Note. The first person of the perfect (more probably ingui than inquii) is not found; the present inquam is used instead, and inquit may therefore just as well be taken for the present. The present subjunctive has been here given according to Priscian, p. 876., but has not yet been confirmed by any other authority.

[§ 220.] 3. Fari, to speak, say.

This very irregular verb, with its compounds affāri, effāri, profāri, is, generally speaking, more used in poetry than in ordinary prose. The third persons of the present, fatur, fantur, the imperative fare, and the participle fatus, a, um (effatum is used also in a passive sense), occur most frequently. The ablative of the gerund, fando, is used in a passive sense even in prose, in the phrase fando audire, to know by hearsay.

Compounds: affamur, Ovid; affamini, Curtius; affabar, Virgil; effabor and effaberis also occur in poetry. The first person for, the subjunctive fer, feris, fetur, &c., and the participle fans in the nominative, do not occur, though the other cases of fans are found in poetry. Fandus, a, um, only in the combination fandum et nefandum; fanda, nefanda, which are equivalent to fas et nefas.

[§ 221.] 4. Coepi,

5. Měmini, 6. Novi, 7. Odi, I know. I hate.

I have begun. I remember. These four verbs are perfects of obsolete presents, which have gone out of use, with the exception of nosco, and coepio, coepere. They consequently have those tenses only, which are derived from the perfect. In meaning, měměni, nōvi, and ōdi are presents; novi, I know, shows the transition most clearly, for it properly means "I have learnt to know." (See § 203.) Hence the pluperfect has the meaning of an imperfect: memineram, I remembered; noveram, I knew; oderam, I hated, not "I had hated," and the future perfect has the signification of a simple future, e. g. odero, I shall hate; meminero, I shall remember. Otherwise the terminations are quite regular.

Note. Hence coepisse has a perfect passive coeptus (a, um) sum; e. g. Liv. xxx. 30.: quia a me bellum coeptum est; xxviii. 14.: quum a neutris pugna coepta esset; but it is used especially in connection with an infinitive passive, as in pons institui coeptus est; Tyrus septimo mense, quam oppugnari coepta erat, capta est; de re publica consuli coepti sumus; the active forms coepit, coeperat, however, may likewise be used in this connection. Compare desitus est, § 200. Compounds are occoepi, which is not unfrequently used along with the regular occipio (the same as incipio), and commemini.

[§ 222.] 8. Apage, 9. Ave,

be gone.

hail.

Note. Apage is the Greek imperative anaye of drάyw, and akin with abigo: apage istas sorores! away with them! especially apage te, get thyself off, or, with the omission of the pronoun, apage, begone. Salveo in Plautus, Trucul. ii. 2. 4., may be regarded as the present of salve. Comp. Probus, Instit. Gram., p. 141., ed. Lindemann. Vale and ave, on the other hand, are regular imperatives of valeo, I am well, and aveo, I desire; and they are mentioned here only on account of their change of meaning.

The plural is, avete, salvete, valete; the imperat. fut. aveto, salveto, valeto. The future, salvebis, valebis, is likewise used in the sense of an imperative, and the infinitives mostly with jubeo: avere, salvere, valere.

[§ 223.] 12. Cedo, give, tell.

This word is used as an imperative in familiar language, for da and dic, both with and without an accusative. A plural cette occurs in old Latin.

The e is short in this word, which thus differs from the complete verb cedo, I yield, give way.

[§ 224.] 13. Quaeso, I beseech.

Quaeso is originally the same as quaero, but in good prose it is generally inserted in another sentence. Besides this first person singular, we find only the first person plural quaesumus.

14. Forem, I should be.

This imperfect subjunctive, which is conjugated regularly, has arisen from fuerem of the obsolete verb fuo, and belongs to sum. (See above, § 156.)

CHAP. LX.

IMPERSONAL VERBS.

[§ 225.] 1. THE term Impersonal Verbs strictly applies only to those of which no other but the third person singular is used, and which do not admit a personal subject (I, thou, he), the subject being a proposition, an infinitive, or a neuter noun understood. (See § 441. &c. Verbs of this kind are: · Miseret (me), I pity, perfect miseritum est. Piget (me), I regret, piguit or pigitum est.

Poenitet (me), I repent, poenituit, fut. poenitebit.

Pudet (me), I am ashamed, puduit or puditum est.

Taedet (me), I am disgusted with (taeduit very rare), per

taesum est.

Oportet, it is necessary, oportuit, fut. oportebit.

Note. Miseruit, the regular perfect of miseret, occurs so seldom, that we have not here noticed it. The form commonly used is miseritum or misertum

est, which is derived from the impersonal me miseretur tui, which is not uncommon, although the deponent misereri is otherwise used only as a personal verb, misereor tui. Compare the passages, Cic. p. Ligar. 5.: cave te fratrum pro salute fratris obsecrantium misereatur; in Verr. i. 30. jam me tui misereri non potest, where the verb is likewise impersonal.

[§ 226.] 2. Besides these impersonals, there are some others, which likewise have no personal subject, but yet are used in the third person plural, and may have a nominative (at least a neuter pronoun) as their subject. Such verbs are:

Libet (mihi), I like, choose; perf. libuit or libitum est.

Licet (mihi), I'am permitted; perf. licuit or licitum est. Decet (me), it becomes me, and dedecet, it does not become me; perf. decuit, dedecuit.

Liquet, it is obvious; perf. licuit.

Note. Libuit has been mentioned here as a perfect of libet, but it is usually found only as a present, in the sense of libet.

[$227.] 3. There is also a considerable number of verbs which are used impersonally in the third person, while their other persons occur with more or less difference in meaning. To these belong interest and refert in the sense of "it is of importance to," with which no nominative can be used as a subject; further, accidit, fit, evenit, and contingit, it happens ; accedit, it is added to, or in addition to; attinet and pertinet (ad aliquid), it concerns; conducit, it is conducive; convenit, it suits; constat, it is known or established; expedit, it is expedient; delectat and juvat, it delights, pleases; fallit, fugit, and praeterit me, it escapes me, I do not know; placet, it pleases; perf. placuit and placitum est; praestat, it is better; restat, it remains; vacat, it is wanting; est in the sense of licet, it is permitted or possible, e. g. est videre, non est dicere verum, but especially in poetry and late prose writers.

[§ 228.] 4. The verbs which denote the changes of the weather: pluit, it rains; ningit, it snows; grandinat, it hails; lapidat (perf. also lapidatum est), stones fall from heaven; fulgurat and fulminat, it lightens (with this difference, that fulminat is used of a flash of lightning which strikes an object); tonat, it thunders; lucescit and illucescit (perf. illuxit), it dawns; vesperascit and advesperascit (perf. advesperavit), the evening approaches; in all these cases the subject understood is sup

posed to be deus or coelum, which are in fact often added as their subjects.

[§ 229.] 5. The third person singular passive of a great many words, especially of those denoting movement or saying, is or may be used impersonally, even when the verb is neuter, and has no personal passive, e. g. curritur, they or people run; itur, ventum est, clamatur, fletur, scribitur, bibitur, &c.

[§ 230.] 6. All these impersonal verbs, as such, have no imperative, the place of which is supplied by the present subjunctive, e. g. pudeat te, be ashamed of! The participles also (together with the forms derived from them, the gerund and the infinitive future) are wanting, with a few exceptions, such as libens, licens and liciturus, poenitens and poenitendus, pudendus.

CHAP. LXI.

ETYMOLOGY OF NOUNS AND VERBS.

[§ 231.] WE have hitherto treated of the changes which one particular form of nouns and verbs, supposed to be known (the nominative in nouns, and the infinitive in verbs), may undergo in forming cases and numbers, persons, tenses, moods, &c. But the origin of that form itself, which is taken as the basis in inflection, is explained in that special branch of the study of language, which is called Etymology. Its object is to trace all the words of the language to their roots, and it must therefore soon lead us from the Latin to the Greek language, since both are nearly allied, and since the Greek was developed at an earlier period than the Latin. Other languages, too, must be consulted, in order to discover the original forms and significations. We cannot, however, here enter into these investigations, and must content ourselves with ascertaining, within the Latin language itself, the most prominent laws in the formation of new words from other more simple ones; a knowledge of these laws is useful to the beginner, since it facilitates his acquiring the language. But we shall here confine ourselves to nouns (substantive and adjective) and verbs, for the derivation and