[1615.] The pluperfect often expresses a past resulting state: as,
castra oportūnīs locīs erant posita, 7, 69, 7, the camp was pitched on favourable ground. ita ūnō tempore et longās nāvēs aestus complēverat, et onerāriās tempestās adflīctābat, 4, 29, 2, thus at one and the same time the tide had filled the men-of-war, and the gale of wind kept knocking the transports about. This use is analogous to that of the perfect in 1608.
[1616.] In letters, the pluperfect is sometimes used to denote action occurring previous to the time of writing, the writer transferring himself to the time of the reader: as,
ūnam adhūc ā tē epistolam accēperam, Att. 7, 12, 1, I have only had one letter from you thus far. This use is analogous to that of the imperfect in 1601, and very often, where this pluperfect would be applicable, the perfect is used.
[1617.] The pluperfect is sometimes used where the perfect would be expected. Particularly so when it anticipates a past tense to follow in a new sentence: as, quod factum prīmō populārīs coniūrātiōnis concusserat. neque tamen Catilīnae furor minuēbātur, S. C. 24, 1, this terrified the conspirators at first; and yet Catiline’s frenzy was not getting abated. Verbs of saying are also often put in the pluperfect in subordinate sentences referring to a preceding statement: as, Epidamniēnsis ille, quem dūdum dīxeram, adoptat illum puerum surruptīcium, Pl. Men. prol. 57, said man of Epidamnus that I named erewhile adopts said kidnapped boy.
[1618.] It may be mentioned here, that the pluperfect is used in a subordinate sentence denoting time anterior to a past tense of repeated action. In such sentences the preterite is preferred in English: as,
hostēs ubī̆ aliquōs singulārēs cōnspexerant, incitātīs equīs adoriēbantur, 4, 26, 2, every time the enemy caught sight of detached parties, they would always charge full gallop. Compare the analogous perfect in 1613.
[1619.] The future indicative expresses future action, either momentary or continuous: as,