VERB 189 VERBENA male line of Columbus came to an end. A lawsuit for the succession to the title followed, and after 30 years was settled in favor of the descendants of Isabel, sister of Luis Columbus. This line coming to an end in 1733, the title was, after more litigation, settled on the descendants of Francesca, sister of the Diego Columbus who died in 1578. The Duke of Veragua, the 13th in direct descent from Christopher Columbus, was born in Madrid, Spain, in 1837. In 1893, with his wife, he visited the United States on the invitation of the govern- ment, and witnessed the opening cere- monies of the Columbian Exposition. He was everywhere received with high honors as a representative of the family. VERB, in grammar, that part of speech which predicates something in regard to something else (the subject or thing spoken of) ; as, The man lives, The boy threw a stone. Verbs affirm ac- tion or existence of a subject under cer- tain conditions or relations called voice, mood, and tense. Verbs may be classi- fied into: (1) Transitive, requiring an object, as he learns his lesson; and (2) Intransitive, as, He runs. Transitive verbs include reflexive verbs. Some transitive verbs are reflex in meaning though not in form, and appear, at first sight, as if used intransitively; as, He keeps out of danger, i. e., He keeps him- self, etc. Sometimes a transitive verb has a passive sense with an active form; as, The cakes are short and crisp. Some verbs are sometimes transitive and some- times intransitive; as. He floats a scheme. The body floats. Only transi- tive verbs have a passive voice. Some intransitive verbs, by means of a prep- osition, become transitive, and so may be used passively; as. He laughed at the act. The act ivas laughed at by him. Intransitive verbs include a large num- ber that might be classed as frequenta- tive, diminutive, inceptive, desiderative, etc. Some intransitive verbs have a causative meaning, and take an ob- ject: I t'un, I ran a pin into my finger. Intransitive verbs may take a noun of kindred meaning as object (called the cognate object) ; as, to sleep a sleep, to run a race, to live a life. Verbs used with the third person only are called impersonal verbs; as, raethinks, it rains, it S7101VS. In the case of some verbs, the transitive form is distinguished from the corresponding intransitive by _ a change of vowel; as raise, rise; set, sit; fell, fall. Such verbs are called causa- tive. The past tense of strong verbs is expressed by a change of vowel only; as, throio, threw ; the past tense of weak Cyc verbs by adding to the verbal root the syllable -ed; as shout, shouted; or its euphonic substitute d {-ed) ; as love, loved. Auxiliary verbs are used in forming the tenses of other verbs; as, I fiave seen. VERBECK, GUIDO FRIDOLIN, a Dutch- American missionary; born in Zeist, Holland, Feb. 1, 1830; was grad- uated at the Auburn Theological Sem- inary, Auburn, N. Y., in 1859, and in the same year v/as sent to Japan by the Reformed Church of America. The Japanese government engaged him in 1863 to carry on educational work. He was superintendent of instruction and teachers in the foreign department at the Imperial University, Tokyo, in 1869- 1873; was engaged in missionary work work in 1873-1879, and was then again employed by the government as a trans- lator and organizer. In 1891 he was made instructor of theology in the Meiji Gakuin. He was the author of "History of Protestant Missions in Japan" (1883) and the translator of "The Code Napo- leon"; "Two Thousand Legal Maxims"; etc. He died in Tokvo, Japan, March 9, 1898. VERBENA, a genus of plants of the natural order Verbeoiaceas. The genus consists of numerous species of herbs or shrubs which inhabit the tropical and subtropical parts of the world; most num.erous in America, more rare in Asia and Africa. They have opposite leaves, sessile bracteated flowers in simple or panicled spikes, terminal or axillary; a tubular five-toothed calyx, tubular corol- la more or less curved with a spreading' limb, generally unequally lobed; four stamens, included in the tube, the upper pair sometimes without anthers; a slen- der style with capitate stigmas. The ripe fruit splits into two or four nutlets, each containing one seed. The genus is more remarkable for the beauty of a number of the species, which under cul- tivation have given origin to numerous varieties greatly prized for their bril- liant colored flowers, than for other vir- tues, though formerly the English spe- cies was credited with potent medicinal qualities, particularly in ailments of the bladder and in the cure of defective vi- sion, which, however, appear to have been purely imaginary. It was also worn on the person as a protection against blasts and to promote general good fortune, for which purpose it was gathered with special observances and ceremony. The lemon-scented verbena is Aloysia citriodora, which belongs to the same natural order; but the per- fumers' oil of verbena is derived from the lemon grass. 13 Vol. X
