When two elements having the same sound occur, they cannot both be uttered without making a pause between them. Where the elements are duplicated, if they admit of it, one is prolonged as in alleviate—annihilate -immediate. If the element is a mute or necessarily short, there is a perceptible stop to be made after it, as in at-tend-ap-pear, &c. This stop is not however, to be so long as to produce affectation. To avoid this the prolongation or pause must not be extended farther than is necessary to absolute distinctness. This may be insured in the articulation under these circumstances without pedantry.

TABLE OF CONSONANTS AND VOWELS :

THE CONSONANTS BEING PLACED FIRST.

The following consonant sounds which are all aspirates should never be prolonged beyond what is necessary to distinct articulation, f, s, h, wh, th, sh, ch.

The student should exercise himself in uttering these alone, and in putting a sudden stop to the sound of each of them, the instant it has distinctly impressed the ear.

A few specimens of the sounds heard in the junction of some of these consonants and vowels, are here given as examples of the mode of uniting all the elements in practising on this table.

No. I. of the above sounds is effected by uniting No. 1 of the consonant table with No. 6 of the vowel: No. II. by uniting No. 3 of the consonant table with No. 11 of the vowel: No. III. by uniting No. 8 of the consonant table with No. 16 of the vowel; No. IV. by uniting No. 11 of the consonants with No. 10 of the vowels : No, V. by uniting consonant No. 15 with vowel No. 13:

No. VI. by uniting No. 18 with 11: No. VII. by uniting No. 23 with No. 6.

In the use of the foregoing table let every consonant (except the mutes and aspirates) be considerably protracted, and then exploded without pause upon every vowel, the vowels not being protracted more than is necessary to their simple articulation. Let the mutes k, p, t, be exploded with force upon each vowel. Afterwards let each consonant (except the mutes) be shortened as much as possible and exploded upon the vowels, the vowel sounds (with the exception of the short ones) being lengthened as much as possible in their articulation. This exercise will familiarise the ear with their sounds and will shew what may be, and what ought to be done in pronouncing them.

TABLE OF VOWEL AND CONSONANT

SOUNDS:

THE VOWELS BEING PLACED BEFORE THE CONSONANTS.

Their union will make the compounds which are to furnish the exercises of this table.

Union of No. 7 with No. 1 | make ab.

Directions for the use of the foregoing Table.

1. Let each of the long vowels be protracted as much as possible, in combination with b, d, g, l, m, n, ng, r, v, which are also to be protracted as much as possible, as awb, aid, ow'd, &c.

2. Let each of the short vowels be sounded with b, d, g, l, m, n, ng, r, v, giving the utmost prolongation to the consonants, as, a-b, a-d, o-b, e-d, &c.

3. Let the long vowels be sounded with ƒ, j, k, p, s, 1, v, x, z, th, sh, ch, giving as much prolongation as possible to the vowels, but not more than is necessary for distinctness to the consonants.

4. Let the short vowels be united with the last named consonants, let as much explosive force as possible be given to the syllables made by the junction, without more than usual protraction of either vowels or consonants.

The practice upon these tables may be thought by the indolent somewhat irksome; but the diligent student may assure himself that more is not required than he will find substantially useful in familiarizing his ear with the real sounds of his language, in giving him an intimate knowledge of their vocal capacity, and in obtaining a forcible and precise action of the organs of speech in the pronunciation of syllables.

COMBINATIONS OF CONSONANT ELEMENTS.

As the greatest obstacles to a distinct articulation occur in the pronunciation of the consonant elements, we proceed to construct a table of those elements in combination with each other. We do this because it is in giving precision and full force to each elementary sound, and in effecting the difficult and rapid changes which the utterance of a succession of these consonants require, that a principal difficulty of articulation consists. Exercise in every kind of combination is therefore the proper remedy for an indistinct utterance. All the mere directions in the world, whether found in books or out of them,