Meu pensamento ocupado na causa de seu pensar acorda sempre ho cuidado para nunca descuidar. As noites do repousar, dias sam ao meu sentir, noutes de meu nam dormir. Todo ho bem he ja passado e passado em mal presente; o sentido desvelado, ho coraçam descontente: ho juizo que ysto sente como se deve sentir, pouco leixara dormir. Como nam vi ho que vejo cos olhos do coraçam, nam me deito sem dessejo nem me erguo sem paixam; hos dias sem vos ver vam, as noites sera vos ouvir, eu as nam posso dormir. [56] In illustration of this remark, the words _cor_, _paço_, _povo_, _pay_, _may_, _por_, _ter_, may be compared with the Spanish words _color_, _palacio_, _pueblo_, _padre_, _madre_, _poner_, _tener_, and similar comparisons may be made of a multitude of others. Let the reader also take into consideration the clipping pronunciation of _o_ and _a_ when these vowels terminate words in the Portuguese language. The Portuguese articles _o_ and _a_, abbreviated from _lo_ and _la_, together with the compounds formed from them, as _no_ and _na_, instead of _en lo_ and _en la_, must necessarily be offensive to the Spanish ear. It is singular, however, that the Portuguese language has a tendency to lengthen those particular words in which the Spanish cannot tolerate any further extension; for the Spanish _Universidad_, _Magestad_, &c. become in Portuguese _Universidade_, _Magestade_, and so forth. [57] It deserves, however, to be noticed, that of all the sister languages of Roman descent, the Portuguese alone has preserved, in its grammatical structure, a remarkable fragment of the ancient latin conjugation, namely, the pluperfect of the indicative, viz. _fora_, _foras_, _fora_, from _fueram_, _fueras_, _fuerat_. But this pluperfect has also the signification of a preterite of the subjunctive; and through the ambiguity, which thus arises, the value of this grammatical relic in the Portuguese language is in a great measure lost, notwithstanding that the connection may easily mark the proper sense. But how happens it that of all the languages claiming a Roman origin, the Portuguese, though in other respects remarkable for a certain simplicity of character, is, upon the whole, distinguished by the most numerous and subtle tenses in the conjugations of its verbs? [58] This trait of distinction between the Portuguese and Spanish national character is still noticed by travellers. The Portuguese is a bigot, like the Spaniard, but he is far less fanatical. The intercourse of trade in Lisbon, requires an external appearance of tolerance. If the English sailors refuse to take off their hats during the catholic processions in Portugal, the populace content themselves with exclaiming, “they are English heretics!” or uttering some other words of reproach. [59] See preceding vol. page 151. [60] See the preceding vol. p. 210.