Hi, Alexander!  Recently you wrote in a message to All:

ak>  -------------------

ak>  He meant for us to dig. I'll have Joe fetch a shovel 
AK>  as soon as we (come to him)."

ak>  ...

ak>  "Well, that was easy," said Kate, putting the letter 
ak>  away inside her bucket. "Now all we have to do is get 
ak>  there!"

ak>  -------------------

ak>  If I were they :) I'd write "I'll have Joe _to_ fetch a
ak>  shovel" and "Now all we have to do is _to_ get there!"



ak>  Why do those Infinitives are without "to"?


         In formal English, the preposition is generally included where it may not always be in colloquial speech.  What I see here is a private conversation (i.e. you may notice turns of phrase Miss Stickler didn't accept).  That's the easy explanation for the last sentence... the other is more complex.  Although it struck me as "not English" with the added preposition, I wasn't really sure why until after wading through multiple definitions of the verb "to have".  It seems that if "have" means a third party will be asked &/or required to do the job the preposition is omitted, as in the first sentence you asked about.  :-)




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+