ANALYTIC ORTHOGRAPHY. 333 
the teeth,) it has been found that ebb requires about 4 inch; add about -§; and A, awe, 
froma" tole. 
349. This has a practical bearing on the proper determination of the state and position 
of a vowel, for as any one may vary a little in aperture without being considered distinct, 
we must determine or assume a certain phase as normal, and then add a mark for the 
closer and more open phases. The open phase might be represented by the minute circle 
used by Lepsius for open consonants, and the close phase by a minute plus mark. For 
example 6-bey and odd have smaller apertures (are higher notes) than owe and awe, and 
they should have some distinguishing mark, but shall we consider odd the standard and 
give awe the opening mark, or do the reverse, and mark odd as a close awe? Shall worth 
be considered a closer worm, urn, or as the normal form? 
STOPT VOWELS. 
350. The name of stopt vowels has been given to certain short English sounds, a term 
likely to mislead if it is taken to mean a particular kind of vowels, rather than an effect 
to which any vowel may be subjected, whether connected with other elements, or detached. 
Thus the short vowels of it, add, odd, obey, may be detached and lengthened, without fall- 
ing into eel, arm, awe, owe; eight is nearly as much stopt as et, and there is no more dif- 
ference in the vowel effect between 7 and eat, lid ‘and lead, than between load and laud. 
351. In some languages there is a staccato or stopt effect, as in Chinese, where Medhurst 
(Dict. p. xxxviil.) writes a syllable kih,—“ the presence of the 4 however does not inti- 
mate that the latter part of the word is aspirated, but only that it is contracted and sud- 
denly stopped, before the full sound of the word is completed.”* 
35la. These stopt vowels occur in the West African Grébo (‘the active race,’ gré a jumper, 
climber, a monkey; bo kind, race,) as in so.plo' the upper arm, (so, arm;) ctina' knee, 
youv; cvactri' palm of the hand (cva hand, ctri' belly; bo leg, bo-ctiri sole of the foot; 
ceva‘ca back of the hand; bo-pl6 foot, a trissyllable, § 168. See the 28th, 29th, and 
30th words of the Lord’s Prayer in Cherokee, § 624; but the proper mark for the stopt 
vowels is one which is difficult to print with ordinary type—a Greek aspirate (-) inverted 
(.) and raised to the top of the line. The notation here is that of this essay, with v as 
English w. 
QUANTITY. 
302. The length of vowels, and in some cases of consonants, is a most important point of 
notation, without which books cannot be read as a native would read them, unless the 
reader has acquired a knowledge of the words independently. 
* Perhaps this effect should be indicated by whatever mark is used for the Chinese final p, ¢, cay, (§ 171,) 
when the breath is not allowed to pass after the consonant, as in allowing the lips to remain closed at the end of tap. 
