Dear Comrade:

I wonder if you have ever thought as to how our language grew.

We get the words in our language from many sources. The English language today is a development of the early Anglo-Saxon. England was called originally Angle-land which was gradually shortened into England. So we have in our language what are called pure English or Anglo-Saxon words. These words form the bulk of our every day vocabulary, being simple, strong, forceful words. Then we have in our English many foreign words which we have adopted from other languages. There are many Latin and Greek words; these we use in our more elegant speech or writing.

There is an interesting bit written by Sir Walter Scott in his novel of early England, "Ivanhoe," which illustrates the manner in which words have come into our language and also the difference in speech which marks the working class and the exploiting class. As those who do the work of the world rid themselves of the parasites who have appropriated the produce of their labor, through the ages, they will demand that which belongs to them—the best—the best in language as in everything else.

"'... I advise thee to call off Fangs and leave the herd to their destiny, which, whether they meet with bands of traveling soldiers, or of outlaws, or of wandering pilgrims, can be little else than to be converted into Normans before morning, to thy no small ease and comfort.'

"'The swine turned into Normans to my comfort!' quoth Gurth. 'Expound that to me, Wamba, for my brain is too dull and my mind too vexed to read riddles.'

"'Why, how call you these grunting brutes running about on their four legs?' demanded Wamba.

"'Swine, fool, swine,' said the herd; 'every fool knows that.'

"'And swine is good Saxon,' said the jester; 'but how call you the sow when she is flayed, and drawn, and quartered, and hung by the heels like a traitor?'

"'Pork,' answered the swineherd.

"'I am glad every fool knows that too,' said Wamba; 'and pork, I think, is good Norman-French, and so when the brute lives and is in charge of a Saxon slave, she goes by her Saxon name; but becomes a Norman and is called pork when she is carried to the castle-hall to feast among the nobles. What dost thou think of that, friend Gurth, ha?' ... "

So you see even in words the distinction is made between those who produce and those who possess.

But the day is at hand when those who work shall also enjoy. We have fought for religious and political freedom. Today we are waging the battle for industrial freedom. It is your struggle. Study—prepare yourself to do battle for your rights.

Yours for Freedom,

THE PEOPLE'S COLLEGE.

FUTURE TIME

118. We have learned how to express present time and past time, by changes in the form of the verb. But we very often desire to make a statement in which we do not express either present or past time, thus we may say:

• We shall enjoy our rights some day.
• He will join us in the struggle.

We do not mean to say that we do enjoy our rights now, in the present, or that we did in the past, but that we shall enjoy our rights some time in the future. In the second sentence, will join expresses the same idea of future time. To indicate future time, we do not make a change in the verb form, but we use shall and will with the simple form of the verb.

119. We denote future time by use of a verb phrase made by placing shall or will before the simple form of the verb.

120. The rule of some grammarians is to use shall always in the first person, the person speaking, to denote future time, and will with the second person, the person spoken to, and with the third person, the person spoken of, to denote future time. But common usage does not always follow the rules of the grammarians, and, in the course of time, affects and changes these rules. So our common usage of today uses will in the first person to express future time, as well as shall.

This rule of grammarians marks a nicety of speech and conveys a distinction of meaning which it really seems worth while to retain. The idea of the grammarians is that when we use will with the first person and shall with the second or third person, we express a promise or determination. Thus if I say, I shall go, I simply mean that my going will be in the future. But if I say, I will go, I either mean that I am promising to go or that I am expressing my determination to go. So also if we use shall in the second and third persons. If we say, You will go or He will go, we are simply stating that the going will be in the future, but if we say, You shall go, or He shall go, we mean that we promise or are determined that you or he shall go.

To be technically correct this distinction should be observed. Shall in the first person, and will in the second and third express simple futurity. Will in the first person and shall in the second and third express promise or determination. But in every day conversation this distinction is not observed, and many of our best writers do not follow this rule.

Exercise 1

Mark the future time forms in the following sentences:

1. I shall speak of liberty.
2. I will never give up.
3. I shall write to him.
4. He shall not starve.
5. We shall expect you.
6. They shall suffer for this.
7. I shall go to New York.
8. He will call for me.
9. The hungry shall be fed.
10. You will soon see the reason.
11. You shall never want for a friend.
12. They shall some day see the truth.
13. We will not fight against our class.
14. We will stand together.

PERFECT TIME

121. Past, present and future, being the three divisions of time, one would naturally expect that when we had found how to express these three forms, we would be through, but if you stop to think, you will find that there are other verb phrases of which we have need.

When we wish to speak of action as completed at the present time, we do not say:

• I study my lessons every day, but, I have studied my lessons every day.
• Not, You work for him every day, but, You have worked for him every day.
• Not, He sees her frequently, but, He has seen her frequently.

Can you not readily see the difference in the meaning expressed in I work every day, and I have worked every day? In the first sentence you express a general truth, I work every day, a truth which has been true in the past, is true in the present, and the implication is that it will continue to be true in the future. But when you say, I have worked every day, you are saying nothing as to the future, but you are describing an action which is completed at the present time. This is called the present complete or present perfect time.

122. Perfect means complete, and present perfect describes an action perfected or completed at the present time. So it is possible for us to express a necessary shade of meaning by the present perfect time form.

123. The present perfect time form describes an action completed at the present time, and is formed by using the present time form of have and the past participle of the verb.

Present Perfect Time
Singular	Plural
1st. I have seen.	We have seen.
2d. You have seen.	You have seen.
3d. He has seen.	They have seen.

124. Review in the last lesson how to form the past participle. Remember that it is one of the principal parts of the verb. In regular verbs the past participle is the same form as the past time form. In irregular verbs the past participle is quite often different from the past time form, as for example: go, went, gone; do, did, done, etc. Watch closely your irregular verbs and see that you always use the past participle with have or had; never use the past time form with have or had.

125. When you desire to express an action complete at some definite past time, you do not say:

• We finished when they came, but, We had finished when they came.
• Not, They went when we arrived, but, They had gone when we arrived.
• Not, I worked six months when he began, but, I had worked six months when he began.

Can you see a difference in the meaning expressed in these sentences: I worked six months when he began; and I had worked six months when he began? This last sentence describes an action completed or perfected before some definite past time.

126. Past perfect time denotes an action perfected or completed at some definite past time. It is formed by using had and the past participle of the verb.

Remember always, with irregular verbs, to use the past participle. Never use the past time form with had.

Past Perfect Time
Singular	Plural
1st. I had seen.	We had seen.
2d. You had seen.	You had seen.
3d. He had seen.	They had seen.

Exercise 2

Correct the following sentences in which the past time form is used instead of the past participle. Look up the word in the list of irregular verbs and use the past participle instead of the past time form.

1. I have saw it often.
2. He had shook his fist.
3. She has sang for us.
4. The boat has sank here.
5. He has spoke the truth.
6. They had stole the books.
7. He has swore to the truth.
8. He had took the wrong road.
9. She has tore her dress.
10. He had threw the ball away.
11. The girl had wore the dress.
12. He had wrote the letters.
13. He had drank too much.
14. He had rode the horse.
15. The sun has rose.
16. He has bore his part.
17. They have began already.
18. The wind has blew all night.
19. It had broke when it fell.
20. He has chose the right.
21. You have did your duty.
22. He has ate his breakfast.
23. A heavy rain has fell.
24. They had gave it to me.
25. He has became rich.
26. It has grew rapidly.
27. He has knew it always.
28. He has mistook her for another.

FUTURE PERFECT TIME

127. We find also that we need a verb phrase to express time before some other future time, to describe an action that will be finished, perfected, or completed, before some other future action. Thus,

• I shall have gone before you arrive.
• You will have earned your money before you get it.
• I shall have worked thirty days when pay-day comes.

Can you not see a difference in saying, I shall work thirty days when pay-day comes, and I shall have worked thirty days when pay-day comes? The first sentence expresses simple future time, or what you will do when pay-day comes; the second describes an action which will be completed or perfected before pay-day comes. So there is quite a difference in the meaning of the future and the future perfect time.

128. The future perfect time form expresses or describes an action that will be perfected or completed before some other future time. It is formed by using shall have or will have with the past participle.

Be careful to use the past participle. Never use the past time form with shall have or will have.

Future Perfect Time
Singular	Plural
1st. I shall have seen.	We shall have seen.
2d. You will have seen.	You will have seen.
3d. He will have seen.	They will have seen.

LET US SUM UP

129. We have three time forms, present, past, future.

Present	Past	Future
I see	I saw	I shall see.

Each of these three time forms has a perfect form; that is, a time form which expresses an action as completed or perfected at the present time, or before some definite past or future time.

Present Perfect Time	Past Perfect Time	Future Perfect Time
I have seen	I had seen	I shall have seen

130. It is wonderful how a knowledge of words and their uses enables us to express so many shades of meaning. It is like our development in observing colors. You know the savage always admires vivid reds and greens and blues. He does not yet see the beautiful shades and gradations of color. We enjoy the delicate pinks and blues and all the varying shades between the primal seven colors of the spectrum. And as we develop our artistic ability we see and enjoy all the beauties of color.

In music too, we observe the same development. The barbarian enjoys loud, crashing, discordant sounds which he calls music, but which to the educated ear are only harsh noises. The trained musician catches the delicate overtones and undertones and finds deepest ecstasy in sounds which the uneducated ear does not even catch. So as we study words and their uses, we find ourselves able to express shades of meaning, to paint our word pictures, not in gaudy, glaring chromo-tints, but in the wondrous blending of color that reveals the true artist.

Now get these modes of expressing time firmly fixed in your mind.

131. Let us get all we have learned about verbs into a summary and have it clearly in mind.

VERBS—SUMMARY

Two Classes

Complete—		Taking no complement.
Incomplete—	{	Verbs of action requiring object.
		Copulative verbs requiring complement.

Inflection—Changes of Form

Simple Form	S-Form	Past Time	Present Part.	Past Part.
see	sees	saw	seeing	seen

TIME FORMS

Present

Singular	Plural
1. I see.	We see.
2. You see.	You see.
3. He sees.	They see.

Past

Singular	Plural
1. I saw.	We saw.
2. You saw.	You saw.
3. He saw.	They saw.

Future

Singular	Plural
1. I shall see.	We shall see.
2. You will see.	You will see.
3. He will see.	They will see.

Present Perfect

Singular	Plural
1. I have seen.	We have seen.
2. You have seen.	You have seen.
3. He has seen.	They have seen.

Past Perfect

Singular	Plural
1. I had seen.	We had seen.
2. You had seen.	You had seen.
3. He had seen.	They had seen.

Future Perfect

Singular	Plural
1. I shall have seen.	We shall have seen.
2. You will have seen.	You will have seen.
3. He will have seen.	They will have seen.

Exercise 3

Read carefully the following quotation. All of the verbs and verb phrases are written in italics. Study these carefully and decide whether they indicate present, past, future, present perfect, past perfect or future perfect time. The verb phrases—is seizing, is put, is praised, is defended, can see, must have, are owned, and are conducted, do not belong to any of these six forms. They are verb phrases used in ways which we shall study later. All of the other verbs or verb phrases belong to one of the six time forms which we have studied. Classify them.

The Working Class Must Strike the Blow

You remember Victor Hugo's story of the devil-fish; how the monster put forth one tentacle after another and coiled it around his victim; how the hero recalled that there was but one vulnerable spot in his brute enemy; how at the strategic moment he struck a blow at that spot, and the terrible demon of the deep shuddered, released his grasp and fell dead.

Capitalism is a monster which is seizing the body politic. One tentacle is put forth to grasp the major part of the earnings of the working class; another has seized the working-woman; another reaches forth to the child; another has fastened upon government and has made that the instrument of the powerful classes; still another has turned the pen of the journalist into a weapon by which the injustice of Capitalism is praised and is defended; and still another has seized the pulpit, has silenced those who profess to speak for God and man, or has turned their phrases into open apology and defense for the crimes of Capitalism!

But there is one vulnerable spot in Capitalism. If the working class of the world can see that spot and will strike, they shall be free.

The fundamental wrong, the basic injustice of the Capitalist System, is that the resources of land and machinery, to which all the people must have access, in order to live and labor, are owned by the few and are conducted by the few for their private profit.

This is the social tragedy, the monstrous wrong of our time.—J. Stitt Wilson.

Exercise 4

Select two verbs out of the following poem and write their six time forms, in the same manner as the time forms of the verb see are given in section 131.

TENSE

The grammatical term for the time form of the verb is TENSE, which is derived from a Latin word meaning time. The present time-form of the verb is called the present tense; the past time-form, the past tense; the future time-form, the future tense; the present perfect time-form, the present perfect tense, etc.

Exercise 5

Write each of the following four sentences in the six time-forms, or tenses,—present, past, future, present perfect, past perfect and future perfect, as follows:

• Present—Labor creates all wealth.
• Past—Labor created all wealth.
• Future—Labor will create all wealth.
• Present Perfect—Labor has created all wealth.
• Past Perfect—Labor had created all wealth.
• Future Perfect—Labor will have created all wealth.

1. Hope stirs us to action.
2. Human progress is our business.
3. The majority demand justice.
4. The workers fight all the battles.