TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 143 



all parts, and sensibly wider in the frontal region, and at the angles and condyles of 

 the lower jaw. This increased breadth at the two extremities, with want of elevation 

 of forehead, imparted to the countenance that quadrangular appearance so com- 

 monly observed in the statues of ancient Romans of Consular and Imperial times. 

 The calvariuni in tlie typical British skull is marked by particular shortness ; that of 

 the ancient Roman viewed vertically is not remarkable for shortness, whilst it pre- 

 serves a considerable breadth. It is fully half an inch longer than the British, and 

 yet somewhat wider. Commencing in the frontal region, this width extends to the 

 temporal in all its parts, and to the parietal. It is on this feature we are disposed to 

 rest its peculiarity, and to call it •platy-cej)haUc, to express that especially expanded 

 form belonging to it without marked loftiness. Probably ancient British and Roman 

 skulls agree pretty closely in elevation. The well-known peculiarity in the nasal 

 bones of the -latter, mostly conjoined with remarkable breadth and elevation of the 

 nasal process of the superior maxillary, is another typical mark. 



The author next refers to two selected from several skulls obtained from burials on 

 the Via Appia — to a series derived from the Roman cemetery without the south- 

 western gate of Eburacum in 1 852 — to others obtained from the Roman Cemetery of 

 Londinium in the Borough, dug up from the 'Roman level' about 16 feet below the 

 present surface. He compares the physical characters of the ancient Romans with 

 those which may still be observed in the modern population of Italy, and infers that 

 " notwithstanding the vicissitudes of all the ages intervening between the present 

 and imperial times, we have just ground for believing that the indicia of the ancient 

 Roman people are still unextinguished in their descendants." He concludes by sug- 

 gesting the inquiry into the degree in which these peculiarities of the Romans may 

 be traced in the people of Britain. 



On a Universal Alphabet with ordinary Letters for the use of Geographers, 

 Ethnologists, ^c. By Alexander J. Ellis, B.A., F.CP.S. 



The problem to be solved is, Given an ordinary foiuit of roman (or italic) letters, 

 consisting of capitals, small capitals and small letters, v^ith stops, but without ac- 

 cented letters (as these are seldom supplied in sufficient quantities), to write the 

 sound of any word in any language with a correctness intelligible to a native. The 

 solution should contain provision for the use of existing accented letters when feasible, 

 and for a rougher approximation when sufficient. 



In the following digraphic alphabet the first column contains the rough approxi- 

 mation, with the duplicate accented letter, the second its explanation, together with 

 the finer approximations. Thus a may be used for G. mann, E. man, F. pate, or 

 these three sounds may be distinguished as a, ae or a, and aa or a. Again, aao or 

 ao or 00 may represent the long sound of ou in nowght. Capitals are only used as 

 initials. 



Digraphic Alphabet arranged in the order of the Roman Alphabet, 



E. English, G. German, F. French, I. Italian, S. Sanscrit, Sc. Sanscrit cerebral, 

 A. Arabic, Ad. Arabic dental. 



A a. G. monu fa) ; E. man (ae, a) ; F. 

 patte (aa, a). 

 aa (a). E. father (aa, a) ; F, pate (aaa, 



aa, aa). 

 ao (o). E. not (ao, o) ; I. rocco (03,03,6). 

 aao (ao, 00). E. nought; I. poco (00a, 



6a, 00a, 6a, 66). 

 ai. G. mein (ai) , E. m?ne (ai). 

 aoi, E. hoy (aoi) ; G. eu\& (aue, aii). 

 au. G. h(7?/s (ail) ; K. ho2<se (an). 

 aa, F. c\\ant. 

 B b. E. be. 



C c. Af. cluck (c), cerebral (,c,cq), palatal 

 (cj), dental (cc), side (ck). 



D d. E. do (d) ; Sc. a; ( d) ; Ad. d (dd). 



dh. E. th^. 



dzh. E. judge. 



dg. Hungarian Ma^?/ar (dj). 

 £ e. F. 4 (e) ; E. men (ea, ea, e). 



ee (e). E. mane (ee, e) ; F. bete (eea, 

 ea, eea, ea, ee). 



ea. F. vin. 

 2" 3. E. nut. 



oa. F. un. 

 Ff. E.face (f) ; Greek (f> (ph). 

 Gg. E. go (g) ; F. ^ueux (gj). 



gh. G. tag (gh), teig (jh) ; A. ghain 

 (gvh). 



