caule, and will be ealily underltood, from 
reflecting on what was formerly obferved. 
Auxiliary verbs are, like prepolitions, words of a very 
general and abftradt nature. They imply the different 
modifications of fimple exiftence confidered alone, and 
without reference to any particular thing. In the early 
Hate of fpeech, the import of them would be incorpo¬ 
rated with every particular verb in its tenfes and moods, 
long before words were invented for denoting Inch ab- 
ftratt conceptions of exiftence, alone and by tlienilclves. 
But after thole auxiliary verbs came, in tlie progrelsof 
language, to be invented and known, and to have tenfes 
and moods given to them like other verbs ; it was found, 
that, as they carried in their nature the force of that 
affirmation which diftinguifties the verb, they migiii, by 
being joined with the participle which gives the mean¬ 
ing of the verb, fupply the place of molt of tlie moods 
and tenfes. Hence, as the modern tongues began to rife 
out of the ruins of the ancient, this method eltablilhed 
itfelf in the new formation of fpeech. Such words, for 
inlUnce, as am, was, have, fall, being once laminar, tt 
9 apjfiearcd 
