john@cisden.UUCP (John Woolley) (01/08/86)
Does anyone have an eighteenth- or nineteenth-century quotation using the phrase "the United States" as a singular noun? It always used to be plural, but now it's nearly always singular. When did it change? -- Peace and Good!, Fr. John Woolley "The heart has its reasons that the mind does not know." -- Blaise Pascal
ark@alice.UucP (Andrew Koenig) (01/12/86)
> Does anyone have an eighteenth- or nineteenth-century quotation using > the phrase "the United States" as a singular noun? It always used to > be plural, but now it's nearly always singular. When did it change? > -- > Peace and Good!, > Fr. John Woolley > "The heart has its reasons that the mind does not know." -- Blaise Pascal I have seen several instances that lead me to believe that the normal usage in England is to use plural forms to agree with, say, names of corporations. "IBM are introducing a new product."
rjw@ptsfc.UUCP (Rod Williams) (01/14/86)
In article <383@cisden.UUCP> john@cisden.UUCP (John Woolley) writes: >Does anyone have an eighteenth- or nineteenth-century quotation using >the phrase "the United States" as a singular noun? It always used to >be plural, but now it's nearly always singular. When did it change? Thanks to Bartlett's Quotations, how about: "The United States has thirty-two religions but only one dish" - Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord (1754-1838) -- rod williams | {ihnp4,dual}!ptsfa!ptsfc!rjw ------------------------------------------- pacific bell | san ramon | california