and, am the man." (The latter expression places the relative
nearer to its antecedent, and is therefore preferable.) 2. "I am the man
who commands." Here, _who commands_ belongs to the predicate _man_, and the
meaning is, "I am the commander." Again: "I perceive thou art a pupil, _who
possessest_ good talents."--_Cooper's Pl. and Pract. Gram._, p. 136. Here
the construction corresponds not to the perception, which is, of the
pupil's talents. Say, therefore, "I perceive thou art a _pupil possessing_
(or, _who possesses_) good talents."

OBS. 16.--After the expletive _it_, which may be employed to introduce a
noun or a pronoun of any person, number, or gender, the above-mentioned
distinction is generally disregarded; and the relative is most commonly
made to agree with the latter word, especially if this word be of the first
or the second person: as, "_It_ is no more _I that do it_."--_Rom._, vii,
20. "For _it_ is not _ye that speak_."--_Matt._, x, 20. The propriety of
this construction is questionable. In the following examples, the relative
agrees with the _it_, and not with the subsequent nouns: "_It_ is the
combined _excellencies_ of all the denominations _that_ gives to her her
winning beauty and her powerful charms."--_Bible Society's Report_, 1838,
p. 89. "_It_ is _purity and neatness_ of expression _which is_ chiefly to
be studied."--_Blair's Rhet._, p. 271. "_It_ is _not the difficulty_ of the
language, but on the contrary the _simplicity and facility_ of it, _that
occasions_ this neglect."--_Lowth's Gram._, p. vi. "_It_ is _a wise head
and a good heart that constitutes_ a great man."--_Child's Instructor_, p.
22.

OBS. 17.--The pronoun _it_ very frequently refers to something mentioned
subsequently in the sentence; as, "_It_ is useless _to complain_ of what is
irremediable." This pronoun is a necessary expletive at the commencement of
any sentence in which the verb is followed by a phrase or a clause which,
by transposition, might be made the subject of the verb; as, "_It is
impossible_ _to please every one_."--_W. Allen's Gram._ "_It_ was requisite
_that the papers should be_ sent."--_Ib._ The following example is censured
by the Rev. Matt. Harrison: "_It is really curious, the course_ which balls
will sometimes take."--_Abernethy's Lectures_. "This awkward expression,"
says the critic, "might have been avoided by saying, 'The course which
balls will sometimes take is really curious.'"--_Harrison, on the English