1861.] 307 [Vowels. 



age and /are, also corresponding short sounds are found in other lan- 

 guages, and, especially, in the Grerman ; but in English they seem 

 to be both merged in one short sound. Yet an acute ear detects a 

 difference between the short English e in edge, and the same letter 

 vafell. The following table gives a synopsis of all the long and 

 short vowel-sounds in use in the English language : 



9. her, bird, fur, icord, either long or short. 

 10. love, hut, always short. 



From this table it may be seen that in the English language there 

 are eight long and six short vowel-sounds, and one which is common, 

 I. e., which can be pronounced either long or short. Of the eight 

 long sounds, two have no corresponding short sounds, and of the six 

 short, there is one which has no corresponding long sound. There 

 are, therefore, in the English language, altogether fifteen distinct 

 long and short vowels. 



In addition to this, it must be stated that in the English language, 

 more than in any other, quantity is dependent on the accent which 

 is given to a syllable, and on the emphasis which a word receives in 

 the sentence. In the English language, the long and short vowels 

 are distinctly uttered only in those syllables which are accented, 

 while in the unaccented syllables they are rendered more or less in- 

 distinct, and in a hurried pronunciation even pass entirely off into 

 the indistinct or unmodified vowel, as we have seen above. Such 

 words again, as, when pronounced by themselves, have a decidedly 

 long sound, become short in quantity, both in poetry and in common 

 conversation, when they hold a subordinate position in the sentence. 

 This feature of making quantity entirely subservient to the stress in 

 the sentence, is peculiar to the English language, and distinguishes 

 it as much from other languages as its system of pronunciation and 

 grammar. Indeed, to my mind, it is only another instance of the 

 spirit of the language conquering its forms. 



Besides the regular long and short sounds exhibited in the above 

 table, which are pronounced in the accented syllables, there are con- 

 sequently as many shades of each of these sounds in the unaccented 



