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aliquando. Ut in illo Plauti loco: Non Atticissat, sed Sicilissat, pro áttixiČei, oixeλíÇε, Græcis; et ubi initium facit, est do, non oo, sicuti Cùs, non oσεus, sed dous. Ram. in lib. 2.

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Nulli dubium est, faucibus emicet quod ipsis
H litera sive est nota, quæ spiret anhelum. Ter.
H, contractis paulùm faucibus, ventus exhalat.
Mar. Cap.

Vocalibus aptè, sed et anteposita cunctis

Hastas, Hederas, quùm loquor, Hister, Hospes,
Hujus.

Solum patitur quatuor ante consonantes,
Græcis quoties nominibus Latina forma est,

Si quando Choros Phillida, Rhamnes, Thima, dico. Rectè quidem in hâc parte Græcissant nostri Walli. Smithus.

H verò xar' Eox aspiratio vocatur. Est enim omnium literarum spirituosissima, vel spiritus potiùs ipse. Nullius, aut quàm minimùm egens officii eorum, quæ modò nominavimus instrumenta literarum formandarum.

H extrinsecus ascribitur omnibus Vocalibus, ut minimum sonet; Consonantibus autem quibusdam intrinsecus.

Ch.

a Omnis litera, sive vox, plus sonat ipsa sese, cum postponitur, quàm cùm anteponitur. Quod vocalibus accidens esse videtur; nec si tollatur ea, perit etiàm vis significationis; ut, si dicam Erennius, absque aspiratione, quamvis vitium videar facere, intellectus tamen integer permanet. Consonantibus autem si cohæret, ut ejusdem penitus substantiæ sit, et si auferatur, significationis vim minuat prorsùs; ut, si

people, that have zed, zay, zit, zo, zome, and the like; for said, say, sit, so, some.

Or in the body of words indenizened, i. e. derived from the Greek, and commonly used as English; as azure, zeal, zephyre, &c.

C

H

Whether it be a letter or no, hath been much examined by the ancients, and by some of the Greek party too much condemned, and thrown out of the alphabet, as an aspirate merely, and in request only before vowels in the beginning of words. The Welsh retain it still after many consonants. But be it a letter, or spirit, we have great use of it in our tongue, both before and after vowels. And though I dare not say she is (as I have heard one call her) the queen-mother of consonants; yet she is the life and quickening of c, g, p, s, t, w; as also when derived from the aspirate Greek ; as cheat, ghost, alphabet, shape, that, what, rhapsody.

Of which more hereafter.

What her powers are before vowels and diphthongs, will appear in

as

hall, heal, hill, hot, how, hew, hoiday, &c.

In some it is written, but sounded without power;

host, honest, humble;

where the vowel is heard without the aspiration; as ost, onest, umble.

After the vowel it sounds; as in ah, and oh.

Beside, it is coupled with divers consonants, where the force varies, and is particularly to be examined. We will begin with Ch.

Ch.

d Hath the force of the Greek X, or x, in many words derived from the Greek; as in

charact, christian, chronicle, archangel, monarch.

dicam Cremes, pro Chremes. Unde hâc consideratâ ratione, Græcorum doctissimi singulas fecêrunt eas quoque literas, ut pro

e

th 0, pro ph e, pro chi X. Ram.

Gh.

• Sonum illius g quærant, quibus ità libet scribere ; aures profectò meæ nunquam in his vocibus sonitum To g poterant haurire.

Smithus de rect. et emend.

Ph. et Rh.

↑ Litera & apud Græcos, & aspirata.

Sh.

8 Si quis error in literis ferendus est, cùm corrigi queat, nusquàm in ullo sono tolerabilior est, quàm in hoc, si scribatur Sh: et in þ si scribatur per th. Nam hæ duæ quandam violentiam grandiorem spiritus in proferendo requirunt, quàm cæteræ litera. Ibid.

Th.

h Hâc litera sive charactere, quam spinam, id est, porne, nostri Proavi appellabant, Avi nostri, et qui proximè ante librorum impressionem vixerunt, sunt abusi, ad omnia ea scribenda, quæ nunc magno magistrorum errore per th scribimus; ut

pe. pou bat. pom. pese pick.

Sed ubi mollior exprimebatur sonus, supernè scribebant: ubi durior in eodem sulco; molliorem appello illum, quem Anglo-Saxones per duriorem, quem per p, exprimebant. Nam illud Saxonum respondet illi sono, quem vulgaris Græca lingua facit, quando pronunciant suum &, aut Hispani d, literam suam molliorem, ut cùm veritatem, verdad appellant. Spina autem illa þ, videtur referre prorsùs Græcorum 0. At th sonum ◊ non rectè dat. Nam si esset alia deflexio vocis, nisi aspirationis additæ, æquè facile fuit Græcis TT aspirationem adjungere, quàm

TW p.

non

In mere English words, or fetched from the Latin, the force of the Italian c.

e

chaplain, chast, chest, chops,
chin, chuff, churl.

Gh.

* Is only a piece of ill writing with us: if we could obtain of custom to mend it, it were not the worse for our language, or us: for the g sounds just nothing in trough, cough, might, night, &c.

Only the writer was at leisure to add a superfluous letter, as there are too many in our pseudography. Ph & Rh.

f Are used only in Greek infranchised words; as Philip, physic, rhetoric, Rhodes, &c.

Sh

8 Is merely English, and hath the force of the Hebrew v shin, or the French ch; as in

shake, shed, shine, show,
shrink, rush, blush.

Th

1 Hath a double and doubtful sound, which must be found out by use of speaking; sometimes like the Greek; as in

thief, thing, lengthen, strengthen, loveth, &c. In others, like their ♪, or the Spanish d; as this, that, then, thence, those, bathe, bequeath.

And in this consists the greatest difficulty of our alphabet, and true writing: since we have lost the Saxon characters and p that distinguished

de, dou,

pick,

dine,

from pin,

phred,

So,

phrive.

Wh

Hath been enquired of in w. And this for the

letters.

CHAP. V.

OF THE DIPHTHONGS.

IPHTHONGS are the complexions or
couplings of vowels, when the two letters
send forth a joint sound, so as in one
syllabe both sounds be heard; as in
Ai, or Ay,

aid, maid, said, pay, day, way.

Au, or Aw,

audience, author, aunt, law, saw, draw.

Ea,

earl, pearl, meat, seat, sea, flea.

To which add yea and plea; and you have at one view all our words of this termination.

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puissance, or puyssance; juice, or juyce.

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