by some agent. I call that voice a Subjective Voice which is generally appropriated to the Active Verb, and that an Objective Voice which is generally appropriated to the Passive Verb. As to the Neuter Verbs, if they possess a peculiar form, I call it a Neuter Voice."--Fosdick's Translation, p. 99.
OBS. 19.--A recognition of the difference between actives and passives, in
our original classification of verbs with respect to their signification,--
a principle of division very properly adopted in a great majority of our
grammars and dictionaries, but opinionately rejected by Webster, Bolles,
and sundry late grammarians,--renders it unnecessary, if not improper, to
place Voices, the Active Voice and the Passive, among the modifications
of our verbs, or to speak of them as such in the conjugations. So must it
be in respect to "a Neuter Voice," or any other distinction which the
classification involves. The significant characteristic is not overlooked;
the distinction is not neglected as nonessential; but it is transferred to
a different category. Hence I cannot exactly approve of the following
remark, which "the Rev. W. Allen" appears to cite with approbation: "'The distinction of active or passive,' says the accurate Mr. Jones, 'is not essential to verbs. In the infancy of language, it was, in all probability, not known. In Hebrew, the difference but imperfectly exists, and, in the early periods of it, probably did not exist at all. In Arabic, the only distinction which obtains, arises from the vowel points, a late
invention compared with the antiquity of that language. And in our own
tongue, the names of active and passive would have remained unknown, if
they had not been learnt in Latin.'"--Allen's Elements of English Gram.,
p. 96.
OBS. 20.--By the conjugation of a verb, some teachers choose to understand nothing more than the naming of its principal parts; giving to the arrangement of its numbers and persons, through all the moods and tenses, the name of declension. This is a misapplication of terms, and the distinction is as needless, as it is contrary to general usage. Dr. Bullions, long silent concerning principal parts, seems now to make a singular distinction between "conjugating" and "conjugation." His conjugations include the moods, tenses, and inflections of verbs; but he teaches also, with some inaccuracy, as follows: "The principal parts of the verb are the Present indicative, the Past indicative and the Past participle. The mentioning of these parts is called CONJUGATING THE VERB."--Analyt. and Pract. Gram., 1849, p. 80.
OBS. 21.--English verbs having but very few inflections to indicate to what part of the scheme of moods and tenses they pertain, it is found convenient to insert in our conjugations the preposition to, to mark the infinitive; personal pronouns, to distinguish the persons and numbers; the conjunction if, to denote the subjunctive mood; and the adverb not, to show the form of negation. With these additions, or indexes, a verb may be conjugated in four ways:--
1. Affirmatively; as, I write, I do write, or, I am writing; and so on.
2. Negatively; as, I write not, I do not write, or, I am not writing.
3. Interrogatively; as, Write I? Do I write? or, Am I writing?
4. Interrogatively and negatively; as, Write I not? Do I not write? or, Am I not writing?
1. SIMPLE FORM, ACTIVE OR NEUTER.
The simplest form of an English conjugation, is that which makes the present and imperfect tenses without auxiliaries; but, even in these, auxiliaries are required for the potential mood, and are often preferred for the indicative.
FIRST EXAMPLE.
The regular active verb LOVE, conjugated affirmatively.
PRINCIPAL PARTS.
Present. Preterit. Imperfect Participle. Perfect Participle.
Love. Loved. Loving. Loved.
INFINITIVE MOOD.[260]
The infinitive mood is that form of the verb, which expresses the being, action, or passion, in an unlimited manner, and without person or number. It is used only in the present and perfect tenses.
PRESENT TENSE.
This tense is the root, or radical verb; and is usually preceded by the preposition to, which shows its relation to some other word: thus,
To love.
PERFECT TENSE.
This tense prefixes the auxiliary have to the perfect participle; and, like the infinitive present, is usually preceded by the preposition to: thus,
To have loved.
