I may love possibly I will.
I must love-if compelled, but still
I can love-I've the power.
I should love – under obligation.
I might love-all this mighty nation.
This could not make me lower.

THE SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD.

The Subjunctive Mood shows that a thing is done on certain conditions, or from some motive, and often has a conjunction before it.

If he loves not - I'll go away,

But if he loves me-then I'll stay

If I chastise-you'll cry.

If I were you-I'll tell you what,
I'd understand the whole of that,
And learn it easily.

THE INFINITIVE MOOD.

The Infinitive Mood has no Number and Person, and generally has to before it.

I learn to read, to write, to sew,

I learn to parse, point out, or know
A verb's Infinitive.

To draw, to skip, play, sketch, and sing,
To walk, ride, and do everything-
Also to breathe and live.

THE IMPERATIVE MOOD.

The Imperative Mood commands, exhorts, entreats, and permits, and has only Second Person Singular and Second Person Plural.

A pronoun's understood behind,
Sometimes 'tis put too, you will find
Thus love, or love ye me.

Sit thou or sit, dance thou, dance ye,
The one or other it may be-

Sing, dance ye merrily.

EXERCISE.

Point out the mood to which each of the following

sentences belongs :

You may go.

I can sing. He could walk. obey. Sit down.

If I choose.

Run away. To think.
I may go. You must

Hear me. I love you, Jane.

Do

you? The coach will arrive soon. We understand this lesson. They must attend church on New-years'day. He would not go.

TENSE OR TIME.

Now since you've learned these moods so well,
The tenses of the verbs we'll tell-

Tense means the time. you know.
The mood's the manner-tense the time,
These tenses can't be made in rhyme,
But then they simply flow.

PRESENT TENSE.

The Present Tense tells what is going on.

The first is called the present tense,
Because it means just now; and hence
We very often say:

"It is so very wet just now,

And rains so much, I know not how
I can, at present, stay."

PAST TENSE.

The Past Tense represents the past.

Now when we talk about the past,
We say it rained on Friday last,
When I was out at tea.

The hail fell down-it thundered too—

My cloak was drenched quite through and through, But all that's past you see.

THE FUTURE TENSE.

Its signs are shall or will.

The future means the time to come,

The birds shall sing, the bees will hum, But not just now-to-morrow.

I shall put you in jail next week, You shall not-I will faithful keep pay whate'er I borrow.

To

PERFECT TENSE.

Its signs are have, hast, has.

Present and past you've learned before,
And future too - but here is more,
The perfect-notice this.

I have cut, he has cut this minute-
'Tis newly done, and we have seen it-
Say have you seen it? Yes.

PAST PERFECT.

Its signs are had and hadst.

Now when the thing was lately done,
And done before another one,

Past perfect now it's called.

Thus John had eaten all the pie

Before the others came-but I

Shall have that overhauled.

CONJUGATION OF THE VERB.

M. I really think it is high time
That you should learn without a rhyme,
And say the verb in prose;

I love, thou lovest, so does he,

We love, you love, they love-O see!
This beautiful moss-rose.

Now I, thou, he, we, you, and they
Are nominatives to love, we say,
But what's the object now ?
Ch. What's the objective, do you mean?
The beautiful moss-rose, 'twould seem.
M. I'm very glad you know.

I hate, thou hatest, he hates too,
We hate, you hate, they hate-don't you?
When little brothers quarrel;

It is indeed a shocking sight

When darling little brothers fight—
'Tis only dogs that snarl.

These verbs love, hate, are short indeed,
I merely wrote them down for speed,
But here's a longer one.

I understand all that you tell,
Thou understandest too quite well,
He understands—'tis done!