Page:A handbook of the Cornish language; Chiefly in its latest stages with some account of its history and literature.djvu/118

Rh 1st form. mi. mi a vedn, I will. 2nd form. vt. gwith vi, keep me. 3rd form. ';. neb dm gwrig, he who made me. 4th form, 'm or 'v. genev, with me ; dhem^ to me ; carav, I love. The compounds of pronoun and preposition are written as one word, without an apostrophe, as the form of the preposition also is often affected by the composition. A list of these will be found later on, as they present some irregularities.

2. The Second Person Singular. English, thou or thee. Letter T (D).

ist form, ti (pronounced nearly chee, and sometimes so written), ti a vedn, thou wilt. 2nd form, di (often written sy or gy in the older MSS., and pronounced jee, nearly), menjes di, thou wouldst. 3rd form, 'th (often 'd in the older MSS.). This is followed by the second state of the initial, or in the case of d by the fourth, mi a'th bes, I pray thee, re'th tynerchys, hath greeted thee (Passion, 115, 2). 4th form. 's. genes, with thee.

3. The Third Person Singular, masculine. English, he or him. Letter V or N, or a vowel. ist form, ev (with the v very lightly sounded, and . often silent. The older form is ef). ev a vedn, he will. 2nd form, ev or e. men/a ev, he would. 3rd form. 'n. mt an pes, I pray him.

This form is commonly used in the earlier MSS. It represents an accusative en or hen which still exists in Breton. In more recent Cornish, with the frequent use of the auxiliary form of the verb, where the pronominal object precedes the infinitive in its possessive form, this construction became unusual.