that, with this clue, you will yourself be able, upon inquiry, to account as easily (and in the same manner) for the use of all the others, as I know you can for UT; which is merely the Greek neuter Article or', adopted for this conjunctive purpose by the Latins, and by them originally written UTI: the o being changed into u, from that propensity which both the antient Romans had, and the modern Italians still have, upon many occasions, to pronounce even their own o like an Of which I need not produce any instances*.

U.

The Resolution therefore of the original will be like that of the translation;

"Latrones jugulent homines (Aɩ) órɩ surgunt de nocte."

soin d'être fixes par la langue écrite."-Encyclopédie (Etymologie) par

M. De Brosses.

1

" UTI est mutata ori."-J. C. Scaliger de Causis L. L. cap. 173. 2 So in the antient form of self-devotion.

66 VTEL. EGO. AXIM. PRAI. ME. FORMIDINEM. METOM. QUE. OMNIOM. DIRAS. SIC. VTEI. VERBEIS. NONCOPASO. ITA. PRO. REPOPLICA. POPOLI. ROMANI. QUIRITIOM. VITAM. SALUTEM. QUE. MEAM. LEGIONES. AUXSILIA. QUE. HOSTIOM. MEOM. DIVEIS. MANEBOUS. TELLOURI. QUE. DEVOVEO."

So in the laws of Numa, and in the twelve tables, and in all antient inscriptions, o is perpetually found where the modern Latin uses u. And it is but reasonable to suppose, that the pronunciation preceded the change of the orthography.

3"Quant à la voyelle u pour ce qu'ils (les Italiens) l'aiment fort, ainsi que nous cognoissons par ces mots Ufficio, Ubrigato, &c. je pense bien qu'ils la respectent plus que les autres."-Henri Estiene, de la Précell. de la L. F.

"L'o a stretta amicizia coll' v, usandosi in molte voci scambievolmente."-Menage. Cambiamenti delle Lettere, page 16.

Menage quotes Quinctilian, Festus, Velius Longus, Victorinus, Cassiodorus, Servius, Priscian, Virgil, Jul. Cæs. Scaliger.

La v par che prevalesse ne' primi tempi e piu remoti, quando i Latini, memori della Eolica origine, o imitando gli Umbri e gli Etruschi, literam v pro o efferebant*: e pronunziavano Funtes, Frundes, Acherunte, Humones, e similit. Quindi Ovidio, avendo detto che una volta il nome di Orione era Urion, soggiugne-perdidit antiquum litera prima sonum. Ne' tempi posteriori si andò all' altro estremo; e all' antica lettera fu sostituita quasi sempre la o, come vedesi in Novios Plautios, e in altre voci della tavola seconda. Prisciano ne dà per ragione: quia multis Italiæ populis v in usu non erat, sed e contrario utebantur o§: dicendosi verbigrazia, Colpa, Exsoles, per Culpa, Exules, &c. "-Lanzi Saggio di Lingua Etrusca, tom. i. pag. 124.

Fest. vid. Orcus.

§ Pag. 554.

† Quinct. 1. 4.
Cassiod. 2284.

‡ Fast. v.

E

B.-You have extricated yourself pretty well out of this scrape with UT. And perhaps have done prudently, to decline the same sort of explanation in those other languages which, as well as the Latin, have likewise a double Conjunction for this purpose, not quite so easily accounted for, because not ready derived to your hands. But I have not yet done with the English for though your method of resolution will answer with most sentences, yet I doubt much whether it will with all. I think there is one usage of the conjunction THAT which it will not explain.

H.-Produce an instance.

B.-The instances are common enough. But I chuse to take one from your favourite Sad Shepherd: in hopes that the difficulty it may cause you will abate something of your extreme partiality for that piece. Which, though it be

you

"such wool

As from mere English flocks his Muse could pull,"

have always contended obstinately, with its author, is

"a Fleece

To match or those of Sicily or Greece."

EXAMPLE.

"I wonder he can move! that he's not fix'd!
IF THAT his feelings be the same with mine."

So again in Shakespeare',

"IF THAT the king

Have any way your good deserts forgot,

He bids you name your griefs."

How will you bring out the Article THAT, when two Conjunctions (for I must still call THAT a Conjunction, till all my scruples are satisfied) come in this manner together?

ADVERTISEMENT.

I PRESUME my readers to be acquainted with French, Latin, Italian and Greek; which are unfortunately the usual boundaries of an English scholar's acquisition. On this supposition, a friend of mine lamented that, in my Letter to Mr. Dunning, I had not confined myself to the common English character for the Anglo-Saxon and Gothic derivations.

1 First Part of Henry IV. act. 4. scene 5.

In the present publication I should undoubtedly have conformed to his wishes, if I had not imagined that, by inserting the Anglo-Saxon and Gothic characters in this place, I might possibly allure some of my readers to familiarize themselves with those characters, by an application of them to the few words of those languages which are here introduced: and thus lead the way to their better acquaintance with the parent language, which ought long ago to have made a part of the education of our youth. And I flatter myself that one of the consequences of my present inquiry will be, to facilitate and abridge the tedious and mistaken method of instruction which has too long continued in our seminaries: the time which is at present allotted to Latin and Greek, being amply sufficient for the acquirement also of French, Italian, Anglo-Saxon, Dutch, German, Danish and Swedish. Which will not seem at all extraordinary, when it is considered that the five last mentioned (together with the English) are little more than different dialects of one and the same language. And though this was by no means the leading motive, nor is the present object of my inquiry-; yet I think it of considerable importance: although I do not hold the acquisition of languages in so very great estimation as the Emperor Charles the Vth did; who, as Brantome tells us, "disoit et répétoit souvent, quand il tomboit sur la beauté des langues, (selon l'opinion des Turcs) -qu'autant de langues que l'homme sçait parler, autant de fois est-il homme."

CHAPTER VII.

OF CONJUNCTIONS.

H.-I was afraid of some such instances as these, when I wished to postpone the whole consideration of this subject till after we had discussed the other received Parts of Speech. Because, in order to explain it, I must forestall something of what I had to say concerning Conjunctions. However, since the question is started, perhaps it may be as well to give it here.

The truth of the matter is, that IF is merely a Verb. It is merely the Imperative of the Gothic and Anglo-Saxon verb FIFAN, Gifan. And in those languages, as well as in the English formerly, this supposed Conjunction was pronounced and written as the common Imperative, purely гIE, GIF, Gif. "My largesse

Thus

Hath lotted her to be your brother's mistresse
GIF shee can be reclaim'd; GIF not, his prey'."

And accordingly our corrupted IF has always the signification of the English Imperative Give; and no other. So that the resolution of the construction in the instances you have produced, will be as before in the others.

Resolution." His feelings be the same with mine, GIVE THAT, I wonder he can move," &c.

"The King may have forgotten your good deserts, GIVE THAT in any way, he bids you name your griefs."

And here, as an additional proof, we may observe, that whenever the Datum, upon which any conclusion depends, is a sentence, the Article THAT, if not expressed, is always understood, and may be inserted after 1F. As in the instance I have produced above, the Poet might have said,

For the resolution is-" She can be reclaimed, Give that ; my largesse hath lotted her to be your brother's mistresse. She cannot be reclaimed, Give that; my largesse hath lotted her to be your brother's prey."

1 Sad Shepherd, act 2. scene 1.

But the Article THAT is not understood, and cannot be inserted after IF, where the Datum is not a sentence, but some Noun governed by the Verb IF or GIVE. As,

Example." How will the weather dispose of you to morrow? IF fair, it will send me abroad; IF foul, it will keep me at home."

Here we cannot say " IF THAT fair it will send me abroad; IF THAT foul it will keep me at home."--Because in this case the verb IF governs the Noun; and the resolved construction is,

GIVE fair weather, it will send me abroad; GIVE foul weather, it will keep me at home."

But make the Datum a sentence, As-" IF it is fair weather, it will send me abroad; IF it is foul weather, it will keep me at home :"

And then the article THAT is understood, and may be inserted after 1F; As-"IF THAT it is fair weather, it will send me abroad; IF THAT it is foul weather, it will keep me at home.” The resolution then being,

"It is fair weather, GIVE THAT; it will send me abroad; It is foul weather, GIVE THAT; it will keep me at home."

And this you will find to hold universally, not only with IF; but with many other supposed Conjunctions, such as, But that, Unless that, Though that, Lest that, &c. (which are really Verbs) put in this manner before the Article THAT.

B.-One word more to clear up a difficulty which occurs to me concerning your account of IF, and I have done.

We have in English another word which (though now rather obsolete) used frequently to supply the place of IF. As "AN you had any eye behind you, you might see more detraction at your heels, than fortunes before you'.'

In this and in all similar instances, what is AN? For I can by no means agree with the account which Dr. S. Johnson gives of it in his Dictionary: and I do not know that any other person has ever attempted to explain it.

H.--How does he account for it?

B. He says,- "" AN is sometimes in old authors a contraction of And if." Of which he gives a very unlucky in

1 Twelfth Night, act 2. scene 8.