EXPLANATION.

Anastodeins, beginning, lit., up-standing-ga-melip, written, painted, German, mahlen=paint. The ga is the sign of the participle: one word in English preserves it, viz. y-clept=called; A. S. clepian to call— aggilu, yysλos-gamanveiþ, prepare-stibna, voice; German, stimme→→ vopjandins, crying; weep-ing—aupidai, German, öde=waste.—Fanins, of the Lord-slaigos, ways = German, steig; Danish, stie-way-daupjands, baptize=dip-merjands, proclaiming, preaching-idreigos, repentance-aflageina, away-laying; fravaurhte, of sins; foreworks; the fore as in forswear-usiddjedun, outgoed, out-yode—awai, water, river; aha, Old German, aa, Norse-andhaitandans; and coram, hait-voco, as in hight = is called, bears the name : = proclaiming, confessing; gavasips, clothed; from vasjan to clothe-taglam, hair (word for word); tail, tægel, A. S.-ulbandaus (word for word) elephant-gairda, filleina—fell (as in fell-monger), girdle—hup, hips-pramsteins, twigs (such the transslation, not grasshoppers), mileþ, haipivisk, heath-honey; qipands, saying (queathing, as in quoth, bequeathe)—swinþoza, stronger, A. S. swiðe=very. Sa = who; anahneivands, stooping, bending (kneeling);—skauda-raip, latchet, i. e. shoe-rope; izvis, you; vatin, water; Danish, vand; Swedish, vatn; ahmen, spirit; veihamma, holy.

§ 25. Old Norse.-Languages akin to the Anglo-Saxon were spoken not only in Germany, but also in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Iceland. When spoken of collectively, and in their earliest stage, they are called Norse. By Old Norse, or Northern, is meant the mother-tongue of the present Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, and Icelandic, and also of the language of the Feroe Isles.

Icelandic (Fareyïnga-Saga-Ed. Mohnike).

Ok nú er þat eitthvert sinn um sumarit, at Sigmundr mælti til þoris: "Hvat mun verða, þo at við farim í skóg þenna, er hèr er norðr frá garði ?" þórir svarar: "á pví er mèr eingi forvitni," segir hann. "Ekki er mèr svâ gefit," segir Sigmundr, "ok þangat skal ek fara." "þú munt ráða hljóta," segir þûrir, ". en brjótum við þa boðorð fóstra míns." Nu fóru þeir, ok hafði Sigmundr viðaröxi eina i hendi sèr; koma i skóginn, ok í rjôðr eitt fagurt; ok er þeir hafa þar eigi leingi verit, þá heyra þeir björn mikinn harðla ok grimligan. þat var viðbjörn mikill, úlfgrár at lit. þeir hlaupa nu aptra á stiginn þan, er þeir hofðu þángat farit; stigrinn var mjór ok þraurigr, ok hleypr þórir fyrir, en Sigmundr síðar. Dýrit hleypr nú eptir þeim à stiginn, ok verðr því þraungr

stigrinn, ok brotna eikrnar fyrir þvi. Sigmundr snyr þá skjótt út af stignum millum trjânna, ok biðr þar til er dyrit kemr jafn-fram honum. þa höggr hann jafnt meðal hlusta á dŷrinu með tveim höndum, svâ et exin sökkr. En dýrit fellr áfram, ok er dautt.

English.

And now is it a time about the summer, that Sigmund spoke to Thorir: "What would become, even if we two go into the wood (shaw), which is here north from the house?" Thorir answers, "Thereto there is to me no curiosity," says he. "So is it not with me," says Sigmund, "and thither shall I go." "Thou mayst counsel," says Thorir, "but we two break the bidding-word of foster-father mine." Now go they, and Sigmund had a wood-axe in his hands; they come into the wood, and into a fair place; and as they had not been there long, they hear a bear, big, fierce, and grim. It was a wood-bear, big, wolf-grey in hue. They run (leap) now back (after) to the path, by which they had gone thither. The path was narrow and strait; and Thorir runs first, and Sigmund after. The beast runs now after them on the path, and the path becomes strait, and broken oaks before it. Sigmund turns then short out of the path among the trees, and bides there till the beast comes even with him. Then cuts he even in between the ears of the beast with his two hands, so that the axe sinks, and the beast falls forwards, and is dead.

Such are the forms of speech from which the modern languages of Germany, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Iceland are descended, just as the English is descended from the Anglo-Saxon. As these were akin to the Anglo-Saxon, so are the modern languages derived from them akin to the English.

§ 26. In speaking, we represent our ideas and thoughts by means of words; which words are composed of certain elementary sounds. In the word go there are two such; in the word got, three; and so on. As long as we limit ourselves to speaking, these elementary sounds are all that require notice. They address themselves to the ear.

They are capable, however of being represented by certain signs called letters; by which we are enabled not only to speak but to write. Letters address themselves to the eye. In the word go the letter 9 is the sign of its first, the letter o the sign of its second, sound.

Again-the word man consists of three sounds; the first that of a consonant, the second that of a vowel, and the third that of a consonant again. The first of these is represented by the letter m, the second by the letter a, the third by the letter n. The three sounds taken together form the word man, as it is heard in the spoken language. The three letters m, a, and n being taken together form the word man, as it is read in the written language. In this word a certain number of sounds are taken together, and by that means there is constituted what the grammarians call a syllable. The word syllable is derived from the Greek words (syn) with and labein (to take). The word

man is not only a syllable, but a word also; which shows that words may consist of a single syllable.

Words consisting of single syllables are called monosyllables, from the Greek word monos (alone),—man, he, she, child, &c.

Words consisting of two syllables are called dis-syllables, from the Greek word dis (twice),— over, under, about, father, mother, &c.

Words consisting of three syllables are called trisyllables, from the Greek word treis (three),—disable, fatherless, repining, sorcerer, &c.

Words consisting of more than three syllables are called polysyllables, from the Greek word polys (many),—architecture, incapacity, fermentation, &c.

Orthoëpy signifies the right utterance of words. It deals with language as it is spoken and determines how a word is to be pronounced. Orthography signifies the right use of letters. It deals with language as it is written, and determines how words should be spelt.

All languages were spoken long before they were written; and, at the present moment, there are numerous forms of speech which have never been reduced to writing at all. Hence, letters come later than the sounds they express, and orthography is subordinate to orthoëpy.

But as a picture never exactly represents the object from which it is taken, so the orthography of a language never exactly represents the orthoëpy; in other words, there is always some difference between language as it is spoken and language as it is written. Sometimes there are more sounds than letters. Sometimes words change their pronunciation as they pass from one people or from one generation to another; whilst no corresponding change is made in the manner of writing them. Sometimes fresh sounds from other languages are introduced; and, as no fresh letters are brought to represent them, they must be represented, as they best may, by the

letters already in use. This, however, is but a general notice. The particular details of the English orthography will appear in the sequel.

§ 27. The elementary sounds in the English language as at present spoken are as follows:

VOWELS.

A.-1. The sound of the letter a in ah, father, &c.

2. The sound of the letter a in fate, bate, ale, pale, bait, ail, snake, snail, &c.

3. The sound of the letter a in fat, pat, bat, that, hat, patting, &c.-All these three sounds are varieties of one and the same original sound. They are generally expressed in spelling by the letter a.

E.-4. The sound of the e in bed, beck, less, net, netting, &c. This is a short quick sound. It is generally expressed by the letter e.

I.-5. The sound of the e in feet, need, seed, seek, leak, seat, beat, &c.-This sound is often considered as allied to the preceding one and as a long variety of it. ever, the long form of the vowel sound next mentioned, i. e.

It is, howabout to be

6. The sound of the i in tin, pity, pitted, stick, kick, &c.— This sound is often considered as allied to the sound of i in pine, shine, &c., and as a shortened variety of it. It is, however, a shortened form of the sound of e in feet.

U.—7. The sound of the co in cool, and of the o in move, prove.

8. The sound of the u in bull, full, pull, &c.-Although these two last-mentioned sounds are expressed in spelling by different letters (the one by u, and the other by o), they are evidently allied in utterance. They are both varieties of one and the same sound, pronounced rapidly in the one case, and slowly in the other. The two sounds bear the same relation to each other as the a in fate bears to the a in fat, and the ee in feet to the i in fit.