hitherto been done, but according to a juft gradation like a mufical fcale, marking the regular process of the inftrument in forming them, from its greatest aperture to its fmalleft, proceeding from its fullest to its most flender founds, and ranking the long before the fhort. Thus in pronouncing the long vowels in the following order,

hall hat hate here note prove we fhew a juft and regular fcale by which

the voice proceeds in marking those sounds.

3

a is the fulleft found, made by the greatest aperture of the mouth, and the voice strikes upon that part of the palate which is neareft to the paffage by which the voice iffues;

2

a is formed by a gradually lefs aperture and the stroke of the voice more advanced; a in like proportion ftill more fo; and in founding e the mouth is almost closed and

the ftroke of the voice near the teeth. These are the only long vowels formed within the mouth. After that, the feat of

2

articulation is advanced to the lips; o being formed by a small pushing out of the lips in a figure resembling the circular charac

3

ter which represents that found; and o, by advancing the lips ftill more, and pushing the found out through a chink or foramen more of the oblong kind. So that whoever will give but a flight attention in repeating these vowels in this order, will perceive a regular and gradual progreffion of the voice, from the first seat of articulation to

3 1 2 3 2 3

the extreme as a a a e o o. It were to be wished that children were taught to dwell fome time upon thefe long vowels in uttering them, and not to reduce them to fhort quantities as is too often the case; for the beauty of obferving a proportional quantity between long and short syllables, de

pends

pends chiefly upon the habitual power of prolonging the founds of thofe vowels. As to the three fhort vowels, which are incapable of prolongation, it will be only neceffary that they should be taught to give them their due founds, by repeating fyllables which contain them, fuch as thofe For as

1

before-mentioned, bet, fit, cub.

these vowels never close a fyllable in our language, it would be found difficult, as well as unneceffary, to pronounce them feparately. To these vowels I would also add two characters which appear in our alphabet, and which I would call not by the names of y w, as is the cuftom, but ee 00; for reafons which will appear when I fpeak of diphthongs.

Having mastered the founds of the vowels, the confonants are next to be repeated in the following manner, placing a vowel before each of them, and not fometimes before

C 4

way,

before and fometimes after, as is the usual for reasons which will presently appear. Eb ed ef eg ek el em en ep er es et ev ez eth eth eh ezh ing.-In this lift all the fimple confonant founds of our tongue are heard, and after them I would place the four letters before-mentioned, founded thus:

C

j

q

X

3

ek or fee edge qua eks or egz

-by which pronunciation their nature and powers will be fhewn.

The confonants should then be divided into two claffes, mutes and femivowels. The mutes are thofe whofe founds cannot be prolonged. The femivowels fuch whose founds can be continued at pleasure, partaking of the nature of vowels, from which they derive their name. There are fix mutes, eb, ed, eg, ek, ep, et. And thir

teen femivowels, ef, el, em, en, er, es, ev, ez, eth, eth, efh, ezh, ing.

The mutes may be subdivided into pure and impure. The pure are those whose founds cannot be at all prolonged.

These are ek, ep, et. The impure are those

whofe founds

may

a very short space.

be continued, though for

These are eb, ed, eg. The femivowels may be fubdivided into vocal and afpirated. The vocal, are those which are formed by the voice; the afpirated, those formed by the breath. There are nine vocal, and four aspirated. The vo cal are, el, em, en, er, ev, ez, eth, ezh, ing. The afpirated, ef, es, eth, efh. The vocal femivowels may be subdivided into pure and impure. The pure, fuch as are formed entirely by the voice. The impure, fuch as have a mixture of breath with the voice,

There are five pure-el em en er ing,

Four

impure-ev ez eth ezh,