| if | { | Absolute | } | by the Particle | { | Will, |
| { | Conditional | } | { | Would. |
4. The Necessity of a thing from some external Obligation, whether Natural, or Moral, which we call Duty, is expressed,
| if | { | Absolute | } | by the Particle | { | Must, ought, shall; |
| { | Conditional | } | { | Must, ought, should.” |
See also Hermes, Book I. Chap. viii.
[26] I doubt much of the propriety of the following examples: “The rules of our holy Religion, from which we are infinitely swerved.” Tillotson, Vol. I. Serm. 27. “The whole obligation of that law and covenant, which God made with the Jews, was also ceased.” Ib. Vol. II. Serm. 52. “Whose number was now amounted to three hundred.” Swift, Contests and Dissensions, Chap. 3. Neuter Verbs are sometimes employed very improperly as Actives: “I think, it by no means a fit and decent thing to vie Charities, and to erect the reputation of one upon the ruins of another.” Atterbury, Vol. I. Serm. 2.
[27] These two have also beaten and bursten in the Participle; and in that form they belong to the Third Class of Irregulars.
[28] The Verbs marked thus throughout the three Classes of Irregulars, have the Regular as well as the Irregular form in use.
[29] This Verb in the Past Time and Participle is pronounced short; read, red, red; like lead, led, led; and perhaps ought to be written in this manner: our antient writers spelt it redde.
[30] They follow the Saxon rule: “Verbs which in the Infinitive end in dan and tan,” (that is, in English, d and t; for an is only the Characteristic termination of the Saxon Infinitive;) “in the Preterit and Participle Preterit commonly for the sake of better sound throw away the final ed; as beot, afed, (both in the Preterit and Participle Preterit) for beoted, afeded; from beotan, afedan.” Hickes, Grammat. Saxon, cap. 9. So the same Verbs in English, beat, fed, instead of beated, feeded.
[31] When en follows a Vowel or Liquid the e is dropt: so drawn, slayn, (or slain,) are instead of drawen, slayen; so likewise known, born, are for knowen, boren, in the Saxon cnawen, boren: and so of the rest.