How to parse. ...

Par. 406, 407.] TIIE PARTICIPLE.

235

(which may be called the Noun-use of the Participle) is a Latin construction, alien to the genius
of the English language; the native Verbal use
should be retained, wherever euphony and clearness
allow:
(3) " He insisted on the man's being reprimanded."
406 The Participle with Conjunctions.
The Participle is ambiguous; see Par. 66. " Walking " may mean " though he walked," " because he
walked," &c. Partly to prevent ambiguity, and
partly by (II.) Confusion of Construction, we blend
together (a) " Walking on the ice I slipped," and
(b)" Wh/ile, or when, I was walking on the ice, I
slipped;" and, combining the clearness of the latter
with the brevity of the former, we say(1) " While, or when walking on the ice, I slipped."
(2) " Though walking very carefully, I slipped."
407 It would be convenient to say " because walking;"
but "because" and "since" 2 are not used with
Participles. We sometimes, however, use " as " in
1 It is sometimes called the Gerundive use of the Participle.
GerLundie means " descrilbing that which is to be done." The Latins
had a special form for the Gerundire. See Glossary.
2 " Since " is 1sed, as a Preposition, with a Verbal Nonn as its
Object, but not with a Participle. "If" and " unless " are rarely
used with Active Participles.