c.

&c

S. They are as follows.

M. What is the Difference between I, and me, he,' and him, fhe, and her, we, and us, they, and them? S. I, he, she, we, and they, begin a Sentence, but feldom end it: And me, him, her, them, and us, feldom or never begin a Sentence, but often end it. Thus, I went for him: He came to me:" She followed him: They both din'd with me: 1 afk'd them to drink Tea: We took a Walk, my Brother followed Us.

M. What Difference is there between my or mine,' thy or thine, his, her or hers, your or yours, their or theirs?

S. My, thy, his, her, your, and their, are used as Adjectives; as, my Book, his Gloves, her Fan, your Hat, their Goods. But mine, thine, his, hers, ours, yours, or theirs, are call'd poffeffive Pronouns; because they denote Poffeffion, and are ufed without the Subftantive, or elfe follow it. As, whofe Book is this? Mine (q. d.) it is my Book. Whose Gloves are thefe? His, bers, ours, yours, theirs, &c.

M. What is the Difference, between who, which and what?

S. Who is ufed when we fpeak of Perfons only; which is used when we speak both of Persons and Things; and what is mostly used in asking a Queftion. Thus, the Man who commits Murder fhall die. This is the Book which I bought, or this is the Child which I faw. What muft I give for this Thing, &c. &c. M. Are

E

M. Are not fome Pronouns contracted?

S. Yes, for feveral Pronouns or Words are fhortened by the Ufe of other Words which fignify the

S. A Verb is a Part of Speech that denotes Being, Doing, or Suffering. Ās, I live, I love, I am loved.

M. How are Verbs known in general from other Parts of Speech?

s. They

S. They may be known by the Word To going before them; as, to fing, to dance, to fight, to cry, to abbor, to punish, to abominate, as alfo, to be bot to be cold, to be burned, to be punished, &c.

M. How many Sorts of Verbs are there?
S. Three, Active, Paffive, and Neuter.
M. What do you mean by an active Verb.

S. An active Verb is a Word that denotes an Action, and in fuch a Manner, that the Perfon, or Thing it acts upon, follows the Verb. Thus, I love her, She loves me. We love them.

M. What is a paffive Verb?

S. A paffive Verb denotes Suffering, or the Impreffions that Perfons or Things receive, whether they act or are acted upon; as, John burns, John is burned, &c.

M. Has the English Tongue any paffive Verbs? S. The English Tongue has no paffive Verbs; for it has not a Word that denotes Suffering.

M. How then is that Want fupplied?

S. By the Help of these two small Words, am, and be, which are called auxiliary, or helping Verbs, as you will fee by and by.

M. What is a neuter Verb?

S. A neuter Verb is sometimes active, and sometimes paffive; As, I run, I am fick.

M. Is there no other Sort of Verbs?

S. There is another, call'd an imperfonal Verb, because it is used without any Distinction of Sex, or any of the perfonal Pronouns, and is govern'd or known by the Word it; as, it rains, it bails, it fnows, it is cold, &c. And when we fpeak of a Child, without confidering whether it be a Boy or Girl, we then fay, it cries, it fleeps, &c.

M. How many Sorts of imperfonal Verbs are there?

S. Two; viz. Alive, as, it fnows, and Paffive, as, it is cold.

M. How many Things belong to Verbs?

S. Three, viz. Perfon, Mood, Time, or Tense.

Of the Perfons of Verbs.

M. How many Perfons belong to a Verb?
S. Three Singular, and three Plural;

'As -{

1, thou, or you, he or she, or it, are Singular,

We, je or you, and they, are Plural.

ye

M. How do you name the different Perfons?

S. I is called the firft Perfon fingular;

Thou, or you the fecond Perfon fingular;

He, fhe, or it, are of the third Perfon fingular.
We, is the firft Perfon plural;

Ye, or you, the Second Perfon plural;
They, is the third Perfon plural.

}

M. Does the Verb always remain the fame in every Perfon?

S. No; it differs from itself in the Second Perfon fingular, and in the third Perfon fingular; but it is the fame in all the Reft.

M. Give me an Example of the Verb to love, throughout all the Perfons.

S. The Verb to love runs thus."

Or fuppofe the Verb to burn.

I burn; thou burnest; he, or she burns.
We burn; ye, or you burn, they burn.

Here you fee the Verbs love and burn remain the fame in all the Perfons, except the fecond and third Perfon fingular, and then it is lovest, burneft; loveth or loves; burneth or burns.

It is more modern to fay or write loves and burns, rather than loveth or burneth, as it is fhorter, and more agreeable to Speech in Converfation.

N. B. It is always of the third Perfon fingular; as, it raineth, rains, or doth rain; it burns, or does burn, &c.

M. How is a Verb known from all the other Parts of Speech?

S. Thofe Words are Verbs, before which you may (with good Senfe) place any perfonal Pronoun, or the Word To; as, I walk, he runs, we fing, they rejoice, &c. Or otherwise, to walk, to run, to fing, to rejoice, are Verbs.

Of MOOD S.

M. What do you mean by a Mood?

S. Moods in Grammar fignify the various Ways of expreffing a Verb, or Action of a Verb.

M. How many Moods are there in Grammar? S. The English, strictly speaking, have no Mood; but the Latin, and feveral other Languages, have fix different Moods, which they Use in the Formation or Conjugation of Verbs; in which the Verb itself has a different Termination or Ending in every Perfon, and almost in every Tenfe belonging thereto. M. What do they call thefe Moods?