་ The five femivowels, which are in their own nature agreeable to the ear, when their found is continued, are, , n, v, z, ng ; and of these is by far the sweetest. Examples of L. Swell the bold note Fulfil your pleasure— whilst horror chill Thrills thro' my veins It pulls my heartstrings Of N. Can we then bear, &c. Begin then fifters of the facred well- O fun, to tell thee how I hate thy beams. Of V. Have we foon forgot the fatal day? And can I live to fee her ravish'd from me? forget! forgive! I muft indeed forget, when I forgive. Of Of Z. This character feldom ends a fyllable, but its place is supplied by s, which borrows its found. As, -It was, but is no more. Nor is the continuation of its found fo agreeable as that of the others, there being too much of the breath mixed with it; but it is often very expreffive. As the waves Buzzing and booming round my wretched head. with red hot fpits Come hizzing in upon them. Of Ng then springs as broke from bonds Who would not fing for Lycidas Wings his steep flight that hill and vallies ring. Rules to be obferved in founding the confonants. 1. None of them are to be prolonged, except when the accent is upon them; which can only happen when pre ceded by a fhort founding vowel. As, tell, When a long found precedes, can, come. the voice muft dwell on the vowel, and take in the confonant to the fyllable in its shortest found; otherwife, were they both dwelt upon, the fyllable would take up the time of two long founds, and would therefore seem to be two. As vale rain bra ve days. This is an article very neceffary to be attended to by the natives of Scotland, who are apt to prolong the found of a femivowel after a long vowel. 2. Their found is never to be prolonged, except in monofyllables, or final fyllables of other words. As, But we must not fay, The fwel-ling note Fulfil-ling all The can-nons roar, &c. For this would be to tranfgrefs the fundamental laws of accent (the nature of which Thall presently be explained) by feparating fyllables from words to which they belong, and transferring them to the next. Yet, in cafes of emotion, for the fake of expreffion, this rule may be tranfgreffed. As, O bal-my breath! Go bar-barous man! Būz-zing and bōō-ming round my wretched head. 3. Neither confonant, nor vowel, are to be dwelt upon beyond their common quantity, when they clofe a fentence. Thus in this line, And if I lofe thy love—I lofe my all The found of the word love may be prolonged, as the sense is not completed; but that of all, though equally emphatical, must not be continued beyond its common. time, as it clofes the fenfe. If we tranf pose the members of the line, the thing will be reverfed; as thus I lofe my all-if I should lofe thy love. Here the time is increased in the word all, and that of love reduced to its common quantity. This rule is alfo very neceffary to be attended to by the natives of Scotland, as the dwelling upon the last words of fentences conftitutes one material difference between the English fpeech and theirs. 4. When confonants begin a word, or a fyllable, they must be founded short; and great care must be taken that before their union with the following letter, they be not preceded by any confused found of their own. This is very disagreeable to the ear, and is destructive of all proportion of quantity in fyllables, and yet is no uncommon fault. The not attending to this in pronouncing the letter s, has been the chief caufe |