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Ought is properly the past tense of owe, which originally meant to own, possess : '80. Shakespeare, I am not worthy of the wealth I owe.

All's Well, ü. 5.
Not poppy, nor mandragora,
Nor all the drowsy syrups of the world,
Shall ever medicine thee to that sweet sleep
Which thou ow'dst yesterday.

Othello, iii. 3. In the following passage, the verb is used in two senses : "to be bound to pay' and 'to own :

Be pleased then
To
pay

that duty, which you truly owe,
To him that owes it, namely, this young prince.

King John, ii. 1. Dr. Latham remarks, (English Language, $ 605,) that we can say, 'I owe money; ' but we cannot say, 'I owe to pay some; while, on the other hand, we cannot say,

"I ought money,' though we can say, 'I ought to pay some.' The effect of this towfold sense has been to separate the words owe, and ought, by giving to the forner the modern præterite owed. It has also deprived ought of its present form.

The auxiliary ought has lost its original force as a past tense, and is used as a present. Hence, when we wish to state that some duty was imperative in time past, we annex the auxiliary have to the dependent infinitive: as, 'he ought to have gone.' This must be remembered in translating into Latin : "he ought to have gone' is debuit ire, literally, 'he did owe to go.'

III. AUXILIARIES OF TENSE.

384. These are have, shall, will.

1. HAVE.

INDICATIVE MOOD.

Present Tense.
Singular.

Plural.
1. I have,

1. We have, 2. Thou hast,

2. You have, 3. He has,

3. They have.

.

Present

having. Perfect

had. This auxiliary is joined with the perfect participle, and forms the perfect tenses : as, Present perfect

I have written.
Past-perfect

I had written.
Future-perfect

I shall have written,

.

.

Shall and will are joined to the infinitive mood of a principal yerb, to denote the future.

385.

2. SHALL.

INDICATIVE MOOD.

Present Tense.
Singular.

Plural.
1. I shall,

1. We shall, 2. Thou shalt,

2. You shall, 3. He shall,

3. They shall.

Past Tense. 1. I should,

1. We should, 2. Thou shouldst, 2. You should, 3. He should,

3. They should. The original meaning of this verb is owe' (A.-S. sceal). So Chaucer, ‘By the faithe I schal to God,' i.e., 'I owe to God.' And so Robert of Gloucester, 'al that to Rome sholde servise,' i.e., "owed service.'

Should, when used as an independent verb, means ought: as, “You should be careful '—'You ought to be careful.'

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386.

3. WILL.

INDICATIVE MOOD.

Present Tense.
Singular.

Plural.
1. I will,

1. We will, 2. Thou wilt,

2. You will, 3. He will,

3. They will.

Past Tense.
Singular.

Plural.
1. I would,

1. We would, 2. Thou wouldst, 2. You would, 3. He would,

3. They would. Will is also used as an independent verb. Hence we find the infinitive [to] will, and the participle willing.

W

387. Besides these, we have an auxiliary in constant use, the verb do, which is employed in various significations.

:

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388. This verb is used as an auxiliary, 1. For emphasis : as, 'When they do agree, their unani

mity is wonderful.' 2. In negations: as, 'I do not like it.' As a general rule,

the negative stands between do and the dependent infinitive: as, 'I do not think.' But after neither or nor, the auxiliary do follows immediately, and precedes the subject-nominative: as, 'neither does he

wish,'nor do I think.' 3. In questions: as, ' Does he say so ?' 'Do they not

consent ?' or 'Do not they consent ?' often con

tracted • Do-n't they consent ?' 4. After an adverb, or an adverbial phrase, the auxiliary

do follows immediately, and precedes the subject-
nominative:

Once again
Do I behold those steeps and lofty cliffs.

Wordsworth. 5. In reply to a question with an ellipsis of the dependent infinitive: as,

Portia. Do you confess the bond ?
Antonio. I do.

Merchant of Venice, iv. 5. See Adams, Elements of the English Language, § 617. Here, when Antonio says “I do,' he means 'I do confess.'

389. Caution. Whenever we employ any part of the verb do, in reference to some principal verb in the former part of a sentence, there is risk of error ; and, in particular, the reference to an intransitive verb is open to cavil. Take this example :

It is somewhat unfortunate, that this paper did not end,

as it might very well have done, with the former

beautiful period. --Blair, Rhetoric, xxiii. A caviller might ask, done what?' Surely not done ending.' In such constructions, it is better to repeat the principal verb; did not end, as it might very well have ended. Repetition is sometimes disagreeable, and tends to enfeeble a sentence; but it is always preferable to ambiguity. See Cobbett, Grammar, $ 273.

390. Dr. Latham points out that we have in English two distinct words which assume the form do. In the phrase