And that myself am blind:”—Pope.
that is, “that I myself am blind.”
Note 6.—Where comparison is expressed or implied, and not combination, the verb should be singular; thus, “Cæsar, as well as Cicero, was remarkable for eloquence.”
“As she laughed out, until her back,
As well as sides, was like to crack.”—Hudibras.
Note 7.—When the nominatives are of different persons, the first person is preferred to the second, and the second to the third. In other words, I and you, I and he, are sylleptically the same as we; you and he the same as ye. This observation, however, is scarcely necessary, as the verb plural admits no personal inflexion: it can be useful only in determining what pronoun should be the representative of the terms collectively, as, “he and I shared it between us.”
Note 8.—In the learned languages the pronoun of the first person is deemed more worthy than that of the second, and the second than that of the third; and hence arises the syllepsis of persons which obtains in Greek and Latin. But, though we admit the figure in English, we do not precisely adopt the arrangement of the Latins; for though, like them, we place the pronoun of the second person before that of the third, we modestly place the pronoun of the first person after those of the second and third. Thus, where a Roman would say, Si tu et Tullia valetis, ego et Cicero valemus, we should say, “If you and Tullia are well, Cicero and I are well.”
Rule III.—When, of two or more substantives singular, one exclusively is the subject of discourse, a verb singular is required, as, “John, James, or Andrew, intends to accompany you;” that is, one of the three, but not more than one.
Note.—When the predicate is to be applied to the different subjects, though they be disjoined by the conjunction, they may be followed by a plural verb. “Neither you, nor I, are in fault.” This is the usual form of expression. If we consider neither in its proper character, as a pronoun, we should say, “neither you nor I, is in fault:” neither being the nominative to the verb. The former, however, is the common phraseology, and is analogous to the Latin idiom. “Quando nec gnatus, nec hic, mihi quicquam obtemperant.”—Ter. Hec. “Id neque ego, neque tu, fecimus.”—Id. “Num Lælius, aut qui duxit ab oppressa meritum Carthagine nomen, ingenio offensi?”—Hor.
Rule IV.—Nouns of number, or collective nouns, may have a singular or plural verb, thus,