inasmuch as _eardian_ was a word belonging to the first class, and in the
first class the praeterite was formed in -ode. Here the vowel o kept the
two d's from coming in contact. With words, however, like _m['e]tan_ and
_sendan_, this was not the case. Here no vowel intervened; so that the
natural praeterite forms were _met-te_, _send-de_, combinations wherein one
of the letters ran every chance of being dropped in the pronunciation.
Hence, with the exception of the verbs in the first class, words ending in
-d or -t in the root admitted no additional d or t in the praeterite. This
difficulty, existing in the present English as it existed in the
Anglo-Saxon, modifies the praeterites of most words ending in -t or -d.

s. 310. In several words there is the actual addition of the syllable -ed;
in other words d is separated from the last letter of the original word by
the addition of a vowel; as _ended_, _instructed_, &c.

s. 311. In several words the final -d is changed into -t, as _bend_,
_bent_; _rend_, _rent_; _send_, _sent_; _gild_, _gilt_; _build_, _built_;
_spend_, _spent_, &c.

s. 312. In several words the vowel of the root is changed; as _feed_,
_fed_; _bleed_, _bled_; _breed_, _bred_; _meet_, _met_; _speed_, _sped_;
_r[=e]ad_, _r[)e]ad_, &c. Words of this last-named class cause occasional
difficulty to the grammarian. No addition is made to the root, and, in this
circumstance, they agree with the strong verbs. Moreover, there is a change
of the vowel. In this circumstance also they agree with the strong verbs.
Hence with forms like _fed_ and _led_ we are in doubt as to the
conjugation. This doubt we have three means of settling, as may be shown by
the word _beat_.

a. _By the form of the participle._--The -en in _beaten_ shows that the
word _beat_ is strong.

b. _By the nature of the vowel._--The weak form of _to beat_ would be
_bet_, or _be[)a]t_, after the analogy of _feed_ and _read_. By some
persons the word is pronounced _bet_, and with those who do so the word is
weak.

c. _By a knowledge of the older forms._--The Anglo-Saxon form is
_be['a]te_, _beot_. There is no such a weak form as _be['a]te_, _baette_.
The praeterite of _sendan_ is _sende_ weak. There is in Anglo-Saxon no such
form as _sand_, strong.

In all this we see a series of expedients for distinguishing the praeterite
form from the present, when the root ends with the same sound with which
the affix begins.

The change from a long vowel t