1861.] 321 [Consonants. 



or a labial becomes a dental ; besides a few other interchanges of con- 

 sonants of different classes, noticed by comparative philology. AVhile, 

 therefore, all the vowels together form one circle or oval, which may 

 run either from left to right or from right to left, the consonants 

 form three separate circles, all of which run only from right to left. 



[Rem. — The same discordant views which we notice among the 

 phonologists and grammarians with regard to the definition of the 

 particular stations in the vocal tube where the articulation of the 

 several consonants is effected, and in their manner of naming them 

 afterwards, we observe in the account which they give of the formation 

 of the several consonants in each station and in the names which 

 they give to them. 



With regard to the difference between the hard and soft conso- 

 nants, Dr. Briicke says, page 55 : " In all the systems elaborated by 

 linguists who have studied comparative phonology, the soft conso- 

 nants have been classed among the sonant letters, because phoneti- 

 cally they are as much related to the sonant fluid consonants, as the 

 hard consonants are related to the non-sonant fluid consonants; still 

 some of them hesitate to class them among the sonant consonants, 

 because at one short period of their articulation the voice is inter- 

 mitted. However, in some instances, the voice really continues to 

 sound after the station has been closed, and, whenever this is not 

 the case, the glottis is still contracted and ready to vibrate, which is 

 never the case with the non-sonant consonants. The reason why the 

 voice in the pronunciation of the soft consonants really does cease, 

 is because the difference in the pressure of the air in the chest and 

 in the cavity of the mouth is not sufiiciently great to cause a current 

 of air by which the glottis may be rendered vocal. During the 

 entire duration of the closing of the station, in the pronunciation of 

 the soft consonants, the glottis is ever ready to vibrate, and, there- 

 fore, as soon as the station is opened the voice continues to sound in 

 the same way as it did before it was closed. This is the essential 

 difference between the pronunciation of the hard and soft consonants." 

 In support of his argument Dr. Brticke gives an account of the inte- 

 resting manner in which the modern Greeks transcribe the soft con- 

 sonants. The old Greek soft consonants /? and d, in the course of 

 time have become fluid, and the ancient /? is pronounced by the 

 moclern Greeks like v, and 3 like th. In order, then, to represent 

 the soft consonants in their language, in the case of the labial soft 

 consonant, they take the sonant labial semi-vowel /j., which is pro- 

 nounccd with the glottis contracted, and place it before the hard 



