1803. ] On the Ufe 
them for the fupport of the original pof- 
feflor. This cuftom the general opinion 
of the neighbourhood, and the advice of 
the priefts, makes almoft univerfal. ‘The 
country in the neighbourhood of Paris 
exhibits confiderable variety ; it is fome- 
what hilly, where, as France fs in general 
a very flat country—: its villages alfo are, 
as might be expected, much neater than 
they are at a diftance from Paris, and the 
country-feats more frequent. 
Sa 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, ; 
T is commonly acknowledged, that fo- 
Ji. reigners find a dificulty in the ufe of 
the Englith words “ fhall’? and ‘* will,”’ 
and that many amongt our own country-= 
men (particularly the Scotch and Irifh) 
often fubftitute improperly the one for the 
other. Yet I meet. with no rule any where 
Jaid down on the fubjeét ; and I have fre- 
quently heard it afferted, that there is 
none; that the knowledge of the right ufe 
of the words cannot be attained by fo- 
reigners but by a familiar acquaintance 
with the language in its pureft fyle; and 
that provincials can only by obfervation 
free themfelves from the habit of fpeech 
naturally acquired where the ear is accuf- 
tomed to the mifufe of the words. Thus 
we pretend ourfelves to decide arbitrarily, 
this is right, and that is wrong, without 
any rule, as if we could difcriminate by 
intuition ; and we expeét thofe, with whofe 
phrafeology we are offended, to adopt by 
obfervation that for which there is no 
ftandard. We 
On referring to Dr. Johnfon, I find 
he gives no rule: he confefles.the difficul- 
ty, and does, in my opinion, very little 
towards removing it. 
In his Dictionary, under the word 
¢¢ Shall,”” he fays : : 
** SHALL, v. defective [fceal, Sax. is ori- 
ginally I owe, or I ought. . 
An Chaucer, ‘£ the faithe I fall to God,” 
means the faith I owe to God; thence it 
became a fign of the future tenfe. The 
French ufe devoir, dois, doit, in the 
fame manner, with a kind of future 
fignification ; and the Swedes have feal/, 
and the Icelanders /eal, in the fame 
fenfe. It has no tenfes but /2all, future; 
and /hould, imperfect. ] 
The explanation of /bail, which foreigners 
and provincials confound with wll, is 
not eafy ; and the difficulty is increafed 
by the poets, who fometimes give to 
_ foall.an emphatical fenfe of will; but 
I thall endeavour (crafdad Minerva) to 
of Shall and Will. 307 
fhew the meaning of /ball in the future 
tenfe. 
1. Ifeall love. Tt will fo happen that 
I muf love: I am refolved to love. 
2. Shalll love? Will it be permitted me 
to love? Will you permit me to love ? 
Wiil it happen that I mutt love? 
3. Thou foalt love? I command thee to 
love. It is permitted,thee to love : (ia 
poetry or folemn diétion) it will hap- 
pen that thou muft love. 
4. Sdalt thou love? Will it happen that 
fhou muft love? Willit be permitted. 
to thee to love? 
5. He fhall love. It will happen that he 
muft love; it is cormmanded him that 
he love. 
Et is a mind, that /bal/ remain a prifon where 
it Js. 
Shall remain ! 
Hear you this Triton of the minnows ? Mark 
ou 
His abfolute feall ? Shakefpeare. 
See Romulus the Great ? pia 
This prince a prieftefs of your blood /ball 
bear, 
And, like his fire, in arms he fhall appear. 
Dryden's Aine 
That he /ball receive no benefit from 
Chrift, is the affirmation whereon all his 
defpair is founded ; and the one way of 
removing this difmal apprehenfion, is to 
convince him that Chrift’s death, and 
the benefits thereof, either do, or if. lie 
perform the condition required of him, 
foall certainly belong to him.—Ham- 
mond’s Fundamentals. 
6. Shall helove? tis permitted him to 
love? In folemn language, will it hap- 
pen that he muft love ?”’ | 
‘Thus far‘Dr. Johnfon. 
Now I contend that, if there is a right 
and a wrong, there muft bearule. Per. 
haps it may be faid that I am fighting 
againft the,air, that the matter is obvious, 
and known toevery one. I can only an- 
fwer, if the rule is any where given, I 
fhall be glad to have it pointed out tome; 
if not, think it is wanting ; and, till 
fome one fhall lay down a better, I fhall 
venture to retain that which is here pro- 
pofed to your readers. : 
In the firft place then, I obferve, that 
in Englifh we have no imple future, but 
_expreis it by an auxiliary with the prIncl= / 
pal verb. 
Now the auxiliaries have alfo an appro- 
priate fignification themfelves as fample 
verbs—** Will” implying intention or 
volition, or rather further a determination 
or refolution of the aéfor 3; ** fhali” im- 
plying a determination on the part of the 
ap fpecker. 
