to the fourth fyllable from the end,) the strefs being laid on the first syllables, the rest are pronounced in a lower tone, more rapidly and indiftinctly; and so are often either wholly dropped or blended into one another.

It sometimes happens also, that the word, which arifes from a regular change, does not found easily or agreeably; sometimes by the rapidity of our pronunciation the vowels are shortened or loft; and the confonants, which are thrown together, do not easily coalefce with one another, and are therefore changed into others of the fame organ, or of a kindred species. This occafions a further deviation from the regular form: thus loveth, turneth, are contracted into lov'th, turn'th, and these for easier pronunciation immediately become loves, turns.

Verbs ending in ch, ck, p, x, ll, fs, in the Paft Time Active, and the Participle Perfect or Paffive, admit the change of ed into t; as, [9] fnatcht, checkt, snapt, mixt, dropping also one of the double letters, dwelt, past; for snatched, checked, snapped, mixed, dwelled, passed: those that end in l, m, n, p, after a diphthong, more

[9] Some of these Contractions are harsh and difagreeable: and it were better, if they were avoided and disused: but they prevail in common difcourse, and are admitted into Poetry; which latter indeed cannot well do without them.

over shorten the diphthong, or change it into a single short vowel; as, dealt, dreamt, meant, felt, lept, &c. all for the fame reason; from the quickness of the pronunciation, and because the d after a short vowel will not easily coalefce with the preceding consonant. Those that end in ve change also ve into f; as, bereave, bereft, leave, left; because likewise v after a short vowel will not eafily coalefce with t.

All these, of which I have hitherto given examples, are confidered not as Irregular but as Contracted only; in most of them the Intire as well as the Contracted form is used; and the Intire form is generally to be preferred to the Contracted.

The formation of Verbs in English, both Regular and Irregular, is derived from the Saxon.

The Irregular Verbs in English are all Monofyllables, unless compounded; and they are for the most part the fame words which are Irregular Verbs in the Saxon.

As all our Regular Verbs are subject to some kind of Contraction; so the first Class of Irregulars is of those, that become so from the fame caufe.

I.

Irregulars by Contraction.

Some Verbs ending in dort have the Present,

the Paft Time, and the Participle Perfect and Paf

1

five, all alike, without any variation; as, beat, burst [1], caft [2], cost, cut, heat * [3], hit, hurt, knit, let, lift *, light * [4], put, quit *, read [5], rent, rid, set, shed, shred, shut, flit, split [6], spread, thruft, wet *.

These

[1] These two have also beaten and burften in the Participle; and in that form they belong to the Third Class of Irregulars.

[2] Shakespear uses the Participle in the Regular Form:

" And when the mind is quicken'd, out of doubt The organs, tho' defunct and dead before, Break up their drowsie grave, and newly move With cafted flough, and fresh celerity." Hen. V. [3] "He commanded, that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heat." Dan. iii. 19.

The Verbs marked thus, throughout the three Classes of Irregulars, have the Regular as well as the Irregular Form in use.

[4] This Verb in the Past Time and Participle is pronounced short, light or lit: but the Regular form is preferable, and prevails most in writing.

[5] This Verb in the Past Time and Participle is pronounced short; read, red, red; like lead, led, led; and perhaps ought to be written in this manner: our antient writers spelt it redde.

[6] Shakespear uses the Participle in the Regular Form:

"That felf hand,

Which writ his honour in the acts it did,

These are Contractions from beated, bursted, casted, &c.; because of the disagreeable found of the fyllable ed after dor t [7].

Others in the Past Time, and Participle Perfect and Paffive, vary a little from the present, by shortening the diphthong, or changing the d into t; as, lead, led; sweat, swet * (8); meet, met; bleed, bled; breed, bred; feed, fed; speed, sped; bend, bent*; lend, lent; rend, rent; send, sent; spend, spent; build, built*; geld, gelt; gild, gilt*; gird, girt; lofe, loft.

Others not ending in dort are formed by Contraction; have, had for haved; make, made,

Hath, with the courage which the heart did lend it, Splitted the heart itself." Ant. and Cleop. [7] They follow the Saxon rule: "Verbs which in the Infinitive end in dan or tan," (that is, in English, d and t; for an is only the Characteristic termination of the Saxon Infinitive,) " in the Preterit and Participle Preterit commonly, for the sake of better found, throw away the final ed; as beot, afed, (both in the Preterit and Participle Preterit,) for beoted, afeded; from beotan, afedan." Hickes, Grammat. Saxon. Cap. iv. So the fame Verbs in English, beat, fed, instead of beated, feeded.

[8] "How the drudging goblin fawet."

Milton, Allegro. Shakespear uses sweaten, as the Participle of this Verb: "Grease, that's sweaten

From the murtherer's gibbet throw." Macbeth. In this form it belongs to the Third Class of Irregulars.

1

for

1

for maked; flee, fled, for flee-ed; shoe, shod, for Shoe-ed.

The following, beside the Contraction, change also the Vowel; fell, sold; tell, told; clothe, clad*.

Stand, stood; and dare, durst, (which in the Participle hath regularly dared,) are directly from the Saxon, standan, stod; dyrran, dorste.

II.

Irregulars in ght.

The irregulars of the Second Class end in ght, both in the Past Time and Participle; and change the vowel or diphthong into au or ou : they are taken from the Saxon, in which the termination is hte.

[1] " As in this glorious and well foughten field

We kept together in our chivalry."

Shakespear, Hen. V.

"On the foughten field

Michael, and his Angels, prevalent,

Encamping, plac'd in guard their watches round."

Milton, P. L. VI. 410.

This Participle seems not agreeable to the Analogy of derivation, which obtains in this Clafs of Verbs.