OF A PARTICIPLE.
A participle is a hybrid part of speech; a kind of mongrel-cross, between a noun and a verb. It is two parts verbs, and four parts noun; wherefore its composition may be likened unto the milk sold in and about London, which is usually watered in the proportion of four to two. The properties of the noun belonging to it, are, number, gender, case, and declension; those of the verb, tense, and signification.
As a horse hath four legs, so hath a verb four participles.
Air.—Bonnets of Blue.
There ’s one of the present,—and then,
There ’s one of the future in rus;
Of the tense preterperfect a third,—and again,
A fourth of the future in dus.
Participles are declined like nouns adjective, as—but no! how can we ask our fair (blue) readers to decline a-man’s (amans) loving.
Now here we feel called upon to say a few words on the difference between a man’s loving and a woman’s loving. It has often been a question, whether do men or women love most dearly? To us the matter does not appear to admit of a doubt. We defy any of our male readers to be in love (when they are old and silly enough) for six months without finding themselves most grievously out of pocket. We have a friend who was in that unfortunate condition for about a month, and it cost him at least seven and sixpence a week in fees to the maid servant, and that without once being enabled to exchange a word with the object of his affections. At last he began to think that he was paying rather too dear for his whistle; so he gave it up. What girl would have held on so long, and laid out so much money without a return— not of soft affection, but of hard cash? Women, indeed, instead of loving dearly, love, according to our own experience, particularly cheaply. Think of what they save, by taking their admirers “shopping” with them, in ribands, bracelets, and the like, to say nothing of coach-hire, pastry-cooks, and the price of admission, when they go with them to the play. And we should like to hear of the young lady who in these days would dispose of her hand at any thing less than a good round sum if she could help it—no, no. To love dearly is the precious prerogative of the lords of the creation alone.
But we are forgetting our participles.
The participle of the present tense ends in ans, or ens; as Flagellans, whipping; Lædens, hurting.
That of the future in rus, signifies a likelihood, or design of doing something, as Flagellaturus, about to whip; Læsurus, about to hurt.
That of the preterperfect tense has generally a passive signification, and ends in us, as Flagellatus, whipped; Læsus, hurt.
That of the future in dus has also a passive signification, as Flagellandus, to be whipped; Lædendus, to be hurt.
Note 1. All participles are declined like nouns adjective. We recommend the above participles to be declined like winking.
2. There are three things that are not hurt by whipping—a top, a syllabub, and a cream.