OBS. 4.—­Nutting supposes that the objective case before the infinitive always governs it wherever it denotes the agent of the infinitive action; as, “He commands me to write a letter.”—­Practical Gram., p. 96.  Nixon, on the contrary, contends, that the finite verb, in such a sentence, can govern only one object, and that this object is the infinitive.  “The objective case preceding it,” he says, “is the subject or agent of that infinitive, and not governed by the preceding verb.”  His example is, “Let them go.”—­English Parser, p. 97.  “In the examples, ’He is endeavouring to persuade them to learn,’—­’It is pleasant to see the sun,’—­the pronoun them, the adjective pleasant, and the participle endeavouring, I consider as governing the following verb in the infinitive mode.”—­Cooper’s Plain and Pract.  Gram., p. 144.  “Some erroneously say that pronouns govern the infinitive mode in such examples as this:  ‘I expected him to be present.’  We will change the expression:  ‘He was expected to be present.’ All will admit that to be is governed by was expected.  The same verb that governs it in the passive voice, governs it in the active.”—­Sanborn’s Gram., p. 144.  So do our professed grammarians differ about the government of the infinitive, even in the most common constructions of it!  Often, however, it makes but little difference in regard to the sense, which of the two words is considered the governing or antecedent term; but where the preposition is excluded, the construction seems to imply some immediate influence of the finite verb upon the infinitive.

OBS. 5.—­The extent of this influence, or of such government, has never yet been clearly determined.  “This irregularity,” says Murray, “extends only to active or neuter verbs:  [’active and neuter verbs,’ says Fisk:] for all the verbs above mentioned, when made passive, require the preposition to before the following verb:  as, ‘He was seen to go;’ ‘He was heard to speak;’ ’They were bidden to be upon their guard.’”—­Murray’s Gram., p. 183.  Fisk adds with no great accuracy “In the past and future tenses of the active voice also, these verbs generally require the sign to, to be prefixed to the following verbs; as, ‘You have dared to proceed without authority;’ ’They will not dare to attack you.’”—­Gram.  Simplified, p. 125.  What these gentlemen here call “neuter verbs,” are only the two words dare and need, which are, in most cases, active, though not always transitive; unless the infinitive itself can make them so—­an inconsistent doctrine of theirs which I have elsewhere refuted. (See Obs. 3rd on Rule 5th.) These two verbs take the infinitive after them without the preposition, only when they are intransitive; while all the rest seem to have this power, only when they are transitive.  If there are any exceptions, they shall presently be considered.  A more particular examination of the construction proper for the infinitive after each of these eight verbs, seems necessary for a right understanding of the rule.