166 Mr. Harvey's Obfervations 
thirteen, different, fimple vowel-founds, there are no. 
more than feven characters; which are applied in: 
all cafes, without any kind of point for diftinction.: 
Whilft the Germans, without incumbering their 
words with many ufelefs letters, have, by fmall 
marks, nicely diftinguifhed all the varieties of vowels 
ufed in their language. So that whoever fhall have: 
been once taught the genuine found of their letters, 
will find no infuperable difficulty in reading their 
language.t And certainly particular marks, for 
the 
_ Here the found of one ending depends not upon its 
own intrinfic form, as it ought to do, but upon the rhyme 
of the next line. Now if any perfon of a future age 
were to read the above paflage, and be obftinate in pro- 
nouncing the firft ending —jaz/, he, on his part, might fay, 
perhaps, that the word, which fhould chime thereto, was 
wrong; and, that it ought to be whale: however, without 
fuch - correétion, it would be as fine nonfenfe, in blank 
verfe ; for it could not be fuppofed that each individual 
merits imprifonment: and the vifitation of prifons is too 
rare a virtue for all men to put in praé¢tice, however in- 
clined they might be to imitate the examples of a Howard. 
t The author of an excellent little “ Efflay on Punc- 
tuation,”* appears no friend to fuch a method of defining 
the found.of words; but cenfures the French language, 
and not altogether without caufe, on account of the 
multitude of its accents; adding, “ that our language hasi 
«“ happily efcaped this horrid incumbrance, and preferved 
‘a beautiful fimplicity.” It may be worthy of, notice, ° 
that law manufcripts are feldom encumbered by what this | 
gentleman has fo fuccefsfully written upon, Punétuation ; 
here, 
* Printed for J. Walter, Charing Crofs, 1786. 
