uncommon in modern English: we have 'in vain,' 'in secret,' on high.'

We have authority to prove the form on broad: Gawain Douglas (quoted by Sir John Stoddart, Universal Grammar, p. 77) has

So too :

His baner quhite as floure
In sign of battell did on brede display.

But it ne was so sprede on brede,
That men within might know the sede.

Roman de la Rose.

We observe a prefixed to adverbs in a-far, a-gain.

a-gain.

A.-S. on-gean, on-gen, an-gean, a-gean, a-gen. In Anglo-Saxon gen itself is an adverb, signifying 'again, moreover,' 'besides.'

96

416.-2. a representing the preposition of.

เ

a-down. In Anglo-Saxon dun signifies a hill'; whence our North Downs, and South Downs. Then of-dúne, 'from hill,'' downward,' 'down,' appears in the form a-dúne, adún, whence our 'a-down,' 'down.' Mr. Wedgwood compares the Old French à mont, 'to the hill,' and à val, 'to the valley,' used in the sense of 'upwards' and 'downwards' respectively. Down is used as a preposition.

a-new.

That this word represents of new, from a line of Gawain Douglas:

we may infer

The battellis were adjoinit now of new.

Compare the Latin de novo.

417.-3. The participial force of a is seen in a-drift; unless the particle in that word is a verbal prefix. For, in Anglo-Saxon, there are two verbs, drifan, participle ge-drifan; and a-drifan, ' drive away,' participle adrifed.

The participial a may possibly be seen in a-float, a-miss.

418. The prefix a sometimes has the force of 'from,' 'out,' as, perhaps, in a-way, 'out of the way.'

The following words are of doubtful derivation: a-ghast, a-kimbo, a-loof, a-skance, a-skant, a-skew, a-stray. The roots of these words may be traced in other languages, but the force of the prefix a is not clear.

a-fore is from A.-S. æt-foran, 'at-fore.'

4. Adverbs derived from Pronouns.

419. Adverbs formed from Pronouns, sometimes termed Pronominal Adverbs, form a large class.

For instance, the words here and there; hence and thence, are manifestly derived from demonstrative pronouns; they signify at this place,'' at that place;' 'from this place,' 'from that place.' Similarly where and whence are related to the interrogative and relative pronouns.

It so happens, that the adverbs of place exhibit three varieties, to express 'at a place,' 'from a place,' and 'to a place.' The adverbs of time, manner, and cause are not so completely developed. The following table will show this difference::

We observe, that here, hence, hither, are related to the pronoun he. There, thence, thither to that; where, whence, whither to who, what. Similarly then and when are related to that and what. Why is related to who; and how may pos sibly be related to both he and who.

420. The following table exhibits the same adverbs in another form :

Compare Adams, Elements of the English Language, § 268.

421. These adverbs are frequently compounded with prepositions: as here-of, there-of, where-of, here-in, there-in, where-in, here-by, there-by, where-by, and many others.

In the simple forms, here and there are principally confined to significations of place; whereas in the compounds they may refer to things; for example, here-of may denote ' of this,' there-of may signify' of that.' In our authorised version of the Scriptures, we constantly find thereof in places where a modern writer would employ its; as 'the candlestick and the branches thereof. Shakespeare often uses thereby and whereby, to signify with that,' 'upon that,' 'upon which,' 'in reference to which,' 'on which occasion: 'as, Dame Quickly, Well, thereby hangs a tale.

Merry Wives of Windsor, i. 4. Musician. Whereby hangs a tale, sir?

Othello, iii. 1. Hostess. Canst thou deny it? Did not goodwife Keech, the butcher's wife, come in then, and call me gossip Quickly? coming in to borrow a mess of vinegar; telling us she had a good dish of prawns; whereby thou didst desire to eat some; whereby I told thee they were ill for a green wound?

2nd Hen. IV. ii. 1.

422. The words therefore and wherefore mean 'for that,' 'for which,' denoting for that cause,' 'for which reason. The words for (Latin pro), and fore (Latin præ) are sometimes used indifferently. Mr. Wedgwood thinks they are one and the same word. Sir John Stoddart, Universal Grammar, pp. 80, 81, quotes from a Scottish Act of Parliament 1493, James IV.Heirfoir, we, James, be the grace of God, King of Scottis, &c.,' where heirfoir signifies 'for this cause,' 'for this reason.' He has collected other compounds, from Scottish Acts of Parliament, as, heirintill, 'in this,' 'within this,' heirof, heirupone, heirtofoir, heirafter, heiranent.

NEGATIVE ADVERBS.

423. In Anglo-Saxon the common form of the negative is ne, which precedes the verb: as,

In Anglo-Saxon and in Early English, two negatives strengthen the negation, instead of destroying it as in modern English: so,

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Ne geseah nafre nan man God.

Ne saw never no man God.

'No man hath seen God at any time.'-John i. 18.

He never yit ne vilonye ne sayde

In all his lyf unto no maner wight.

Chaucer, Canterbury Tales, Prologue, 70.

i.e. Unto no manner of person.'

Ther was no man nowher so vertuous,

He was the beste begger in al his hous.

Id. 251.

This particle ne was commonly incorporated with the following verb: as,

But soth to say I not what men him calle.

Chaucer, Canterbury Tales, Prologue, 286.

Nowher so besy a man as he ther nas,
And yit he semed besier than he was.

Ibid. 323.

424. Our usual negative not is a compound word, allied to naught, nought, and derived from the Anglo-Saxon naht, nauht, noht, which is compounded of the negative ne and aht, "aught,' anything. Compare the forms nawht, na-wiht, na-wuht, derived from na, 'not,' and wiht,' anything.'

The negative not when used with the infinitive always precedes it; with other forms of the verb, it either follows the verb, or stands between the principal verb and the auxiliary.

Grant me, O God, thy voice to know,

And not to be afraid.

Hemans.

He blenches not, he blenches not.

I will not sing.

Scott, Ivanhoe.

1st Hen. IV. iii, 1.

The use of the double negative, with a negative force, was common, down to a late period of our literature: so,

I never was, nor never will be, false.

Rich. III. iv. 4.

The man that hath no music in himself,
Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds,
Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils.

Merchant of Venice, v. i.

This England never did, nor never shall
Lie at the proud foot of a conqueror.

425. Nay (nae), and no.

A.-S. ná and no.

Ne eom ic ná Crist.

Ne am I no (not) Christ.

King John, v. 7.

'I am not the Christ.'-John i. 20.

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No thy las, na-the-less,' 'never the less,' whence in older English we have 'natheless' and nathless.'

In the Scottish dialect, nae and no are constantly used for not: as, This is no my ain lassie,' and 'This is nae my ain lassie.' I suspect that in the phrase 'whether or no,' we have a remnant of the old language; 'It is all the same, whether he comes, or no,' that is, 'whether he comes, or comes not.'

426. In ordinary English, nay and no are chiefly used in answers. As a general rule, nay is more common in provincial English, than in the language of the metropolis or the universities.

Sir Thomas More asserts a distinction between nay and no, corresponding to a distinction between yea and yes; and he censures Tyndal for not observing the difference in his translation of John i. 21: And thei asked him, what then, art thou Helias? And he sayd I am not. Arte thou a prophet? And he aunswered, No.' According to Sir Thomas More, No should have been rendered Nay. But the reason assigned by Sir Thomas does not support his argument. He says: 'No aunswereth the question framed by the affirmative. As, for ensample, if a man should ask Tindall himself: ys an heretike mete to translate holy scripture into englishe? Lo to thys question if he will aunswere trew englishe, he must auns were naye and not no. But and if the question be asked hym thus, lo; Is not an heretyque mete to translate