174 Mr. Harvey's Obfervations 
Thus the following feven feem to be the primary 
or fulleft vowels : 
2. 1. 
q- 5- 3- 
Boma v3: eet Ge We Sea 
and the variations are thefe five very fhort vowels, 
which 
Again: “Le Genre chromatique de Mufique eft celui qui 
«¢ procéde par plufieurs femi-tons confecutifs. Ce mot viens 
« du Grec KG |utt, qui fignifie couleur, foit parceque les 
‘“* Grecs marquoient ce genre par des caractéres rouges, ou 
“ diverfement colorés; foit, difent les Auteurs, parceque 
“le genre chromatique eft moyen entre les deux autres, 
“‘ comme la couleur eft moyenne entre le blanc et le noir; 
“ou, felon d’ autres, parce que ce genre varie et embellit 
“‘ le Diatonique par fes demi-tons, qui font, dans la mufique 
« le méme effet que la variété des couleurs fait dans la 
‘“ peinture.” Ibid, 
There are very few, I am perfuaded, who will mifun- 
derftand this theory as a fuppofition, that the vowels, in 
common {peech, are mufical notes, any more than the 
primitive colours are fuch: fince mufical notes depend 
upon the more extenfive powers of the larynx and ep- 
glottis, this ferving to the former as the fingers do in 
performing onthe flute, to vary its aperture, and thence 
confequently to increafe or diminifh the moment of any 
one given quantity of air propelled through {uch varied 
aperture, and thus producing intonation.§ But the vowels 
have 
§ Hippocrates, in his firft book megh diairys, fays that 
the tongue imitates mufic (yAdeou paomyy. wipéereu) 
whereas the tongue does not feem neceflary to forming 
tones. One of its principal ufes is the articulation of 
fpeech. 
