But when silent e is preceded by a vowel, it is seldom dropped.

Ex.-Shoe, shoeing; hoe, hoeing; sue, sueing.

Die and lie drop e and substitute y for i before ing; as, dying, lying.

When the infinitive ends with a single consonant preceded by a short vowel, this consonant is doubled before ing. Ex.-Hit, hitting; rap, rapping; run, running.

The perfect participle is variously formed.

Many verbs form the past participle by adding ed to the present infinitive. These are called regular verbs.

Ex.-Turn, turned; delay, delayed.

Before the ending ed the following changes occur:—
Silent e is dropped.

Ex.-Move, moved; sue, sued.

A single consonant after a short vowel is doubled.
Ex.-Fit, fitted; rap, rapped; trot, trotted.

I is substituted for y preceded by a consonant.
Ex.-Cry, cried; apply, applied.

Many verbs form the past participle otherwise than by adding ed to the present infinitive. These are called irregular verbs.

Ex. Be, been; fall, fallen; go, gone; hide, hid.

The perfect participle has a phrase form, made by combining the simple past participle with having or being. This phrase form is always used adjectively.

Ex. Having been, having looked, being moved.

TENSE FORMS OF THE INFINITIVE

Study the following sentences:—

The stream will cease to flow;
The wind will cease to blow.

I am come to speak thy praises.

Eugene Aram was a man whose life seemed to have been one sacrifice to knowledge.

The tiny apples began to grow

In the boughs of the high-top sweeting.

I would not have a slave to till my ground,
To carry me, to fan me while I sleep,

And tremble when I wake.

Point out all infinitives. Which belong to verb-phrases? Which consist of simple verb forms? Which consist of a phrase?

The infinitive has two tense forms:

A simple form, to express indefinite, continued action, being, or state.

A phrase form, consisting of the auxiliary have, and the past participle of the principal verb, to express completed action, being, or state.

Ex.-'Tis better to have loved and lost

Than never to have loved at all.

The simple form is called the present infinitive.
The phrase form is called the perfect infinitive.

The perfect infinitive seldom occurs. It is sometimes used erroneously for the present infinitive.

Ex. I expected to have found Petersburg a wonderful city. (I expected to find Petersburg, etc., is the correct form.)

REGULAR FORMS OF THE PRESENT INDICATIVE

Learn the following forms of the verb hear:

In the present indicative, the form of the first person singular, and all plural forms, are regularly identical with that of the present infinitive.

The ordinary form of the third person singular is regularly made by adding s to the present infinitive.

Ex.-Read, reads; move, moves; sue, sues; hit, hits; run, runs; see, sees.

The present indicative has the following principal uses:To assert action, being, or state that coincides with the act of assertion; Ex.-I raise the flag on high.

To assert a customary action or state; Ex.-The song birds leave us at the summer's close.

To assert a universal truth; Ex.-Truth needs no champions.

To represent past action, being, or state more vividly. This use of the present tense for the past is very frequent in narration. When thus used it is called the historical present. Ex. Caesar crosses the Rubicon.

In the present subjunctive, all forms are identical with that of the present infinitive.

The imperative is used in the present tense and in the second person. It has but one form.

NOTE. The subjunctive mode is used in dependent adverbial clauses, usually introduced by conjunctions,―if, though, unless, or lest.