168 Mr. Harvey’s Obfervations 
mufical founds: <A, flat, differs from A, natural, 
and is, therefore, properly diftinguifhed by a 
‘certain mark, b. but, were fuch note in the key, 
and no mark added, he muft poffefs a mufician’s 
fkill and quickuefs of mufical apprehenfion, who, 
in playing fuch apparent note, would not, at firft, 
miftake the key, and produce a diffonance. A 
well practifed mufician might alfo, it is true, in 
a 
certain degree, fo accommodate an ill tuned 
violin, that by his fkill he fhould produce fome 
melody therefrom; though it is certain, that he 
could much better, and more agreeably, manage an 
infttument, whofe tones were well adjufted: for 
example, intending to produce the tone, B, he 
might {hift his finger to that part of the ftring, 
which, if it were in tune, might poffibly appear 
a note or two above or below that pofition; fo, not 
having a well marked alphabet, we occafionally 
A 
turn a into ’a or e; e into ie; I into OI or AI; 
O into A; and U into the diphthong IU or Ruffian 
FO, and alfo into the Hebrew kibbuts. 
Concerning the vowel, Y, Dr. Johnfon, in two 
places of his grammar, gives the two following, con- 
tradictory accounts, only one of which can be true: 
° 
ce 
oe 
ce 
o 
ce 
ca 
ce 
ft. ** Y, is a vowel, which, as Quintilian ob- 
ferves of one of the Roman letters, we mighty. 
want without inconvenience, but that we have it. 
Y being the Saxon vowel y, which was commonly 
ufed where 7 is now put, occurs very frequently 
**-in all old books.” 
edly. “ Y, 
