107 



ADDITIONAL NOTES. XV. 

 ANALYSIS OF ARTICULATE SOUNDS. 



The tongue, the lips articulate; the throat 



With soft vibration modulates the note. CANTO III. 1. 367. 



HAVING explained in the preceding account of the theory of lan- 

 guage that it consists solely of nouns, or the names of ideas, disposed 

 in succession or combination ; I shall now attempt to investigate the 

 number of the articulate sounds, which constitute those names of 

 ideas by their successions and combinations; and to show by what 

 parts of the organs of speech they are modulated and articulated; 

 whence may be deduced the precise number of letters or symbols 

 necessary to suggest those sounds, and form an alphabet, which may 

 spell with accuracy the words of all languages. 



I. Imperfections of the present Alphabet. 



t 



It is much to be lamented, that the alphabet, which has produced 

 and preserved almost all the improvements in other arts and sciences, 

 should have itself received no improvement in modern times; which 

 have added so much elucidation to almost every branch of knowledge, 

 that can meliorate the condition of humanity. Thus in our present 

 alphabets many letters are redundant, others are wanted; some simple 

 articulate sounds have two letters to suggest them; and in other 

 instances two articulate sounds are suggested by one letter. Some of 

 these imperfections in the alphabet of our own language shall be here 

 enumerated. 



