INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS.

He who offershimselfa candidate for that covenant comes up like an Olympian.I should hatemyselfif then I made my other friends my asylum.We fillourselveswith ancient learning.What do we know of nature or ofourselves?

He who offershimselfa candidate for that covenant comes up like an Olympian.

I should hatemyselfif then I made my other friends my asylum.

We fillourselveswith ancient learning.

What do we know of nature or ofourselves?

(2)To emphasize a noun or pronoun; for example,—

The great globeitself... shall dissolve.—Shakespeare.

Threats to all;Toyou yourself, to us, to every one.—Id.

Who would not sing for Lycidas! he knewHimselfto sing, and build the lofty rhyme.—Milton.

NOTE.—In such sentences the pronoun is sometimes omitted, and the reflexive modifies the pronoun understood; for example,—

Onlyitselfcan inspire whom it will.—Emerson.My hands are full of blossoms plucked before, Held dead within them tillmyselfshall die.—E. B. Browning.As if it werethyselfthat's here, I shrink with pain.—Wordsworth.

Onlyitselfcan inspire whom it will.—Emerson.

My hands are full of blossoms plucked before, Held dead within them tillmyselfshall die.—E. B. Browning.

As if it werethyselfthat's here, I shrink with pain.—Wordsworth.

(3)As the precise equivalent of a personal pronoun; as,—

Lord Altamont designed to take his son andmyself.—De Quincey.Victories that neithermyselfnor my cause always deserved.—B. Franklin.For what else have our forefathers andourselvesbeen taxed?—Landor.Years ago, Arcturus andmyselfmet a gentleman from China who knew the language.—Thackeray.

Lord Altamont designed to take his son andmyself.—De Quincey.

Victories that neithermyselfnor my cause always deserved.—B. Franklin.

For what else have our forefathers andourselvesbeen taxed?—Landor.

Years ago, Arcturus andmyselfmet a gentleman from China who knew the language.—Thackeray.

(a) Bring up sentences containing ten personal pronouns, some each of masculine, feminine, and neuter.

(b) Bring up sentences containing five personal pronouns in the possessive, some of them being double possessives.

1.Come and trip it as we go,On the light fantastic toe.2. Infancy conforms to nobody; all conform to it.3. It is an ill wind that blows nobody good.4. Courage, father, fight it out.5. And it grew wondrous cold.6. To know what is best to do, and how to do it, is wisdom.7. If any phenomenon remains brute and dark, it is because the corresponding faculty in the observer is not yet active.8. But if a man do not speak from within the veil, where the word is one with that it tells of, let him lowly confess it.9. It behooved him to keep on good terms with his pupils.10. Biscuit is about the best thing I know; but it is the soonest spoiled; and one would like to hear counsel on one point, why it is that a touch of water utterly ruins it.

Come and trip it as we go,On the light fantastic toe.

2. Infancy conforms to nobody; all conform to it.

3. It is an ill wind that blows nobody good.

4. Courage, father, fight it out.

5. And it grew wondrous cold.

6. To know what is best to do, and how to do it, is wisdom.

7. If any phenomenon remains brute and dark, it is because the corresponding faculty in the observer is not yet active.

8. But if a man do not speak from within the veil, where the word is one with that it tells of, let him lowly confess it.

9. It behooved him to keep on good terms with his pupils.

10. Biscuit is about the best thing I know; but it is the soonest spoiled; and one would like to hear counsel on one point, why it is that a touch of water utterly ruins it.

Three now in use.

97.The interrogative pronouns now in use arewho(with the formswhoseandwhom),which, andwhat.

One obsolete.

There is an old word,whether, used formerly to mean which of two, but now obsolete. Examples from the Bible:—

Whetherof them twain did the will of his father?Whetheris greater, the gold, or the temple?

Whetherof them twain did the will of his father?

Whetheris greater, the gold, or the temple?

From Steele (eighteenth century):—

It may be a questionwhetherof these unfortunate persons had the greater soul.

Use ofwhoand its forms.

98.The use ofwho, with its possessive and objective, is seen in these sentences:—

Whois she in bloody coronation robes from Rheims?—De Quincey.

Whosewas that gentle voice, that, whispering sweet,Promised, methought, long days of bliss sincere?—Bowles.

What doth she look on?Whomdoth she behold?—Wordsworth.

From these sentences it will be seen that interrogativewhorefers topersons only; that it is not inflected for gender or number, but for case alone, having three forms; it is always third person, as it always asksaboutsomebody.

Use ofwhich.

99.Examples of the use of interrogativewhich:—

Whichof these had speed enough to sweep between the question and the answer, and divide the one from the other?—De Quincey.Whichof you, shall we say, doth love us most?—Shakespeare.Whichof them [the sisters] shall I take?—Id.

Whichof these had speed enough to sweep between the question and the answer, and divide the one from the other?—De Quincey.

Whichof you, shall we say, doth love us most?—Shakespeare.

Whichof them [the sisters] shall I take?—Id.

As shown here,whichis not inflected for gender, number, or case; it refers to either persons or things; it is selective, that is, picks out one or more from a number of known persons or objects.

Use ofwhat.

100.Sentences showing the use of interrogativewhat:—

Since I from Smaylho'me tower have been,Whatdid thy lady do?—Scott.

Whatis so rare as a day in June?—Lowell.Whatwouldst thou do, old man?—Shakespeare.

Whatis so rare as a day in June?—Lowell.

Whatwouldst thou do, old man?—Shakespeare.

These show thatwhatis not inflected for case; that it is always singular and neuter, referring to things, ideas, actions, etc., not to persons.

101.The following are all the interrogative forms:—

In spoken English,whois used as objective instead ofwhom; as, "Whodid you see?" "Whodid he speak to?"

To tell the case of interrogatives.

102.The interrogativewhohas a separate form for each case, consequently the case can be told by the form of the word; but the case ofwhichandwhatmust be determined exactly as in nouns,—by theuseof the words.

For instance, in Sec. 99,whichis nominative in the first sentence, since it is subject of the verbhad; nominative in the second also, subject ofdoth love; objective in the last, being the direct object of the verbshall take.

Further treatment ofwho, whichandwhat.

103.Who,which, andwhatare also relative pronouns;whichandwhatare sometimes adjectives;whatmay be an adverb in some expressions.

They will be spoken of again in the proper places, especially in the treatment of indirect questions (Sec. 127).

Function of the relative pronoun.

104.Relative pronounsdiffer from both personal and interrogative pronouns in referring to an antecedent, and also in having a conjunctive use. The advantage in using them is to unite short statements into longer sentences, and so to make smoother discourse. Thus we may say, "The last of all the Bards was he. These bards sang of Border chivalry." Or, it may be shortened into,—

"The last of all the Bards was he,Whosung of Border chivalry."

In the latter sentence,whoevidently refers toBards, which is called theantecedentof the relative.

The antecedent.

105.Theantecedentof a pronoun is the noun, pronoun, or other word or expression, for which the pronoun stands. It usually precedes the pronoun.

Personal pronouns of the third person may have antecedents also, as they take the place usually of a word already used; as,—

The priest hathhisfee who comes and shrives us.—Lowell

In this, bothhisandwhohave the antecedentpriest.

The pronounwhichmay have its antecedent following, and the antecedent may be a word or a group of words, as will be shown in the remarks onwhichbelow.

Two kinds.

106.Relatives may be SIMPLE or INDEFINITE.

When the wordrelativeis used, a simple relative is meant. Indefinite relatives, and the indefinite use of simple relatives, will be discussed further on.

The SIMPLE RELATIVES arewho,which,that,what.

Whoand its forms.

107.Examples of the relativewhoand its forms:—

1. Has a man gained anythingwhohas received a hundred favors and rendered none?—Emerson.2. That man is little to be enviedwhosepatriotism would not gain force upon the plain of Marathon.—Dr Johnson.3.For her enchanting son,Whomuniversal nature did lament.—Milton.4. The nurse came to us,whowere sitting in an adjoining apartment.—Thackeray.5.Ye mariners of England,That guard our native seas;Whoseflag has braved, a thousand years,The battle and the breeze!—Campbell.6. The menwhommen respect, the womenwhomwomen approve, are the men and womenwhobless their species.—Parton

1. Has a man gained anythingwhohas received a hundred favors and rendered none?—Emerson.

2. That man is little to be enviedwhosepatriotism would not gain force upon the plain of Marathon.—Dr Johnson.

For her enchanting son,Whomuniversal nature did lament.—Milton.

4. The nurse came to us,whowere sitting in an adjoining apartment.—Thackeray.

Ye mariners of England,That guard our native seas;Whoseflag has braved, a thousand years,The battle and the breeze!—Campbell.

6. The menwhommen respect, the womenwhomwomen approve, are the men and womenwhobless their species.—Parton

Whichand its forms.

108.Examples of the relativewhichand its forms:—

1. They had not their own luster, but the lookwhichis not of the earth.—Byron.2.The embattled portal arch he pass'd,Whoseponderous grate and massy barHad oft roll'd back the tide of war.—Scott.3. Generally speaking, the dogswhichstray around the butchershops restrain their appetites.—Cox.4. The origin of language is divine, in the same sense inwhichman's nature, with all its capabilities ..., is a divine creation.—W. D. Whitney.5.(a) This gradation ... ought to be kept in view; else this description will seem exaggerated,whichit certainly is not.—Burke.(b) The snow was three inches deep and still falling,whichprevented him from taking his usual ride.—Irving.

1. They had not their own luster, but the lookwhichis not of the earth.—Byron.

The embattled portal arch he pass'd,Whoseponderous grate and massy barHad oft roll'd back the tide of war.—Scott.

3. Generally speaking, the dogswhichstray around the butchershops restrain their appetites.—Cox.

4. The origin of language is divine, in the same sense inwhichman's nature, with all its capabilities ..., is a divine creation.—W. D. Whitney.

(a) This gradation ... ought to be kept in view; else this description will seem exaggerated,whichit certainly is not.—Burke.(b) The snow was three inches deep and still falling,whichprevented him from taking his usual ride.—Irving.

(a) This gradation ... ought to be kept in view; else this description will seem exaggerated,whichit certainly is not.—Burke.

(b) The snow was three inches deep and still falling,whichprevented him from taking his usual ride.—Irving.

That.

109.Examples of the relativethat:—

1.The manthathath no music in himself,...Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils.—Shakespeare2. The judge ... bought up all the pigsthatcould be had.—Lamb3. Nature and books belong to the eyesthatsee them.—Emerson.4. For the sake of country a man is told to yield everythingthatmakes the land honorable.—H. W. Beecher5. Reader,thatdo not pretend to have leisure for very much scholarship, you will not be angry with me for telling you.—De Quincey.6. The Tree Igdrasil,thathas its roots down in the kingdoms of Hela and Death, and whose boughs overspread the highest heaven!—Carlyle.

The manthathath no music in himself,...Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils.—Shakespeare

2. The judge ... bought up all the pigsthatcould be had.—Lamb

3. Nature and books belong to the eyesthatsee them.—Emerson.

4. For the sake of country a man is told to yield everythingthatmakes the land honorable.—H. W. Beecher

5. Reader,thatdo not pretend to have leisure for very much scholarship, you will not be angry with me for telling you.—De Quincey.

6. The Tree Igdrasil,thathas its roots down in the kingdoms of Hela and Death, and whose boughs overspread the highest heaven!—Carlyle.

What.

110.Examples of the use of the relativewhat:—

1. Its net to entangle the enemy seems to bewhatit chiefly trusts to, andwhatit takes most pains to render as complete as possible.—Goldsmith.2. Forwhathe sought below is passed above, Already done is all that he would do.—Margaret Fuller.3. Some of our readers may have seen in India a crowd of crows picking a sick vulture to death, no bad type ofwhatoften happens in that country.—Macaulay

1. Its net to entangle the enemy seems to bewhatit chiefly trusts to, andwhatit takes most pains to render as complete as possible.—Goldsmith.

2. Forwhathe sought below is passed above, Already done is all that he would do.—Margaret Fuller.

3. Some of our readers may have seen in India a crowd of crows picking a sick vulture to death, no bad type ofwhatoften happens in that country.—Macaulay

[To the Teacher.—If pupils work over the above sentences carefully, and test every remark in the following paragraphs, they will get a much better understanding of the relatives.]

Who.

111.By reading carefully the sentences in Sec. 107, the following facts will be noticed about the relativewho:—

(1) It usually refers to persons: thus, in the first sentence, Sec. 107,a man...who; in the second,that man...whose; in the third,son,whom; and so on.

(2) It has three case forms,—who,whose,whom.

(3) The forms do not change for person or number of the antecedent. In sentence 4,whois first person; in 5,whoseis second person; the others are all third person. In 1, 2, and 3, the relatives are singular; in 4, 5, and 6, they are plural.

Whoreferring to animals.

112.Though in most caseswhorefers to persons there are instances found where it refers to animals. It has been seen (Sec. 24) that animals are referred to by personal pronouns when their characteristics or habits are such as to render them important or interesting to man. Probably on the same principle the personal relativewhois used not infrequently in literature, referring to animals.

Witness the following examples:—

And you, warm little housekeeper [the cricket],whoclass With those who think the candles come too soon.—Leigh Hunt.The robins...have succeeded in driving off the bluejayswhoused to build in our pines.—Lowell.The little gorilla,whosewound I had dressed, flung its arms around my neck.—Thackeray.A lake frequented by every fowlwhomNature has taught to dip the wing in water.—Dr. Johnson.While we had such plenty of domestic insectswhoinfinitely excelled the former, because they understood how to weave as well as to spin.—Swift.My horse,who, under his former rider had hunted the buffalo, seemed as much excited as myself.—Irving.

And you, warm little housekeeper [the cricket],whoclass With those who think the candles come too soon.—Leigh Hunt.

The robins...have succeeded in driving off the bluejayswhoused to build in our pines.—Lowell.

The little gorilla,whosewound I had dressed, flung its arms around my neck.—Thackeray.

A lake frequented by every fowlwhomNature has taught to dip the wing in water.—Dr. Johnson.

While we had such plenty of domestic insectswhoinfinitely excelled the former, because they understood how to weave as well as to spin.—Swift.

My horse,who, under his former rider had hunted the buffalo, seemed as much excited as myself.—Irving.

Other examples might be quoted from Burke, Kingsley, Smollett, Scott, Cooper, Gibbon, and others.

Which.

113.The sentences in Sec. 108 show that—

(1)Whichrefers to animals, things, or ideas, not persons.

(2) It is not inflected for gender or number.

(3) It is nearly always third person, rarely second (an example of its use as second person is given in sentence 32, p. 96).

(4) It has two case forms,—whichfor the nominative and objective,whosefor the possessive.

Examples ofwhose,possessive case ofwhich.

114.Grammarians sometimes object to the statement thatwhoseis the possessive ofwhich, saying that the phraseof whichshould always be used instead; yet a search in literature shows that the possessive formwhoseis quite common in prose as well as in poetry: for example,—

I swept the horizon, and saw at one glance the glorious elevations, onwhosetops the sun kindled all the melodies and harmonies of light.—Beecher.Men may be ready to fight to the death, and to persecute without pity, for a religionwhosecreed they do not understand, andwhoseprecepts they habitually disobey.—MacaulayBeneath these sluggish waves lay the once proud cities of the plain,whosegrave was dug by the thunder of the heavens.—Scott.Many great and opulent citieswhosepopulation now exceeds that of Virginia during the Revolution, andwhosenames are spoken in the remotest corner of the civilized world.—Mcmaster.Through the heavy doorwhosebronze network closes the place of his rest, let us enter the church itself.—Ruskin.This moribund '61,whosecareer of life is just coming to its terminus.—Thackeray.

I swept the horizon, and saw at one glance the glorious elevations, onwhosetops the sun kindled all the melodies and harmonies of light.—Beecher.

Men may be ready to fight to the death, and to persecute without pity, for a religionwhosecreed they do not understand, andwhoseprecepts they habitually disobey.—Macaulay

Beneath these sluggish waves lay the once proud cities of the plain,whosegrave was dug by the thunder of the heavens.—Scott.

Many great and opulent citieswhosepopulation now exceeds that of Virginia during the Revolution, andwhosenames are spoken in the remotest corner of the civilized world.—Mcmaster.

Through the heavy doorwhosebronze network closes the place of his rest, let us enter the church itself.—Ruskin.

This moribund '61,whosecareer of life is just coming to its terminus.—Thackeray.

So in Matthew Arnold, Kingsley, Burke, and numerous others.

Whichand its antecedents.

115.The last two sentences in Sec. 108 show thatwhichmay have other antecedents than nouns and pronouns. In 5 (a) there is a participial adjective used as the antecedent; in 5 (b) there is a complete clause employed as antecedent. This often occurs.

Sometimes, too, the antecedent followswhich; thus,—

And, which is worse,all you have doneHath been but for a wayward son.—Shakespeare.

Primarily, which is very notable and curious, I observe thatmen of business rarely know the meaning of the word "rich."—Ruskin.I demurred to this honorary title upon two grounds,—first, as being one toward which I had no natural aptitudes or predisposing advantages; secondly (which made her stare),as carrying with it no real or enviable distinction.—De Quincey.

Primarily, which is very notable and curious, I observe thatmen of business rarely know the meaning of the word "rich."—Ruskin.

I demurred to this honorary title upon two grounds,—first, as being one toward which I had no natural aptitudes or predisposing advantages; secondly (which made her stare),as carrying with it no real or enviable distinction.—De Quincey.

That.

116.In the sentences of Sec. 109, we notice that—

(1)Thatrefers to persons, animals, and things.

(2) It has only one case form, no possessive.

(3) It is the same form for first, second, and third persons.

(4) It has the same form for singular and plural.

It sometimes borrows the possessivewhose, as in sentence 6, Sec. 109, but this is not sanctioned as good usage.

What.

117.The sentences of Sec. 110 show that—

(1)Whatalways refers to things; is always neuter.

(2) It is used almost entirely in the singular.

(3) Its antecedent is hardly ever expressed. When expressed, it usually follows, and is emphatic; as, for example,—

What I would,thatdo I not; but what I hate,thatdo I.—BibleWhat fates impose,thatmen must needs abide.—Shakespeare.What a man does,thathe has.—Emerson.

What I would,thatdo I not; but what I hate,thatdo I.—Bible

What fates impose,thatmen must needs abide.—Shakespeare.

What a man does,thathe has.—Emerson.

Compare this:—

Alas! isitnot too true, what we said?—Carlyle.

118.These are the forms of the simple relatives:—

119.Thegender,number, andpersonof the relativeswho,which, andthatmust be determined by those of the antecedent; thecasedepends upon the function of the relative in its own clause.

For example, consider the following sentence:

"He uttered truthsthatwrought upon and molded the lives of thosewhoheard him."

Since the relatives hold the sentence together, we can, by taking them out, let the sentence fall apart into three divisions: (1) "He uttered truths;" (2) "The truths wrought upon and molded the lives of the people;" (3) "These people heard him."

Thatevidently refers totruths, consequently is neuter, third person, plural number.Whoplainly stands forthoseorthe people, either of which would be neuter, third person, plural number. Here the relative agrees with its antecedent.

We cannot say the relative agrees with its antecedent incase.Truthsin sentence (2), above, is subject ofwrought upon and molded; in (1), it is object ofuttered. In (2),peopleis the object of the prepositionof; in (3), it is subject of the verbheard. Now,thattakes the case ofthe truthsin (2), not oftruthswhich is expressed in the sentence: consequentlythatis in the nominative case. In the same waywho, standing forthe peopleunderstood, subject ofheard, is in the nominative case.

First find the antecedents, then parse the relatives, in the following sentences:—

1. How superior it is in these respects to the pear, whose blossoms are neither colored nor fragrant!2. Some gnarly apple which I pick up in the road reminds me by its fragrance of all the wealth of Pomona.3. Perhaps I talk with one who is selecting some choice barrels for filling an order.4. Ill blows the wind that profits nobody.5. Alas! it is we ourselves that are getting buried alive under this avalanche of earthly impertinences.6. This method also forces upon us the necessity of thinking, which is, after all, the highest result of all education.7. I know that there are many excellent people who object to the reading of novels as a waste of time.8. I think they are trying to outwit nature, who is sure to be cunninger than they.

1. How superior it is in these respects to the pear, whose blossoms are neither colored nor fragrant!

2. Some gnarly apple which I pick up in the road reminds me by its fragrance of all the wealth of Pomona.

3. Perhaps I talk with one who is selecting some choice barrels for filling an order.

4. Ill blows the wind that profits nobody.

5. Alas! it is we ourselves that are getting buried alive under this avalanche of earthly impertinences.

6. This method also forces upon us the necessity of thinking, which is, after all, the highest result of all education.

7. I know that there are many excellent people who object to the reading of novels as a waste of time.

8. I think they are trying to outwit nature, who is sure to be cunninger than they.

Parsingwhat,the simple relative.

120.The relativewhatis handled differently, because it has usually no antecedent, but is singular, neuter, third person. Its case is determined exactly as that of other relatives. In the sentence, "What can't be cured must be endured," the verbmust be enduredis the predicate of something. What must be endured? Answer,What can't be cured. The whole expression is its subject. The wordwhat, however, is subject of the verbcan't be cured, and hence is in the nominative case.

"What we call nature is a certain self-regulated motion or change." Here the subject ofis, etc., iswhat we call nature; but of this,weis the subject, andwhatis the direct object of the verbcall, so is in the objective case.

Another way.

Some prefer another method of treatment. As shown by the following sentences,whatis equivalent tothat which:—

It has been said that "common souls pay withwhatthey do, nobler souls withthat whichthey are."—Emerson.That whichis pleasant often appears under the name of evil; andwhatis disagreeable to nature is called good and virtuous.—Burke.

It has been said that "common souls pay withwhatthey do, nobler souls withthat whichthey are."—Emerson.

That whichis pleasant often appears under the name of evil; andwhatis disagreeable to nature is called good and virtuous.—Burke.

Hence some takewhatas a double relative, and parsethatin the first clause, andwhichin the second clause; that is, "common souls pay withthat[singular, object ofwith]which[singular, object ofdo] they do."

List and examples.

121.INDEFINITE RELATIVES are, by meaning and use, not as direct as the simple relatives.

They arewhoever,whichever,whatever,whatsoever; less common arewhoso,whosoever,whichsoever,whatsoever. The simple relativeswho,which, andwhatmay also be used as indefinite relatives. Examples of indefinite relatives (from Emerson):—

1.Whoeverhas flattered his friend successfully must at once think himself a knave, and his friend a fool.2. It is no proof of a man's understanding, to be able to affirmwhateverhe pleases.3. They sit in a chair or sprawl with children on the floor, or stand on their head, orwhatelsesoever, in a new and original way.4.Whosois heroic will always find crises to try his edge.5. Only itself can inspirewhomit will.6. God offers to every mind its choice between truth and repose. Takewhichyou please,—you cannot have both.7. Dowhatwe can, summer will have its flies.

1.Whoeverhas flattered his friend successfully must at once think himself a knave, and his friend a fool.

2. It is no proof of a man's understanding, to be able to affirmwhateverhe pleases.

3. They sit in a chair or sprawl with children on the floor, or stand on their head, orwhatelsesoever, in a new and original way.

4.Whosois heroic will always find crises to try his edge.

5. Only itself can inspirewhomit will.

6. God offers to every mind its choice between truth and repose. Takewhichyou please,—you cannot have both.

7. Dowhatwe can, summer will have its flies.

Meaning and use.

122.The fitness of the termindefinitehere cannot be shown better than by examining the following sentences:—

1. There is something so overruling inwhateverinspires us with awe, inall things whichbelong ever so remotely to terror, that nothing else can stand in their presence.—Burke.2. Death is there associated, not witheverything thatis most endearing in social and domestic charities, but withwhateveris darkest in human nature and in human destiny.—Macaulay.

1. There is something so overruling inwhateverinspires us with awe, inall things whichbelong ever so remotely to terror, that nothing else can stand in their presence.—Burke.

2. Death is there associated, not witheverything thatis most endearing in social and domestic charities, but withwhateveris darkest in human nature and in human destiny.—Macaulay.

It is clear that in 1,whateveris equivalent toall things which, and in 2, toeverything that; no certain antecedent, no particular thing, being referred to. So with the other indefinites.

Whatsimple relative andwhatindefinite relative.

123.The above helps us to discriminate betweenwhatas a simple andwhatas an indefinite relative.

As shown in Sec. 120, the simple relativewhatis equivalent tothat whichor thething which,—some particular thing; as shown by the last sentence in Sec. 121,whatmeansanything that,everything that(oreverything which). The difference must be seen by the meaning of the sentence, aswhathardly ever has an antecedent.

The examples in sentences 5 and 6, Sec. 121, show thatwhoandwhichhave no antecedent expressed, but meanany one whom,either one that, etc.

Butandas.

124.Two words,butandas, are used with the force of relative pronouns in some expressions; for example,—

1. There is not a leaf rotting on the highwaybuthas force in it: how else could it rot?—Carlyle.2. This, amongst such other troublesasmost men meet with in this life, has been my heaviest affliction.—De Quincey.

1. There is not a leaf rotting on the highwaybuthas force in it: how else could it rot?—Carlyle.

2. This, amongst such other troublesasmost men meet with in this life, has been my heaviest affliction.—De Quincey.

Proof that they have the force of relatives.

Compare with these the two following sentences:—

3. There is nothingbutis related to us, nothingthatdoesnotinterest us.—Emerson.4. There were articles of comfort and luxury suchasHester never ceased to use, butwhichonly wealth could have purchased.—Hawthorne.

3. There is nothingbutis related to us, nothingthatdoesnotinterest us.—Emerson.

4. There were articles of comfort and luxury suchasHester never ceased to use, butwhichonly wealth could have purchased.—Hawthorne.

Sentence 3 shows thatbutis equivalent to the relativethatwithnot, and thatasaftersuchis equivalent towhich.

Forasaftersamesee "Syntax" (Sec. 417).

Former use ofas.

125.In early modern English,aswas used just as we usethatorwhich, not following the wordsuch; thus,—

I have not from your eyes that gentlenessAnd show of loveasI was wont to have.—Shakespeare

This still survives in vulgar English in England; for example,—

"Don't you mind Lucy Passmore,ascharmed your warts for you when you was a boy? "—Kingsley

This is frequently illustrated in Dickens's works.

Other substitutes.

126.Instead of the phrasesin which,upon which,by which, etc., the conjunctionswherein,whereupon,whereby, etc., are used.

A man is the facade of a templewhereinall wisdom and good abide.—Emerson.The sovereignty of this naturewhereofwe speak.—Id.

A man is the facade of a templewhereinall wisdom and good abide.—Emerson.

The sovereignty of this naturewhereofwe speak.—Id.

The dear home faceswhereuponThat fitful firelight paled and shone.—Whittier.

Special caution needed here.

127.It is sometimes hard for the student to tell a relative from an interrogative pronoun. In the regular direct question the interrogative is easily recognized; so is the relative when an antecedent is close by. But compare the following in pairs:—

1.(a) Like a gentleman of leisurewhois strolling out for pleasure.(b) Well we knewwhostood behind, though the earthwork hid them.2.(a) Butwhatyou gain in time is perhaps lost in power.(b) Butwhathad become of them they knew not.3.(a) These are the lineswhichheaven-commanded Toil shows on his deed.(b) And since that time I thought it not amiss To judgewhichwere the best of all these three.

(a) Like a gentleman of leisurewhois strolling out for pleasure.(b) Well we knewwhostood behind, though the earthwork hid them.

(a) Like a gentleman of leisurewhois strolling out for pleasure.

(b) Well we knewwhostood behind, though the earthwork hid them.

(a) Butwhatyou gain in time is perhaps lost in power.(b) Butwhathad become of them they knew not.

(a) Butwhatyou gain in time is perhaps lost in power.

(b) Butwhathad become of them they knew not.

(a) These are the lineswhichheaven-commanded Toil shows on his deed.(b) And since that time I thought it not amiss To judgewhichwere the best of all these three.

(a) These are the lineswhichheaven-commanded Toil shows on his deed.

(b) And since that time I thought it not amiss To judgewhichwere the best of all these three.

In sentences 1 (a), 2 (a) and 3 (a) the regular relative use is seen;whohaving the antecedentgentleman,whathaving the double use of pronoun and antecedent,whichhaving the antecedentlines.

But in 1 (b), 2 (b), and 3 (b), there are two points of difference from the others considered: first, no antecedent is expressed, which would indicate that they are not relatives; second, a question is disguised in each sentence, although each sentence as a whole is declarative in form. Thus, 1 (b), if expanded, would be, "Who stood behind? We knew," etc., showing thatwhois plainly interrogative. So in 2 (b),whatis interrogative, the full expression being, "But what had become of them? They knew not." Likewise withwhichin 3 (b).

How to decide.

In studying such sentences, (1) see whether there is an antecedent ofwhoorwhich, and whetherwhat=that+which(if so, it is a simple relative; if not, it is either an indefinite relative or an interrogative pronoun); (2) see if the pronoun introduces an indirect question (if it does, it is an interrogative; if not, it is an indefinite relative).

Another caution.

128.On the other hand, care must be taken to see whether the pronoun is the word that reallyasks the questionin an interrogative sentence. Examine the following:—

1.Sweet rose! whence is this hueWhichdoth all hues excel?—Drummond2.And then what wonders shall you doWhosedawning beauty warms us so?—Walker3.Is this a romance? Or is it a faithful picture ofwhathas lately been in a neighboring land?—Macaulay

Sweet rose! whence is this hueWhichdoth all hues excel?—Drummond

And then what wonders shall you doWhosedawning beauty warms us so?—Walker

Is this a romance? Or is it a faithful picture ofwhathas lately been in a neighboring land?—Macaulay

These are interrogative sentences, but in none of them does the pronoun ask the question. In the first,whenceis the interrogative word,whichhas the antecedenthue. In the second,whosehas the antecedentyou, and asks no question. In the third, the question is asked by the verb.

Relative omitted whenobject.

129.The relative is frequently omitted in spoken and in literary English when it would be the object of a preposition or a verb. Hardly a writer can be found who does not leave out relatives in this way when they can be readily supplied in the mind of the reader. Thus,—

These are the sounds we feed upon.—Fletcher.I visited many other apartments, but shall not trouble my reader with all the curiosities I observed.—Swift.

These are the sounds we feed upon.—Fletcher.

I visited many other apartments, but shall not trouble my reader with all the curiosities I observed.—Swift.

Exercise.

Put in the relativeswho,which, orthatwhere they are omitted from the following sentences, and see whether the sentences are any smoother or clearer:—

1. The insect I am now describing lived three years,—Goldsmith.2. They will go to Sunday schools through storms their brothers are afraid of.—Holmes.3. He opened the volume he first took from the shelf.—G. Eliot.4. He could give the coals in that queer coal scuttle we read of to his poor neighbor.—Thackeray.5. When Goldsmith died, half the unpaid bill he owed to Mr. William Filby was for clothes supplied to his nephew.—Forster6. The thing I want to see is not Redbook Lists, and Court Calendars, but the life of man in England.—Carlyle.7. The material they had to work upon was already democratical by instinct and habitude.—Lowell.

1. The insect I am now describing lived three years,—Goldsmith.

2. They will go to Sunday schools through storms their brothers are afraid of.—Holmes.

3. He opened the volume he first took from the shelf.—G. Eliot.

4. He could give the coals in that queer coal scuttle we read of to his poor neighbor.—Thackeray.

5. When Goldsmith died, half the unpaid bill he owed to Mr. William Filby was for clothes supplied to his nephew.—Forster

6. The thing I want to see is not Redbook Lists, and Court Calendars, but the life of man in England.—Carlyle.

7. The material they had to work upon was already democratical by instinct and habitude.—Lowell.

Relative omitted whensubject.

130.We often hear in spoken English expressions like these:—

There isn't one here ‸ knows how to play ball.There was such a crowd ‸ went, the house was full.

There isn't one here ‸ knows how to play ball.

There was such a crowd ‸ went, the house was full.

Here the omitted relative would be in the nominative case. Also in literary English we find the same omission. It is rare in prose, and comparatively so in poetry. Examples are,—

The silent truth that it was she was superior.—Thackeray

I have a mind presages me such thrift.—Shakespeare.

There is a nun in Dryburgh bower,Ne'er looks upon the sun.—Scott.

And you may gather garlands thereWould grace a summer queen.—Id.

'Tis distance lends enchantment to the view.—Campbell.

(a) Bring up sentences containing ten instances of the relativeswho,which,that, andwhat.

(b) Bring up sentences having five indefinite relatives.

(d) Tell whether the pronouns in the following are interrogatives, simple relatives, or indefinite relatives:—

1. He ushered him into one of the wherries which lay ready to attend the Queen's barge, which was already proceeding.2. The nobles looked at each other, but more with the purpose to see what each thought of the news, than to exchange any remarks on what had happened.3. Gracious Heaven! who was this that knew the word?4. It needed to be ascertained which was the strongest kind of men; who were to be rulers over whom.5. He went on speaking to who would listen to him.6. What kept me silent was the thought of my mother.

1. He ushered him into one of the wherries which lay ready to attend the Queen's barge, which was already proceeding.

2. The nobles looked at each other, but more with the purpose to see what each thought of the news, than to exchange any remarks on what had happened.

3. Gracious Heaven! who was this that knew the word?

4. It needed to be ascertained which was the strongest kind of men; who were to be rulers over whom.

5. He went on speaking to who would listen to him.

6. What kept me silent was the thought of my mother.

Function of adjective pronouns.

131.Most of the words how to be considered are capable of a double use,—they may be pure modifiers of nouns, or they may stand for nouns. In the first use they are adjectives; in the second they retain an adjectivemeaning, but have lost their adjectiveuse. Primarily they are adjectives, but in this function, or use, they are properly classed as adjective pronouns.

The following are some examples of these:—

Somesay that the place was bewitched.—Irving.

That mysterious realm whereeachshall takeHis chamber in the silent halls of death.—Bryant.

How happy is he born or taughtThat serveth notanother'swill.—Wotton

Thatis more than any martyr can stand.—Emerson.

Caution.

Adjectives, not pronouns.

Hence these words are like adjectives used as nouns, which we have seen in such expressions as, "The deadare there;" that is, a word, in order to be an adjective pronoun,must not modify anyword, expressed or understood. It must come under the requirement of pronouns, andstand for a noun. For instance, in the following sentences—"The cubes are of stainless ivory, and oneachis written, in letters of gold, 'Truth;'" "You needs must play such pranks asthese;" "They will always have one bank to sun themselves upon, andanotherto get cool under;" "Where two men ride on a horse,onemust ride behind"—the words italicized modify nouns understood, necessarily thought of: thus, in the first, "eachcube;" in the second, "thesepranks," in the others, "anotherbank," "oneman."

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