1. Reyes remarked that it was not in his power to oblige Indirect. the clerk as to that, but that he could oblige him by cutting his throat.

His exact words were, "I cannot oblige you can oblige you by cutting your throat.”

but 1 Direct.

Her prudence whispered eternally, that safety there was Indirect. none for her until she had laid the Atlantic between herself

and St. Sebastian's.

She thought to herself, "Safety there is none for me until I Direct. have laid," etc.

2. Then he laid bare the unparalleled ingratitude of such a step. Oh, the unseen treasure that had been spent upon that girl! Oh, the untold sums of money that he had sunk in that unhappy speculation!

The substance of his lamentation was, “Oh, unseen treasure has been spent upon that girl! Untold sums of money have I sunk," etc.

449. From these illustrations will be readily seen the grammatical changes made in transferring from direct to indirect discourse. Remember the following facts:

(1) Usually the main, introductory verb is in the past tense.

(2) The indirect quotation is usually introduced by that, and the indirect question by whether or if, or regular interrogatives.

(3) Verbs in the present-tense form are changed to the past-tense form. This includes the auxiliaries be, have, will, etc. The past tense is sometimes changed to the past perfect.

(4) The pronouns of the first and second. persons are all changed to the third person. Sometimes it is clearer to introduce the antecedent of the pronoun instead.

Other examples of indirect discourse have been

B. GRAM. — 21

Summary of the expressions.

Direct in synopsis.

given in Part I., under interrogative pronouns, interrogative adverbs, and the subjunctive mood of verbs.

Exercise.

Rewrite the following extract from Irving's "Sketch Book," and change it to a direct quotation : —

He assured the company that it was a fact, handed down from his ancestor the historian, that the Catskill Mountains had always been haunted by strange beings; that it was affirmed that the great Hendrick Hudson, the first discoverer of the river and country, kept a kind of vigil there every twenty years, with his crew of the Half-moon, being permitted in this way to revisit the scenes of his enterprise, and keep a guardian eye upon the river and the great city called by his name; that his father had once seen them in their old Dutch dresses playing at ninepins in a hollow of the mountain; and that he himself had heard, one summer afternoon, the sound of their balls, like distant peals of thunder.

Careless use

of the parti

VERBALS.

PARTICIPLES.

450. The following sentences illustrate a misuse

cipial phrase. of the participial phrase:

Pleased with the "Pilgrim's Progress," my first collection was of John Bunyan's works. - B. FRANKLIN.

My farm consisted of about twenty acres of excellent land, having given a hundred pounds for my predecessor's goodwill. - GOLDSMITH.

Upon asking how he had been taught the art of a cognoscente so suddenly, he assured me that nothing was more easy. - Id.

Having thus run through the causes of the sublime, my first observation will be found nearly true. -BURKE.

He therefore remained silent till he had repeated a paternoster, being the course which his confessor had enjoined. - SCOTT

Compare with these the following:

Going yesterday to dine with an old acquaintance, I had A correct the misfortune to find his whole family very much dejected. example.

- ADDISON.

The trouble is, in the sentences first quoted, Notice this. that the main subject of the sentence is not the same word that would be the subject of the participle, if this were expanded into a verb.

Consequently one of two courses must be taken, - either change the participle to a verb with its appropriate subject, leaving the principal statement as it is; or change the principal proposition so it shall make logical connection with the participial phrase.

For example, the first sentence would be, either "As I was pleased, my first collection was," etc., or "Pleased with the 'Pilgrim's Progress,' I made my first collection John Bunyan's works."

Exercise. Rewrite the other four sentences so as to correct the careless use of the participial phrase.

INFINITIVES.

451. There is a construction which is becoming more and more common among good writers, the placing an adverb between to of the infinitive and the infinitive itself. The practice is condemned by many grammarians, while defended or excused by others. Standard writers often use it, and often, purposely or not, avoid it.

The following two examples show the adverb before the infinitive:

He handled it with such nicety of address as sufficiently to show that he fully understood the business. - SCOTT.

Correction.

Adverb be

tween to and the infinitive.

The more common

usage.

It is a solemn, universal assertion, deeply to be kept in mind by all sects. - RUSKIN.

This is the more common arrangement; yet frequently the desire seems to be to get the adverb snugly against the infinitive, to modify it as closely and clearly as possible.

Exercise.

In the following citations, see if the adverbs can be placed before or after the infinitive and still modify it as clearly as they now do:

1. That the mind may not have to go backwards and forwards in order to rightly connect them. — HERBERT

SPENCER.

2. It may be easier to bear along all the qualifications of an idea . . . than to first imperfectly conceive such idea. - Id.

3. I wish the reader to clearly understand.- Ruskin. 4. "I undertook to partially fill up the office of parish clerk by Mr. Crackenthorp's desire.”—G. ELIOT.

5. To slowly trace the forest's shady scene,

Where things that own not man's dominion dwell.

- BYRON.

In addition, the following illustrations from prominent authors and newspapers may be given: —

6. To fairly unite. - MATTHEW ARNOLD.
7. To absolutely detest. - LESLie Stephen.

8. To at least support. - PROFessor John Earle.

9. To immediately apologize. To properly and safely

10. To thoroughly comprehend. – JEREMY BENTHAM. 11. To barely rise. — Cardinal Newman.

12. To entirely exclude. – Sir Humphry Davy. 13. To eagerly cram.

To fashionably and carelessly

look in at Tattersall's. - Morning Post (London).

14. To more than hint a suspicion. — Times (London). 15. To utterly extinguish.-Morning Herald (London). 16. To extensively alter.- Saturday Review (London)

ADVERBS.

452. A very careful writer will so place the Position of modifiers of a verb that the reader will not mis- etc.

take the meaning.

The rigid rule in such a case would be, to put the modifier in such a position that the reader not only can understand the meaning intended, but cannot misunderstand the thought. Now, when such adverbs as only, even, etc., are used, they are usually placed in a strictly correct position, if they modify single words; but they are often removed from the exact position, if they modify phrases or clauses for example, from Irving, "The site is only to be traced by fragments of bricks, china, and earthenware." Here only modifies the phrase by fragments of bricks, etc., but it is placed before the infinitive. This misplacement of the adverb can be detected only by analysis of the sentence.

Exercise.

Tell what the adverb modifies in each quotation, and see if it is placed in the proper position : —

1. Only the name of one obscure epigrammatist has been embalmed for us in the verses of his rival. - PALgrave. 2. Do you remember pea shooters? I think we only had them on going home for holidays. — THACKERAY.

3. Irving could only live very modestly. He could only afford to keep one old horse. — Id.

4. The arrangement of this machinery could only be accounted for by supposing the motive power to have been steam. WENDELL PHILLIPS.

5. Such disputes can only be settled by arms.

- - Id.

6. I have only noted one or two topics which I thought most likely to interest an American reader. — N. P.

WILLIS.

only, even,