Page:Transactions NZ Institute Volume 18.djvu/80

50 The first-named reason has probably been the cause of all the rest. The child is taught that a = ae; no broad a is taught.

e = i, or German ie.

i is a diphthong = ai.

o, as in other European languages; but in practice has several sounds.

u, also a diphthong = iu.

y = uai.

Thus we find three diphthongs represented by i, u, and y; three diphthongs in six letters. No other European language, that I know of, represents diphthongs by vowels. It is unfortunate that the broad a is not represented in the English alphabet, the child being taught that a = ae; the consequence is that in these days of education ae is rapidly taking the place of a. I lately heard a newsboy in London calling "Staendard." I find bass (fish), in the West of England called baess. At a meeting of a scientific society, I heard basalt called baesaolt. I was almost tempted to ask whether the lecturer was talking about bay-salt. It is a curious fact that when the letter a appears twice in an English word it is rarely pronounced the same way in both instances. One letter is a, the other ae: as in passage, passaege; facilitate, facilitaete. Often the change goes in the other direction. Thus we hear Garibaldi called Garibaoldi; Gibraltar, Gibraoltar; Malta, Maolta; malt, maolt; halt, haolt.

The introduction of French sounds into a Teutonic language has made great mischief. These in question are non-phonetic, and un suited to the character of the English language. Thus, in French we have mais = mes, tais = tes; and we have introduced the same sound into English, as in tail, which to adapt to Teutonic spelling we should write tael; tailor, taelor; nail, nael; sail, sael.

Then au in French is sometimes equal to o, and at others to ao: as Pau = Po, mauvais = mové, maure = maor. We find the latter sound in English in Paul, maul, haul, &c.; whereas, phonetically, we ought to employ au to stand for such words as ow in how, and so accommodate to Teutonic spelling.

On the other hand, we have such French words as invite, divide, to which we have given English sounds. How to deal with them is one of the most puzzling things in spelling reform. If the spelling is altered phonetically, it takes the word away from its derivation; and the question is, whether a change back to the French sound can be brought about.

Then we have from the French the words ending in tion, such as attention, promotion. The French sound of tion is peculiar, something between sion and siong. The English shorten this into shun, which hideous termination the spelling reformers propose to adopt. I am inclined to say with Lord Melbourne,