[*Mill's footnote 7: See note at p. 209.]
Here, however, a peculiarity is to be noted. When there is a possessor, there is something possessed. { 203} The preposition, therefore, which marks the relation between the possessor and the possessed, stands ambiguously between the active and the passive power. It, therefore, partakes more of the active or the passive signification, according to the position of the words which it is employed to connect. In the instances previously given, we have seen that it had clearly an active signification. In the following it has clearly a passive. "The book of John;" the book _of_, hav(ed) John. "The Creator of the world;" Creator hav(ed). "The wealth of Croesus;" wealth hav(ed).
Of is employed in a partitive sense, when one of the words denotes a part of the other; as "half of the army;" "many of the people;" "much of the loss." In this case the idea of possession is sufficiently obvious to support the analogy. The parts are possessed, had, by the whole. "Part of the debt," part hav(ed) the debt.
It is easy to see how the preposition with a substantive, serves the purpose of a new adjective. Thus, in the expression, "a man with one eye," the words, "with one eye," might have been supplied by an adjective, having the same meaning or marking power; and the French language actually has such an adjective, in the mark _borgne_. We say, a man with red hair, and we have the adjective, red-haired; a man of wealth, and we have the adjective, wealthy; a man of strength, and we have the adjective, strong; cases which distinctly exemplify our observation.
2. We come now to shew in what manner, and with what advantage, prepositions are employed to connect Substantives with Adjectives. The following { 204} classes of adjectives will furnish sufficient illustration of this part of the subject: 1, Adjectives of place or position; *2, Adjectives of time or succession; 3, Adjectives signifying profit or disprofit; 4, Adjectives of plenty or want; 5, Adjectives signifying an affection or state of the mind.
Adjectives of position, such as near, distant, high, low, have the ordinary power of adjectives, as marks upon marks; and an additional power, which will best be explained by examples. When we say "a distant house," "a neighbouring town;" the words "distant," and "neighbouring," are not only marks upon "house," and "town," but refer to something else: "a _distant_ house," is a house distant from _something_; "a _neighbouring_ town," is a town neighbouring _something_: it may mean "a house distant from my house," "a town neighbouring my house:" in these cases, we should say that the adjective has both a notation, and a connotation. The adjective _distant_, for example, notes _house_, and connotes _my house_; neighbouring, notes _town_, connotes _my house_. It is next, however, to be observed, that the connotation, in such cases, would be vague without a mark to determine it. The expression would be very imperfect, if, after the word high, we were merely to put the word "hill;" and say, "the house is high the hill;" or, "the house is distant the post-town." Prepositions supply this defect. We say, "the house is high _on_ the hill;" "the house is distant _from_ the post-town." In the case of some adjectives, their juxta-position makes the reference sufficiently precise; and in that case, the preposition may be dispensed with; as, near the town, near the road, &c.