N.B.—There is a curious use of minusta to denote ‘in my opinion, as far as I am concerned.’
X. Somewhat similar is the use of the elative in expressions denoting price. The Finnish idiom is to say möin kirjan markasta, I sold the book for a mark; ostin kirjan markasta, I bought the book for a mark; and sain markan kirjasta, I received a mark for the book. That is to say, ‘I bought a book from a mark,’ the price being regarded as the origin of the transaction. Mitä tahdotte viikossa tästä huoneesta? how much do you want per week for this room? Silmä silmästä ja hammas hampaasta, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Kauppamies on myönyt tavaransa kalliista, the merchant sold his goods dear.
XI. The elative is used to express the object in which any one is rich or poor. Rikas rahasta, rich in money, that is to say, money is regarded as the cause of the riches. Kaivo on tyhjä vedestä, the well is empty of water. Huoneet olivat täydet väestä, the rooms were full of people.
XII. The elative is also used in a variety of expressions, in which the cause or commencement of an action is emphasized by an idiom different to our own. Thus one says, not to seize by the ear, but from the ear, pitää korvasta; sidottu käsistä ja jaloista, bound hand and foot. Damokleen miekka riippui hivuskarvasta, the sword of Damocles hung by a hair, and metaphorically, saada kiini rikoksesta, to convict of crime. Sanasta miestä, sarvesta härkää (proverb), a man is held by his words and an ox by the horns.
By an idiom of the language verbs denoting to find, or seek, and also often verbs of seeing and hearing, are followed by an elative where we should use an expression implying rest in a place. Mistä hänen löysit? where did you find him? Milloin hyvänsä tuli huoneesen, tapasi hänen aina lukemasta, whenever one went into the room, one always found him reading.
The elative comes to be used much as the accusative of respect in Latin, to mark the part in which anything is affected. Mies on kipeä silmistänsä, the man is ill from his eyes. Hän on kömpelö käsistä, he is clumsy with his hands. Raukea jaloista, foot-sore. Koivu on tuuhea latvasta, the birch has spreading branches at the top. Veitsi on terävä kärestä, the knife has a sharp edge.
Illative.
The original meaning of the illative is motion into the interior of an object, from which it passes into the general sense of motion to. Most of its uses are parallel to those of the inessive and elative. Mennä kouluun, kirkoon, to go to school or to church. Lähteä Amerikaan, Sipiriaan, to go a journey to America, to Siberia. Merimies putosi laivalta veteen, the sailor fell from the ship into the water.
It must, however, be noticed that a good many actions are regarded as implying motion to, in Finnish, which by our idiom are followed by prepositions signifying rest in. Thus one says, Hevoset seisahtuivat pihaan, the horses stopped in the court. Sananlennätin tolpat ovat pystytetyt tien viereen, the telegraph wires are laid along the road. Me perustamme koulun kaupunkiin, we founded a school in the town.