CONJUGATION OF THE AUXILIARY VERBS, WILL, SHALL, MAY,

(13) We have already noticed the peculiarity in the formation of the second persons singular of will and shall (§ 52: 27). (14) It will be observed that none of these verbs takes the termination s in the third person singular. (15) In fact the verbs shall, may, can, and will too, when a mere auxiliary, have, according to present usage, invariably the same form in all the persons, except when in the solemn style the second person singular is, on some rare occasions, employed.

[(16) Shall, may, can, and will (auxiliary) have no corresponding infinitives or participles. (17) The same peculiarity belongs to must and ought, which have, perhaps, nearly equal claims with may and can to be recognised as auxiliaries. (18) Will, employed not as an auxiliary to indicate the futurity of what is asserted in a proposition, but in its original sense, to express determination, volition, &c., has both

(12) Repeat the conjugations separately of will, shall, &c.

(13) Mention the peculiarity referred to in regard of will, and shall. (14) Repeat the observation made in regard of the 3d person singular of all the verbs above conjugated. (15) Repeat the general remark in regard to all the persons of these verbs in common use.

[(16) What is said of shall, will, auxiliary &c. in reference to infinitives and participles? (17) Repeat the remark in reference to must and ought. (18) Repeat the remark in reference to will in its original use.

infinitive and participles, and, as we have already observed (§ 52: 28, note), generally the same terminations, at least in the third person in definite, as other verbs.*

(19) It is peculiar to all these verbs (except will, not auxiliary). that they require, to complete them, the verbal nouns commonly called infinitives. As now used, they express no distinct predicate; or, rather, perhaps, language affords us no means of expressing the predicate which they serve to assert; since, in their case, the verbal noun, which expresses the simple predicate without assertion, is wanting, as well as the infinitive and verbal adjectives. (20) We have no such verbal nouns as shalling, maying, canning, musting, &c., no more than we have to shall, to may, &c. (21) We have willing and to will, but in the proper original sense of the verb, not in its auxiliary sense. (22) In this respect they differ from the other auxiliaries, to be, to do, to have, for these serve not only as auxiliaries, but also to express the independent predicates, being, doing, having. (23) The modifications of verbal meaning expressed by these words, will, shall, &c., are, in many languages, indicated by a modification of the form of the verb. (24) For this reason, and because they contain no expressible predicate, without the addition of an infinitive to complete them, the combinations formed by connecting these verbs with the infinitives of other verbs are commonly recognised (not without apparent cause) as coмPOUND TENSES of the verbs to which the complementary infinitives belong. We shall exhibit these compound tenses afterwards in their proper place.]

A§ 57. (1) We next come to treat of the compound tenses.

Some have contended that these forms of expression are not tenses of the verb. If nothing is to be considered a tense, except what is

* Shall, it is said, was formerly used, like will, as a transitive verb, taking after it an objective modification. "Shall is the Saxon scealan, Gothic skallan, (sceale denoting a servant,) which signifies to owe, and consequently implies duty; as, “Hu mycel scealt thu?" (Luke 16: 5, 7,) that is, "How much owest thou?" It was used transitively down to Chaucer's time; thus, “The faith I shall to God;" i. e., owe. Grant's Eng. Gram. p. 74. Lond. 1813. We suspect that examples of shall thus used are rare, even in the earliest times.

(19) Repeat what is stated to be peculiar to all these verbs. (20) Are there verbal nouns and verbal adjectives or participles corresponding to these, as to the other verbs? (21) In what sense are willing and to will used? (22) What is said of the auxiliaries to be, to do, to have, in reference to this matter? (23) Repeat the remark in regard to other languages. (24) Repeat what is said of these verbs in relation to the formation of compound tenses.] $57. (1) What subject comes next to be treated?

expressed by a modification of the root of the verb, then, certainly. these are not tenses. They are, however, very peculiar forms of expression, and even those grammarians who have rejected their claim to be recognised as distinct tenses, have found themselves compelled to exhibit them to the learner, and investigate their origin, structure, significance and functions, as well as those who have given them a name and place in their arrangement of modes and tenses. The controversy about this matter among the grammarians, therefore, seems in a great measure a controversy about terms and names. We take no part in this controversy. We have so arranged our book, that it may be conveniently used either by the advocates of the one or the other opinion. We have done this, not for the purpose of suiting the views of those who discard the compound tenses, but, partly, because we think it will conduce to give the learner clearer notions of the inflexion of our verbs to exhibit, as we have done, the simple tenses first, and apart. When the learner is perfectly familiar with these, he will find no trouble in mastering the compound tenses, since he has already become acquainted, in learning the simple tenses of the auxiliaries, with all that is necessary to the flexion of the compound tenses. He has only to add a participle or an infinitive to a simple tense of the auxiliary, to form a compound tense. The task of learning the simple tenses alone does not appear so formidable to the pupil as when the whole conjugation, including both simple and compound tenses, is at once presented to his view, and yet when he has mastered the simple tenses, his work is nearly accomplished.

The language could be analyzed without any reference to the compound tenses. Every verb may be considered as belonging to one of the tenses and modes which we have already exhibited—the final result of a complete analysis will reduce all verbs to one of these forms. But it is inconvenient on every occasion to go through all the steps of this analysis, though the student of grammar should be able to go through them when required, and should be trained in reference to this purpose. Our plan of exhibiting the tenses of the verb will render this an easy task. But it is not merely for the purpose of abbreviating the process of analysis that we present the compound tenses. It is because some of the combinations called compound tenses are in our language employed in a sense different from the natural and original sense made up of the elements of which they are composed. The compound has come in the progress of language to convey a meaning distinct from that conveyed by the united elements in their proper separate sense. So that when we have pushed our analysis to the farthest, we have overshot the mark-we have got separate words

having separate proper meanings, which meanings combined are not the exact meaning now attached by common consent to the compound expression. This will appear more clearly when we come to examine the compound tenses separately, and trace their formation and account for their present meaning. Still we may now illustrate what we have said by a single example. The river will overflow its banks to-morrow. Now if we resolve the words "will overflow" into will, indefinite tense of the verb to will, and the infinitive "overflow," we have two separate meanings, which combined will not express what is intended by the combination "will overflow." These words do not mean that the river determines or has a will to overflow its banks, but predicate of the river the future action of overflowing. The compound has come to express or imply a new meaning, not made up of the combined original meanings of "will" and "overflow." But more of this when we come to treat of the future tense.

(2) The learner will take notice that we here pass from one to another of those general classes of modifications of the subject noun and the verb mentioned above in § 34; namely, from those which are effected by some change of the form of the subject noun or the verb, to those which are effected by the employment of distinct modifying words.

[(3) It may here be remarked that though the compound tenses about to be presented are classed as tenses or forms of the several verbs whose infinitives and participles are combined with the auxiliaries to form these compounds, and though logically considered, they may be regarded as modifications of the meanings of these verbs, yet, as regards their grammatical form, they are all really modifications of the auxiliaries which enter into these combinations. (4) The auxiliary is in all cases the real verb-the word which possesses the assertive force, and the infinitive or participles of the verb under which the grammarians arrange these forms, and to which they refer them in analysis, are, grammatically considered, complements of the auxiliaries.]

(5) These complements or modifications of the auxiliaries, which with them form compound tenses, are of three distinct kinds;

(2) Give a statement of the fact which the student is requested to notice.

[(3) Repeat the observation in reference to the compound tenses. (4) Which part of the compound expression is really the verb ?]

(5) How many distinct kinds of these complements or modifications of the auxiliary are

namely: (6) I. The infinitive belonging to the particular verb to which the compound tense is referred by those who allow them to rank as distinct tenses. This is employed with the auxiliaries, do, will, shall, may, can, would, should, could. We might add, if we please, must and dare, and ought. (7) With all these, except ought, the form of the infinitive, which consists of the bare root of the verb without the particle to, is combined to form the compound tenses. For example, I do call, I will call, &c.

(8) II. The second form of these modifications of the auxiliaries consists of a participle employed to complete the predicate expressed by the auxiliary. (9) This form is employed with the verb to be. (10) Both the imperfect and the perfect participles of verbs are united with the several tenses of this verb for purposes to be explained hereafter.* (11) Example, The man is calling. Here being, the predicate asserted by is, is completed by the imperfect participle calling; what is asserted of the man is being calling. As a second example we take the man is called. Here the perfect participle is used, and the predicate asserted is being called.

(12) III. The third form of modification or complement is that employed with the verb have. This is the perfect participle, the same as with the verb to be, but employed in a peculiar manner, which we shall describe when we come to the compound tenses formed by the help of the verb to have.

§ 58. COMPOUNd Tense formed WITH SHALL AND WILL.-We shall first present the compound form employed to express an assertion that has reference simply to the future-to a time to come. (1) This is called the FUTURE TENSE. It is formed by the combi

* It will be seen afterward that we are inclined to think that it is not unlikely the verbal noun, and not the imperfect participle, which is used to form compound tenses with the verb to be. (See § 64.)

⚫ enumerated? (6) Mention the first kind, and name the auxiliaries with which it is used. (7) What form of the infinitive is employed with these auxiliaries respectively?

(8) Mention the second form of these modifications employed with auxiliaries. (9) Name the auxiliary with which this form is employed. (10) Which participles are employed with the verb to be? (11) Give examples and illustration.

(12) State what is said of the third form of modification, and the auxiliary with which it is employed.

§ 58. (1) How is the future tense formed? (2) Give example. (3) Repeat the remark in reference to the verbal in this tense.