1896. The subjunctive is used with #quam# or #quam ut# after
comparatives denoting disproportion (1461): as,
#quicquid erat oneris Segestānīs impōnēbat, aliquantō amplius quam ferre
possent#, _V._ 4, 76, _he would impose every possible burden on the
Segestans, far too much for them to bear_. #quis nōn intellegit Canachī
sīgna rigidiōra esse, quam ut imitentur vēritātem?# _Br._ 70, _who does
not feel that the statues of Canachus are too stiff to be true to
nature?_ #clārior rēs erat quam ut dissimulārī posset#, L. 26, 51, 11,
_the thing was too notorious to be hushed up_. Instead of #ut#, #quī# is
also used by Livy and later writers: as, #maior sum quam cui possit
Fortūna nocēre#, O. 6, 195, _too strong am I for Fortune to break down_,
says infatuated Niobe. All these sentences are extensions of the
subjunctive of action conceivable (1554, 1818).
1897. The subjunctive is used in clauses introduced by #potius quam#,
_rather than_, to denote action merely assumed. #citius#, #ante#, or
#prius#, _sooner_, is sometimes used in the sense of #potius#: as,
#potius quam tē inimīcum habeam, faciam ut iusseris#, T. _Eu._ 174,
_rather than make you my enemy, I will do as you tell me_. #dēpugnā
potius quam serviās#, _Att._ 7, 7, 7, _fight it out rather than be a
slave_. #potius vituperātiōnem incōnstantiae suscipiam, quam in tē sim
crūdēlis#, _V._ 5, 105, _I will submit to the charge of inconsistency
rather than be cruel towards you_. #animam omittunt prius quam locō
dēmigrent#, Pl. _Am._ 240, _they lose their lives sooner than yield
their ground_. Livy has also #potius quam ut#. All these sentences are
extensions of the subjunctive of desire (1540, 1817).