22^ THE DECLENSION OF NOUNS the accent on the suffix of suffixally accented agent nouns and adjectives. This type of declension eventually ousts the alter- native type, which was originally exclusively used with neuter nouns (mddhvas, pasvds originally neuter) and optionally in the agent noun-adjective type ( sdkhye with secondary radical accent). The decline of the neuter as opposed to the masc.-fem. types is largely responsible for this development. Fixed accent on the suffix is to be found also in masc. and fem. stems in -as : nom. raksds, gen. raksdsas and in the stems in -mant and -vant in so far as they are accented on the suffix : pasumdn , pasumdtas. In the latter case the apophony indicates an original shifting accent. It does so also in the perfect parti- ciples whose fixed accent must be of secondary origin : cakrvdn , cakrusas. The accent of certain infinitival forms calls for mention since it differs from any of the types listed so far. This appears in certain dative infinitives which are accented on the suffix. This is most commonly found in infinitives formed from 5-stems, e.g. reuse 1 to praise cardse 1 to move spurdhdse ‘ to strive bhojdse * to enjojr Some examples are also found from man- and vans terns : vidmdne 1 to know 1 ddvdne 1 to give turvdne ' to overcome This accent cannot be original since suffixal accent is pioper to the adjective and agent-noun type, whereas the neuter action nouns, to which these infinitives belong, are accented on the root. It is also hardly possible that this type of accentuation should have supplanted a radical accentuation, since that has become the normal type, and the reverse would be expected. The accent normal to neuter nouns does some- times occur in these infinitives, rarely in those with suffix -as (dyase 1 to go dhdyase ‘ to cherish more preponderantly elsewhere (ddmane ' to give dhtirvane ' to injure Since it is unlikely that this normal type would be supplanted, the in- finitival accent on the suffix must be explained as a substitu- tion for older terminational accent (*rcasd, etc.). The cause of this change is not altogether clear but it may be associated with the tendency observed elsewhere to avoid final accentuation in forms of more than two syllables : cf. trivftas as opposed to rcds t and aksdbhis as opposed to aksnd. It may also be due partly to influence of locative infinitives where the regular accent was on the suffix. A few' action nouns in -as have also acquired suffixal accent,
