On the Evolution of Language | Page 5

the greatest
difficulty may be found. The student must entirely free his mind of the
idea that gender is simply a distinction of sex. In Indian tongues,
genders are usually methods of classification primarily into animate
and inanimate. The animate may be again divided into male and female,
but this is rarely the case. Often by these genders all objects are
classified by characteristics found in their attitudes or supposed
constitution. Thus we may have the animate and inanimate, one or both,
divided into the standing, the sitting, and the lying; or they may be
divided into the watery, the mushy, the earthy, the stony, the woody,
and the fleshy. The gender of these article pronouns has rarely been
worked out in any language. The extent to which these classifications
enter into the article pronouns is not well known. The subject requires
more thorough study. These incorporated particles are here called
article pronouns. In the conjugation of the verb they take an important
part, and have by some writers been called transitions. Besides pointing
out with particularity the person, number, and gender or the subject and
object, they perform the same offices that are usually performed by
those inflections of the verb that occur to make them agree in gender,
number, and person with the subject. In those Indian languages where
the article pronouns are not found, and the personal pronouns only are

used, the verb is usually inflected to agree with the subject or object, or
both, in the same particulars.
The article pronouns as they point out person, number, gender, and case
of the subject and object, are not simple particles, but are to a greater or
lesser extent compound; their component elements may be broken apart
and placed in different parts of the verb. Again, the article pronoun in
some languages may have its elements combined into a distinct word in
such a manner that it will not be incorporated in the verb, but will be
placed immediately before it. For this reason the term article pronoun
has been chosen rather than attached pronoun. The older term,
transition, was given to them because of their analogy in function to
verbal inflections.
Thus the verb of an Indian language contains within itself incorporated
article pronouns which point out with great particularity the gender,
number, and person of the subject and object. In this manner verb,
pronoun, and adjective are combined, and to this extent these parts of
speech are undifferentiated.
In some languages the article pronoun constitutes a distinct word, but
whether free or incorporated it is a complex tissue of adjectives.
Again, nouns sometimes contain particles within themselves to
predicate possession, and to this extent nouns and verbs are
undifferentiated.
The verb is relatively of much greater importance in an Indian tongue
than in a civilized language. To a large extent the pronoun is
incorporated in the verb as explained above, and thus constitutes a part
of its conjugation.
Again, adjectives are used as intransitive verbs, as in most Indian
languages there is no verb to be used as a predicant or copula. Where in
English we would say the man is good, the Indian would say that man
good, using the adjective as an intransitive verb, i.e., as a predicant. If
he desired to affirm it in the past tense, the intransitive verb good,
would be inflected, or otherwise modified, to indicate the tense; and so,

in like manner, all adjectives when used to predicate can be modified to
indicate mode, tense, number, person, &c., as other intransitive verbs.
Adverbs are used as intransitive verbs. In English we may say he is
there; the Indian would say that person there usually preferring the
demonstrative to the personal pronoun. The adverb there would,
therefore, be used as a predicant or intransitive verb, and might be
conjugated to denote different modes, tenses, numbers, persons, etc.
Verbs will often receive adverbial qualifications by the use of
incorporated particles, and, still further, verbs may contain within
themselves adverbial limitations without our being able to trace such
meanings to any definite particles or parts of the verb.
Prepositions are intransitive verbs. In English we may say the hat is on
the table; the Indian would say that hat on table; or he might change
the order, and say that hat table on; but the preposition on would be
used as an intransitive verb to predicate, and may be conjugated.
Prepositions may often be found as particles incorporated in verbs, and,
still further, verbs may contain within themselves prepositional
meanings without our being able to trace such meanings to any definite
particles within the verb. But the verb connotes such ideas that
something is needed to complete its meaning, that something being a
limiting or qualifying word, phrase, or clause. Prepositions may be
prefixed,