836 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SER, * - 
'N the Monthly Magazine, for Novem- 
, Si ber laft, page 332, your intelligent 
Correfpondent O. E. I. exprefles. a with; 
that your valuable and widely circulated 
Mifcellany may become the receptacie of 
communications en the method obferved 
of reading the Latin and Greek poets in! 
fome of our moft refpectable feminaries, 
and by fome of our celebrated claffical 
{cholars. In this with, I am perfuaded, 
every ftudent in the languages of Athens 
- and Rome, will naturally participate with 
your Correfpondent, from a defire of feeing 
fo interefting a fubject brought forward 
and difcufled with ability ; and I hope, 
that the gentlemen whem O.E. [. has > 
named, and upon whom he has called, will 
feel themfelves difpofed to comply with his 
requeit, and communicate to the public to 
what extent in their practice, the method 
is obferved cf reading the Latin and Greek 
poets, fe as to preferve the charms of due 
quantity in the feet, and confequent melo- 
dy inthe general effect. I am fure, Sir, 
however, that many of your readers would 
be glad to perufe fuch communicaticns, 
which might, perhaps, fet at re% for ever 
the controverfies which have arifen on the 
method to be adopted in reading the Latin 
and Greek claffics. eee 
In this paper, I with to excite the atten-. 
tion of your readers to the nature of. ac- 
cent, if you fhall think the prefent Jetter 
deferving of:a place in the Monthly Maga- 
zine. 
In fome late Numbers a few obfervations 
have been made by different Corre{pon- 
dents on certain parts of Mr. Lindley 
Murray’s Englifh Grammar and Exercifes. 
' Both thefe performances are undoubtedly 
excellent ; but, like every other work, the 
are necefiarily imperfect ; nihil ef? ab cmni 
parte beatum, is a truth which cannot be 
denied. In his definition of the word ac- 
cent, Mr. Murray does not appear to have 
been more happy, than'in fome other parts 
of his works which have been noticed in 
the Monthly Magazine. ‘* Accent,”’ fays 
Mr. M, * is the laying of a peculiar 
ftrefs of the voice, on a certain letter or 
fyllable of a werd, that it may be better 
heard than the reft, or diftinguifhed from 
them : as, in the word prefume, the frefs 
of the voice muf@ be on the letter w, and 
fecond fyllable fume, which take the ac- 
cent.”* 
This definition does not feem to be juf#, 
ee me 
* Eighth Edition, page 199. 
Method of reading the Latin and Greek Poets, 
[April 1, 
unlefs the word accent bé now’ ufed ina 
different fignification from what it formerly 
denoted. 
from accino, becaufe the ietter or fyllable 
on which it is placed requires a certain 
_-modulation of the voice. The correfpond. 
ing Greek word zpocwa is alfo derived 
from #%, a fong; and ityhas been 
well oblerved by one of the ancients, that 
mufic differs from ordinary difcourfe, only 
in the number of its tones (Dicnys. Hiali- 
carnas, wees covder.) If I were therefore to 
define accent, I would call it the raifiag 
or depreffing of the tone of the voice in pro- 
nouncing a certain letter or fyllable. 
In the human veice we may obferve 
three particulars ; fir’ a variety of tones 
wnich naturally rife above, or fall below 
each other; fecondly a power of fhortening 
or lengthening any of thofe tones and, 
thirdly, {pirit or emphafis, which, by a 
greater profufion of breath, gives an afpi- 
ration to a fingle letter, or marks with pe- 
culiar earneftnefs fome particular fentence 
in a word, or fome particular word ina 
fentence. 
If thefe obfervations are juft, it necef- 
farily follows that Mr. Murray has mif- 
taken fpirit or emphafis for accent; and 
that this has been really the cafe, feems 
evident from the fimilarity which exifts in 
his definition of the two words. »«* By 
emphafis,” fays he, ‘* is meant a ftronger 
and fuller {cund of voice, by which we 
difttinguifh fome word or werds on which 
we defign to lay particular ftrefs, and to 
fhew how they affect the reft of the fen- 
tenc:.* 
In Dr, Carey’s Latin Profody made Eafy, 
which is a very uleful work, and executed 
with ability, is the follawieg pafiage :— 
‘* By Dr. Bentley, the great champion of 
accent, we are taught (de Metr. Terent.) 
that Malim, &c. are to be-accented onthe 
fina! tyllable; and accordingly; in the firt 
icene of the Andria,- we find no lefs than 
filty-five-words fo accented by him, as 
‘Aderat, Igitir, &eo°+ 
In this paflage Dr. Carey has confounded 
the :4us accentuum of Dr. Bentley, which - 
regard metre only, with the general accent 
of the Roman language. That thefe 4us 
accentuum, as they have been improperly 
called by Dawes and Bentley, referred to 
the general divifions of the verfe, and to 
the mannct in which it eught to be feanned, 
appears from their uniform pofition. If 
we confult Dr. Bentley’s Terence, we fhall 
find them placed, without exception, on 
the latter fyllable of the former foot of gach — 
a 
* Page 198. “> Page son 
dipodias 
Accent is faid to be derived. 
