play of Julius Cæsar, is taken from Professor Abbott's classified notes of Shakespearian English. In each case reference is made to the text. I. "Almost any part of speech can be used as any other part of speech."- ABBOTT. a. "Adjectives are freely used as adverbs" "Some will dear abide it." - III., 2, 116. "Thou couldst not die more honorable." — V., 1, 60. b. Proper names are used as adjectives: "Draw them to Tiber banks.”—I., 1, 61. c. The noun is used as a verb: "We will niggard with a little rest."-IV., 3, 228. - II. ELLIPSES. The writers of the Elizabethan age desired brevity especially. This desire led to the use of many elliptical expressions. "The Elizabethan authors objected to scarcely any ellipsis, provided the deficiency could be easily supplied from the context." - ABBOTT. a. The pronoun subject is frequently omitted: "But wherefore art not in thy shop to-day?"— I., 1, 30. b. An infinitive is often omitted:- "Vouchsafe (to receive) good-morrow from a feeble tongue." c. "To" is sometimes omitted before the infinitive. This is due to the process of change from the Early English in which the infinitive was inflected with the ending en. As this ending gradually gave place to the sign to, some confusion resulted, and after certain auxiliaries, neither sign was used: "You ought not walk."-I., 1, 3. "So please him come."-III., 1, 140. d. After will and is an ellipsis occurs : "Is not (fit) to walk in." -I., 3, 40. e. There may be an ellipsis of it is, or there is: — "Give guess how near (it is) to day.” — II., 1, 3. f. "The relative is frequently omitted, especially where the antecedent clause is emphatic and evidently incomplete. This omission of the relative may, in part, have been suggested by the identity of the demonstrative that and the relative that."- ABBOTT. "From that (to which) it is disposed."-I., 2, 314. "Why, know'st thou any harm's intended towards him?" "Than (that of) secret Romans.” — II., 1, 125. In relatival constructions, so... as, so... that, one or both may be omitted: "None so poor (as) to do him reverence."- III., 2, 122. "So much wrong (as) to wake thee."— IV., 3, 270. "Be not (so) fond (As) To think that Cæsar bears such rebel blood." -III., 1, 39-40. - I., 1, 48. (That) "Tiber trembled underneath her banks." g. (That) "By no means 1 may discover them."— II., 1, 75. (So) "That this foul deed shall smell above the earth." - III., 1, 274. "Now is that noble vessel (so) full of grief.” — V., 5, 13. "A was sometimes omitted after what' in the sense of 'what kind of.'” — ABBOTT. 'Cassius, what (a) night is this!"— I., 3, 42. h. "The is omitted after prepositions in adverbial phrases." "He foamed at (the) mouth."- I., 2, 255. - ABBOTT. i. There may be an ellipsis of an adverbial inflection :— "Good gentlemen, look fresh(ly) and merrily." j. The preposition is omitted: - II., 1, 224. (1) After verbs of motion :— "Ere we could arrive (at) the point proposed." - I., 2, 110. (2) After verbs and adjectives that imply worth : — "Listen great things."-IV., 1, 41. (4) In adverbial expressions :— (5) (Of) "What trade art thou?” — I., 1, 5. - I., 2, 181. III. PRONOUNS. -"The inflections of Personal Pronouns are frequently neglected or misused. Sometimes euphony and em phasis may have successfully contended against grammar. Аввотт. a. Me for I: "No mightier than thyself or me." —I., 3, 76. b. The genitives, his, her, etc., may be used as antecedents of the relative: — "In his way that comes in triumph over Pompey's blood." -I., 1, 54. c. Me, thee, etc., since they were dative forms in Early English, are often found with a preposition understood: : "You'll bear (from) me a bang for that."-III., 3, 18. "Plucked me ope his doublet." — I., 2, 267. d. The objective case of personal pronouns is often used with the preposition of where modern usage would require the pronominal adjectives his, their, etc.: e. "O world, thou wast the forest to this heart, "It is sometimes used indefinitely, as the object of a verb without referring to anything previously mentioned." Аввотт. "Bear it as our Roman actors do."-II., 1, 226. Him, her, me, etc., are often used for the compounds himself, herself, myself, etc.: "I'll get me to a place more void." - II., 4, 36. "Let Cæsar seat him sure." — I., 2, 325. g. After the words but and save the nominative case is often found. This is explained by considering these words as equivalent to the passive participle excepted, and the pronouns as in the nominative absolute : "But we the doers."— III., 1, 95. "Save I alone."-III., 2, 63. "All the conspirators, save only he." — V., 5, 69. h. The usage of Early English accounts for such irregularities as "You were best," — III., 3, 12, this being equivalent to "It were best for you." i. Its was rarely used in Shakespeare's time. As in Early English, his was used as the genitive of it as well as of he: "That same eye whose bend doth awe the world Did lose his lustre." -I., 2, 124. "That every nice offence should bear his comment." - IV., 3, 8. j. "Verbs followed by thee have been called reflexive. But it is probable that this is to be explained by euphonic reasons."- ABBOTT. "Hold thee, take this garland on thy brow." - V., 3, 85. "Hark thee, Clitus."-V., 5, 5. k. Thou and you. In Shakespeare's time these two pronouns were used much as their corresponding forms in German are used to-day. "Thou was the pronoun of (1) affection towards friends; (2) good-humored superiority towards servants; (3) contempt or anger to strangers. It had, however, already fallen somewhat |