“They bud, blow, wither, fall, and die.”—­Watts.

    “That evermore his teeth they chatter,
    Chatter, chatter, chatter still.”—­Wordsworth.

NOTE IX.—­A future contingency is best expressed by a verb in the subjunctive present; and a mere supposition, with indefinite time, by a verb in the subjunctive imperfect; but a conditional circumstance assumed as a fact, requires the indicative mood:[393] as, “If thou forsake him, he will cast thee off forever.”—­Bible.  “If it were not so, I would have told you.”—­Ib. “If thou went, nothing would be gained.”—­“Though he is poor, he is contented.”—­“Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor.”—­2 Cor., viii, 9.

NOTE X.—­In general, every such use or extension of the subjunctive mood, as the reader will be likely to mistake for a discord between the verb and its nominative, ought to be avoided as an impropriety:  as, “We are not sensible of disproportion, till the difference between the quantities compared become the most striking circumstance.”—­Kames, El. of Crit., ii, 341.  Say rather, “becomes;” which is indicative.  “Till the general preference of certain forms have been declared.”—­Priestley’s Gram., Pref., p. xvii.  Say, “has been declared;” for “preference” is here the nominative, and Dr. Priestley himself recognizes no other subjunctive tenses than the present and the imperfect; as, “If thou love, If thou loved.”—­Ib., p. 16.

IMPROPRIETIES FOR CORRECTION.

FALSE SYNTAX UNDER RULE XIV.

UNDER THE RULE ITSELF.—­VERB AFTER THE NOMINATIVE.

“Before you left Sicily, you was reconciled to Verres.”—­Duncan’s Cicero, p. 19.

[FORMULE.—­Not proper, because the passive verb was reconciled is of the singular number, and does not agree with its nominative you, which is of the second person plural.  But, according to Rule 14th, “Every finite verb must agree with its subject, or nominative, in person and number.”  Therefore, was reconciled should be were reconciled; thus, “Before you left Sicily, you were reconciled to Verres.”]

“Knowing that you was my old master’s good friend.”—­Spect., No. 517.  “When the judge dare not act, where is the loser’s remedy?”—­Webster’s Essays, p. 131.  “Which extends it no farther than the variation of the verb extend.”—­Murray’s Gram., 8vo, Vol. i, p. 211.  “They presently dry without hurt, as myself hath often proved.”—­Roger Williams.  “Whose goings forth hath been from of old, from everlasting.”—­Keith’s Evidences.  “You was paid to fight against Alexander, not to rail at him.”—­Porter’s Analysis, p. 70.  “Where more than one part of speech is almost always concerned.”—­Churchill’s