Page:Philosophical Transactions - Volume 002.djvu/203

 4. Of the Breath of Man, its quality, audits necessity » for the forming of the Voice. Where he shews, how by inspiring, the Breath is distributed through the Lungs (the nature of which he also describes), and how the same circulates through the whole Body.

5. Of the Animation of the Voice of Man by his Masculine and Generative Power. Where he discourses of the difficulty found in little Children, to pronounce certain Letters; and also of the weakness of the Voice in Children and Eunuchs. So much of the first Part.

The second Part, in one Dialogue, gives an account, How the Motions and Configurations of the Mouth, and the Framing of the Voice, are represented in the Hebrew Alphabet (for, to this Tongue the Author confines himself; but with what reason, the intelligent Reader of the Book it self may judge:) explaining the Sound of each Letter, the Motion of the Tongue accompanying the Sound, and the Figure of the Letter, resulting from thence; together with each Letters name, signification, and aptitude, to form the next following Letter. Which done, he proceeds to shew, how the Vowels are formed by the different Openings of the Mouth and Teeth; so that to every Vowel belongs a peculiar dimension of Wideness in the Mouth: And according to the shape of the outward Mouth, the Tongue and Breath are conformably moved within. To which are added, the Names of the Vowels, and their Figures; their absence in melt ancient Writings, and the several places in the Mouth for their formation. All which is concluded partly with a deduction of the Cause, why the Hebrew Tongue is Written from the Right hand to the Left? partly, with an Explanation of the method used to compose out of such Letters and Language a Grammar, viz. by comparing the Consonants with one another, and the Vowels as well with one another as with the Consonants; forasmuch as the nature of one being well considered with respect to the other, 'tis not difficult to judge, how they agree or disagree together: Whence Rules may be formed, how and why this or that Letter or Vowel is to be changed into another, &c.

The third Part treateth of the perfection of the Hebrew Tongue; wherein it consists, and how highly 'tis, to be valued: To which is subjoyn'd, first, a disquisition of Reason, why the Radical Words in the Hebrew Tongue can consist of no more than three Consonants? Secondly, a Discourse touching the Hebrew Accents, shewing, that 'tis a new Invention, and that the ancient Art of Musick being lost; and consequently to us unknown, the modern Hebrew Accents cannot reasonably be said to have been the Musical Notes of the Ancients, since especially all sorts of Hebrew Books and even their Chapters are marked therewith; though the Author acknowledges, that the newness deprives them not of the advantage of being useful.