OBS. 4.—­The chief characteristical difference between the indicative and the subjunctive mood, is, that in the latter the verb is not inflected at all, in the different persons:  IND.  “Thou magnifiest his work.”  SUBJ.  “Remember that thou magnify his work.”—­Job, xxxvi, 24.  IND.  “He cuts off, shuts up, and gathers together.”  SUBJ.  “If he cut off, and shut up, or gather together, then who can hinder him?”—­Job, xl, 10.  There is also a difference of meaning.  The Indicative, “If he was,” admits the fact; the Subjunctive, “If he were,” supposes that he was not.  These moods may therefore be distinguished by the sense, even when their forms are alike:  as, “Though it thundered, it did not rain.”—­“Though it thundered, he would not hear it.”  The indicative assumption here is, “Though it did thunder,” or, “Though there was thunder;” the subjunctive, “Though it should thunder,” or, “Though there were thunder.”  These senses are clearly different.  Writers however are continually confounding these moods; some in one way, some in an other.  Thus S. R. Hall, the teacher of a Seminary for Teachers:  “SUBJ. Present Tense. 1.  If I be, or am, 2.  If thou be, or art, 3.  If he be, or is; 1.  If we be, or are, 2.  If ye or you be, or are, 3.  If they be, or are. Imperfect Tense. 1.  If I were, or was, 2.  If thou wert, or wast, 3.  If he were, or was; 1.  If we were, 2.  If ye or you were, 3.  If they were.”—­Hall’s Grammatical Assistant, p. 11.  Again:  “SUBJ. Present Tense. 1.  If I love, 2.  If thou lovest, 3.  If he love,” &c.  “The remaining tenses of this mode, are, in general, similar to the correspondent tenses of the Indicative mode, only with the conjunction prefixed.”—­Ib., p. 20.  Dr. Johnson observes, “The indicative and conjunctive moods are by modern writers frequently confounded; or rather the conjunctive is wholly neglected, when some convenience of versification does not invite its revival.  It is used among the purer writers of former times; as, ’Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not.’”—­Gram. in Joh.  Dict., p. 9.  To neglect the subjunctive mood, or to confound it with the indicative, is to augment several of the worst faults of the language.

II.  COMPOUND OR PROGRESSIVE FORM.

Active and neuter verbs may also be conjugated, by adding the Imperfect Participle to the auxiliary verb BE, through all its changes; as, “I am writing a letter.”—­“He is sitting idle.”—­“They are going.”  This form of the verb denotes a continuance of the action or state of being, and is, on many occasions, preferable to the simple form of the verb.