[§ 452]. The idea of partition, and its likelihood of determining the evolution of a genitive form, &c.—Less than with other words.
A personal pronoun of the singular number is the name of a unity, and, as such, the name of an object far less likely to be separated into parts than the name of a collection. Phrases like, some of them, one of you, many of us, any of them, few of us, &c., have no analogues in the singular number, such as one of me, a few of thee, &c. The partitive words that can
combine with singular pronouns are comparatively few; viz., half, quarter, part, &c.: and they can all combine equally with plurals—half of us, a quarter of them, a part of you, a portion of us. The partition of a singular object with a pronominal name is of rare occurrence in language.
This last statement proves something more than appears at first sight. It proves that no argument in favour of the so-called singular genitives, like mine and thine, can be drawn from the admission (if made) of the existence of the true plural genitives ou-r, you-r, thei-r. The two ideas are not in the same predicament. We can say, one of ten, or ten of twenty; but we cannot say one of one—Wæs hira Matheus sum=Matthew was one of them; Andreas—Your noither=neither of you; Amis and Ameloun—from Mr. Guest: Her eyder=either of them; Octavian.—Besides this, the form of the two numbers are neither identical, nor equally genitival; as may be seen by contrasting mi-n and thi-n with ou-r and you-r.
[§ 453]. Such are the chief à priori arguments against the genitival character of words like mine and thine.
Akin to these, and a point which precedes the à posteriori evidence as to the nature of the words in question, is the determination of the side on which lies the onus probandi. This question is material; inasmuch as, although the present writer believes, for his own part, that the forms under discussion are adjectival rather than genitival, this is not the point upon which he insists. What he insists upon is the fact of the genitival character of mine and thine requiring a particular proof; which particular proof no one has yet given: in other words, his position is that they are not to be thought genitive until proved to be such.
It has not been sufficiently considered that the primâ facie evidence is against them. They have not the form of a genitive case—indeed, they have a different one; and whoever assumes a second form for a given case has the burden of proof on his side.
[§ 454]. Against this circumstance of the -n in mine and thine being the sign of anything rather than of a genitive case, and against the primâ facie evidence afforded by it, the
following facts may, or have been, adduced as reasons on the other side. The appreciation of their value, either taken singly or in the way of cumulative evidence, is submitted to the reader. It will be seen that none of them are unexceptionable.
[§ 455]. The fact, that, if the words mine and thine are not genitive cases, there is not a genitive case at all.—It is not necessary that there should be one. Particular reasons in favour of the probability of personal pronouns of the singular number being destitute of such a case have been already adduced. It is more likely that a word should be defective than that it should have a separate form.