have, in most instances, a reference to some subject of this kind; though their grammatical dependence connects them more frequently with some other term.  The infinitive mood, in English, is distinguished by the preposition to; which, with a few exceptions, immediately precedes it, and may be said to govern it.  In dictionaries, and grammars, to is often used as a mere index, to distinguish verbs from the other parts of speech.  But this little word has no more claim to be ranked as a part of the verb, than has the conjunction if, which is the sign of the subjunctive.  It is the nature of a preposition, to show the relation of different things, thoughts, or words, to each other; and this “sign of the infinitive” may well be pursued separately as a preposition, since in most instances it manifestly shows the relation between the infinitive verb and some other term.  Besides, by most of our grammarians, the present tense of the infinitive mood is declared to be the radical form of the verb; but this doctrine must be plainly untrue, upon the supposition that this tense is a compound.

OBS. 2.—­The Indicative mood is so called because its chief use is, to indicate, or declare positively, whatever one wishes to say.  It is that form of the verb, which we always employ when we affirm or deny any thing in a direct and independent manner.  It is more frequently used, and has a greater number of tenses, than any other mood; and is also, in our language, the only one in which the principal verb is varied in termination.  It is not, however, on all occasions, confined to its primary use; else it would be simply and only declarative.  But we use it sometimes interrogatively, sometimes conditionally; and each of these uses is different from a simple declaration.  Indeed, the difference between a question and an assertion is practically very great.  Hence some of the old grammarians made the form of inquiry a separate mood, which they called the Interrogative Mood.  But, as these different expressions are distinguished, not by any difference of form in the verb itself, but merely by a different order, choice, or delivery of the words, it has been found most convenient in practice, to treat them as one mood susceptible of different senses.  So, in every conditional sentence, the prot’asis, or condition, differs considerably from the apod’osis, or principal clause, even where both are expressed as facts.  Hence some of our modern grammarians, by the help of a few connectives, absurdly merge a great multitude of Indicative or Potential expressions in what they call the Subjunctive Mood.  But here again it is better to refer still to the Indicative or Potential mood whatsoever has any proper sign of such mood, even though it occur in a dependent clause.