Part 4 (2/2)

Gen. Magistri, of a Master, of the Master, or Master's, the Master's.

Dat. Magistro, to a Master, to the Master.

Acc. Magistrum, a Master, the Master.

Voc. Magister, Master, O Master.

Abl. Magistro, from a Master, from the Master.

Plural.

Nom. Magistri, Masters, the Masters.

Gen. Magistrorum, of Masters, of the Masters.

Dat. Magistris, to Masters, to the Masters.

Acc. Magistros, Masters, the Masters.

Voc. Magistri, Masters, O Masters.

Abl. Magistris, from Masters, from the Masters.

Our nouns are therefore only declined thus:

Master, Gen. Master's. Plur. Masters.

Scholar, Gen. Scholar's. Plur. Scholars.

These genitives are always written with a mark of elision, master's, scholar's, according to an opinion long received, that the 's is a contraction of his, as the soldier's valour, for the soldier his valour: but this cannot be the true original, because 's is put to female nouns, Woman's beauty; the Virgin's delicacy; Haughty Juno's unrelenting hate; and collective nouns, as Women's pa.s.sions; the rabble's insolence; the mult.i.tude's folly: in all these cases it is apparent that his cannot be understood. We say likewise the foundation's strength; the diamond's l.u.s.tre; the winter's severity: but in these cases his may be understood, he and his having formerly been applied to neuters in the place now supplied by it and its.

The learned and sagacious Wallis, to whom every English grammarian owes a tribute of reverence, calls this modification of the noun an adjective possessive; I think with no more propriety than he might have applied the same to the genitive in equitum decus, Trojae oris, or any other Latin genitive. Dr. Lowth, on the other part, supposes the possessive p.r.o.nouns mine and thine to be genitive cases.

This termination of the noun seems to const.i.tute a real genitive indicating possession. It is derived to us from the Saxon's who declined smith, a smith; Gen. smither, of a smith; Plur. smither or smithar, smiths; and so in two other of their seven declensions.

It is a further confirmation of this opinion, that in the old poets both the genitive and plural were longer by a syllable than the original word: knitis for knight's, in Chaucer; leavis for leaves, in Spenser.

When a word ends in s, the genitive may be the same with the nominative, as Venus temple.

The plural is formed by adding s, as table, tables; fly, flies; sister, sisters; wood, woods; or es where s could not otherwise be sounded, as after ch, s, sh, x, z; after c sounded like s, and g like j; the mute e is vocal before s, as lance, lances; outrage, outrages.

The formation of the plural and genitive singular is the same.

A few words still make the plural in n, as men, women, oxen, swine, and more anciently eyen, shoon. This formation is that which generally prevails in the Teutonick dialects.

Words that end in f commonly form their plural by ves, as loaf, loaves; calf, calves.

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