The signification of the future tense requires no illus tration. The remarks which we have to make on this subject will therefore he confined to its etymology. Our conceptions of future events are lucre deductions from known arrangements in the past or present, tending to modify their character. Hence all the contrivances for expressing futurity, that can be traced to their origin, are founded on the connection in which the future stands to the past and the present as an effect to a cause. They are de rived from verbs signifying resolution, obligation, or other preparatory circumstances, and, with respect to etymology, are equivalent to the words employed in such English ex pressions as " I intend to go," " I must go," 46 I am likely to go," " I prepare to go." Mr Tooke ingeniously derives the Latin future in bo from Wen; " to will" or " to be resolved." In ibo, for exam ple, i signifies " go," b (from gsA) 46 will," and o (from " 1." ?lmabo and docebo are formed by annexing the same letters to ama " love," and dote " teach.". The future in am he considers as an adaptation of the radical letters of amare," to love." Legam is thus equivalent to Legere auto, audiam to audire amo. By those who indulge a general scepticism in etymology, or who have other systems to support, these derivations may be thought improbable, and abundant opportunities are afforded of taking refuge in the obscurity of old derivations. It may be said, if b means prow in amabo, what is meant by the b in amabam ? Such objections can have no further effect, than to throw dis credit on instances of etymology that are somewhat ob scure. Let us therefore attend to some which are of re cent formation, and which, as the successive steps of their change are easily traced, are superior to all objection. If general principles of analogy are there disclosed, by which the abbreviating contrivances of language have been con ducted, the uncertainty of some antique instances is not to be much regretted. The former will also assist us to judge of the degree of probability to be attached to some etymologies otherwise uncertain.
In Italian, the future tense has undoubted marks of a derivation from the verb avere "to have." Partiro " I shall depart," is evidently derived from partireho " I have to depart." This is evinced by the identity of the termi nations of the future with those of that verb in the present in all its persons and both numbers. Ho, hai, ha ; havemo, avete, hanno: Partir-o, partir-ai, partir-a ; partir-emo, par tir-ete, partir-anno.
The French future is as evidently derived from the pre sent of the verb avoir. In the verb parler it is Je parler ai," I shall speak," /u parler-as, it parler-a, nous porter one, vows parlcr-ez, fiarler-ont. These are the termina tions of the present of verb now mentioned, J'ai, to as, it a, nous avons, volts ont.
The French language has vo.ious modes of expressing futurity by combinations of entii. words into set phrases. The verb devoir, which signifies to '-e obliged from duty, is employed for this purpose, as Je dole u I am to do that." The same verb continues in instances to retain its full original meaning. The verb Laler is used for a similar purpose ; as, Je vais lui rendre rues ...sheets.
In the English language combinations of this sort are the only futures, and they are often used in such a manner as to express something more than futurity. We have thus a beautiful intermixture of their original meaning with their modern application. The verbs 46 will and 46 shall" are most commonly used, but they are not indis criminately applied to signify futurity. Each of these verbs is employed to signify the resolution of the speaker, or simple futurity, according to certain habits of colloca tion with certain norninatives. 44 Will" in the first person, and " shall" in the second and third, signify t esol ution. Simple futurity is expressed by " shall" in the first, and 44 will" in the two others. The simple future is as fol lows: 44 I shall," " (bon wilt," 44 he will." " We shall," "ye will," " they will." The future of determination is, I will," a thou shalt," he shall." 44 We u ill," " ye shall," 44 they shall." The perplexities occurring in the use of these auxilia ries, in consequence of the tendencies of the Irish and Scotch being different from those of the English dialect, which is the acknowledged standard, may be avoided, if we always recollect that it is not the resolution of the per so/ spoken of that they are at any time employed particu larly to express, but of the speaker. " Will," therefore, is employed for simple futurity in the second and third persons, and is even appropriate where an event is men tioned that is opposite to the inclination of the person who is the subject of the assertion. We say, " if you become obnoxious to the criminal law, you will be punished." The word " will" does not here imply intention or even consent, yet it is appropriate, because 44 shall" would im ply constraint or authority on the part of the speaker. It is also to be remembered that, in mentioning any thing fu ture with respect to ourselves, although it should be the effect of our intention, this does not render it proper to use the auxiliary verb 66 will." 44 Will" in the first person al ways expresses emphatic resolution, implying the appre hension of difficulty or resistance from others. If another has said, " you shall not," a man replies, " I will ;" but in expressing the common acts which are to fill up our fu ture time, we say simply, " I shall go home," " I shall tell you the whole matter when we next meet." But there are occasions, independently of provincial solecisms, in which 66 will" may be employed in the se cond and third person to express the resolution of the per son spoken of, and " shall" in the first, the resolution of some other. Observing another person obstinate, we may say, " It seems you will do it, and cannot be prevented." If another person has said to us, " You do not admire my friend, but you shall treat him civilly," we may reply, " perhaps I may, but you are mistaken in telling me that I shall." These last modes of speaking, however, are awkward, and require an uncommon emphasis to be laid on the respective auxiliaries, in order to express the full meaning of the speaker. It is therefore more elegant to employ more explicit phrases, as, "it seems you are re solved and cannot be prevented." " Perhaps I may, but you are wrong in supposing that I am to be forced.