Auxiliary verbs are those which are used to make the verb groups with other verbs, used as principals.

The auxiliaries are: do, be, have, shall, will, may, can,

must.

Do, be, have, and will are often used as principal verbs; as, "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them"; "He does well"; "I think, therefore I am"; "We have cares and anxieties"; "He willed me a thousand dollars."

The auxiliaries were originally used as principal verbs, followed by the infinitives of what are now called the principal verbs; as, “I can [to] read"; "You may [to] go"; "He has [to] come." "You must [to] hasten." The sign to is now dropped, and the infinitive is regarded as the principal verb; the auxiliaries being used merely to show the relations of mode and tense.

CXV. DEFINITION OF MODE

Mode is the manner in which the action, being, or state is expressed.

There are four modes: the indicative, the subjunctive, the potential, and the imperative.

CXVI. INDICATIVE MODE

The indicative mode asserts a thing as a fact, or as actually existing; as, "The man walks"; "The house was burned."

The indicative mode may be used in interrogative and exclamatory sentences; also, in subordinate propositions, to denote what is actual or what is assumed as actual; as, “Is he a merchant?" "The rascal has stolen my horse!" "I learn that you have removed from town."

SUBJUNCTIVE MODE

CXVII. SUBJUNCTIVE MODE

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The subjunctive mode asserts a thing as doubtful, as, a wish, a supposition, or a future contingency; as, "If this be true, all will end well"; "Had I the wings of a dove"; "I shall leave, if you remain."

The subjunctive mode is so called because it is used in subjoined or subordinate propositions only. It represents an ideal act, or an act placed under a condition of more or less doubt, and is joined to the verb of the principal proposition by the subordinate connectives if, though, except, lest, that, unless, and some others. These connectives are called the signs of the subjunctive.

The sign is frequently omitted, in which case the auxiliary or copula precedes the subject; as, "Had I time," i.e. If I had time; "Were I a king," i.e. If I were a king.

In a subordinate proposition expressing a condition or a supposition, the verb may be in either the indicative or the subjunctive mode. Use the subjunctive mode, when it is intended to express doubt or denial; the indicative or potential mode, when the thing supposed is a fact or is assumed to be a fact.

Ex. -"If I go, I shall return": I may go, or I may not; doubt is implied. "If he were honest, he would pay me ": the supposition is that he is not honest. "If he had been there, I should have seen him": I deny that he was there. In these sentences, the verbs are in the subjunctive mode, doubt or denial being implied. In the sentences, “If he goes, you must stay,” and “If he was there, he fought bravely," "goes and " was are in the indicative mode, neither doubt nor denial being implied.

Comparatively few modern writers observe the distinction between the indicative and the subjunctive modes in stating suppositions. The directions given state the usage of the best writers.

CXVIII. POTENTIAL MODE

The potential mode asserts the power, necessity, liberty, duty, or liability of acting or being in a certain state; as, "You can read"; "He must go"; "You may retire"; "They should be more careful."

The potential mode, like the indicative, is used in interrogative and exclamatory sentences; also, in subordinate propositions, to represent what is assumed as actual, or what has not been realized; as, “I know that I may be disappointed"; "He says that I may study algebra.” The signs of the potential mode are the auxiliaries may, can, must, might, could, would, and should.

The imperative mode expresses a command, an exhortation, an entreaty, or a permission; as, "Charge, Chester, charge!" "Do come to see us"; "Lead us not into temptation"; "Be silent."

The imperative mode may usually be known by the omission of the subject; as, "Write" [thou, you, or ye]. It is used mostly in principal propositions, and is made subordinate in direct quotations only; as, "God said, Let there be light."

The expressions "Let Ellen come,' ," "Let him go," etc., are made up of the imperative of the verb let, and the objective case of a noun or pronoun, limited by an infinitive. They are equivalent to "Permit [thou] Ellen to come," etc.

These expressions are sometimes abridged by dropping the verb let, changing the infinitive to the imperative, and the objective case to the nominative; as, "Come one, come all," i.e. Let one come, let all come; Sing we to our God above," i.e. Let us sing to our God above. In such cases, the noun or pronoun should be parsed as the subject of the proposition, the imperative agreeing with it in number and person.

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Ex.-"Ruin seize thee, ruthless king."- GRAY. "Laugh those SCOTT. "Then turn we to

who may, weep those who must."

her latest tribune's name.". - BYRON. "Proceed we therefore to our subject.". POPE. "Come the eleventh plague, rather than this should be."-COWLEY. "Be it enacted." STATUTES OF OHIO. "Somebody

call my wife.".

SHAKESPEARE. "Hallowed be thy name."

The imperative mode is sometimes used to denote a wish.

Ex.-"Let all the earth fear the Lord."

CXX. EXERCISES

Tell the mode of the verbs in the following sentences:·

1. A great storm is raging. 2. You may go or stay. 3. Bring me some flowers. 4. Hope thou in God. 5. If he study, he will excel. 6. If he studies, it is when he is alone. 7. Were I rich I would purchase that property. 8. Who will go with me? 9. Do let me see your book.

10. I must not be tardy.

11. Lift up your heads, O ye gates!

12. Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 13. He should have told you. 14. They dare not puzzle us for their own sakes. 15. Let us not, I beseech you, deceive ourselves longer.

16. God help us! what a poor world this would be, if this were the true doctrine. 17. If a line is parallel to a line of a plane, it is parallel to that plane. 18. If a plane intersect two parallel planes, the lines of intersection will be parallel. 19. Could ye have kept his spirit to that flight, he had been happy. — BYRON.

20. Reign thou in hell, thy kingdom; let me serve
In heaven, God ever blest. - MILTON.

21. Place me on Sunium's marble steep,

Where nothing, save the waves and I,
May hear our mutual murmurs sweep;
There, swan-like, let me sing and die.

BYRON.

Tense denotes the time of an action or event.

There are three divisions of time: past, present, and future. Each division has two tenses: an absolute and a relative.

The absolute tenses are the present, the past, and the future. They denote indefinite or incomplete action.

The relative tenses are the present perfect, the past perfect, and the future perfect. They denote completed action.

CXXII. PRESENT TENSE

The present tense denotes present time; as, "I walk"; "The army is marching."

The present tense is used in expressing a general truth, or what is habitual; as, "Perseverance conquers all things." "The mail arrives at six P.M." If composed of the copula used as auxiliary, and the present participle of the principal verb, it expresses what is now occurring; as, "The train is moving."

The historical present is the present used for the past, to describe more vividly what took place in past time; as, "Tacitus describes the manners and customs of the ancient Germans"; "Ulysses wakes, not knowing where he was."-Pope. "Matthew traces the descent of

Joseph; Luke traces that of Mary.”

The present of the speaker or hearer is what is meant by present time. The present of the reader may not be the same as that of the writer.

When preceded by a relative pronoun, or by conjunctive adverbs of time, the present tense is sometimes future in its reference; as, “He will please all who employ him"; "The flowers will bloom when spring

comes."