* Apparently this vowel sound is never open, for it never occurs except when r follows. It is a mere variety of No. 7 above. But the difference is sufficiently striking for it to merit a separate place.

13. jeun. [es]

1. Open atonic syllable, short:
2. Closed atonic syllable, common:
3. Open tonic syllable, common:
3. Closed tonic syllable, long :

14. doux. [u]

un à un.

Undine.
brun, parfum.
humble.

fouet.

1. Open atonic syllable, short:
2. Closed atonic syllable, common: foulard.

3. Open tonic syllable, common :
4. Closed tonic syllable, long :

15. du. [y]

1. Open atonic syllable, short:
2. Closed atonic syllable, common:
3. Open tonic syllable, common:
4. Closed tonic syllable, long :

fou.

foule.

lui.
cuvette, flûté.
du, dû.
cuve, flûte.

§ 79. The effect of graphic accents upon quantity.It is stated in most grammars, (1) that the circumflex accent makes a vowel very long (très-ouvert [?]); (2) that a grave accent makes a vowel long (ouvert [?]); (3) that an acute accent makes a vowel short (fermé [?]). This is only partially true. The vowel is relatively short, common, or long, according to its modern position, and independently of any graphic accents (see § 56).

1. i, u, ai, and î, û, aî, compared.

No doubt the î in gîte, û in sûr, aî in connaître, etc., are longer than the same vowel sounds in dit, jus, j'ai, etc. In the former words the syllables are closed, in the latter they are open. But this is true of vite, sur, connaissent, where no accent is found. The circumflex accent in itself shows only that the modern word is probably a contracted form of an older one, and that the vowel had once the consonants necessary to give it "position" as understood in Latin. It says nothing for the length of the vowel as found in the modern form, where the origin and meaning of the accent is practically forgotten.

2. eu and eû.

All the above is true of eu and eû. But the sound of euespecially if atonic—is apt to sink to the neutral sound of e mute; and care must be taken, in comparing the vowels, not to confuse the sounds (see § 81 y).

3. é, è, é.—ai, aî, ei.

With e the graphic accents usually correspond to the pronunciation. But even here they are not always trustworthy guides to the length of the vowels.

1. In règle, règne, tête, prête, etc., etc., the penultimate syllable is closed and has the tonic accent; it is long. To this the grave and circumflex accents correspond. But if we alter the words to some small extent, so as to shift the tonic accent, there is only a partial change in the graphic accents. Régler, régner, assume the acute accent to point out the shortened vowel, but prêter, têtu, do not.

2. The penultimate syllable in collége, protége, aimé-je, is closed and tonic. The syllable is long, in spite of the acute accent.

3. The same is true of e when the presence of a consonant in the same syllable renders it unnecessary to put any accent: chef, sel, cesse, etc. The e is closed, and bears the tonic accent; the e is long, as in tête.

4. In retraite, reine, neige, seigle, mauvaise, seize, etc., the ai and ei are long; for the syllable bears the tonic accent, and is closed. But if the syllable ai, ei be open, the vowel sound of its own accord becomes common (if not short): trait, mauvais, j'aurai, je sais, j'ai, etc.

In such words, again, as amertume, intérieur, etc., the necessity for a strong syllable to do justice to the consonantal sounds which follow, point to a long deep stress, rather than to a short acute stress. Such is in reality the pronunciation, in spite of the acute graphic accent.*

It must be acknowledged, however, that with ai, aî, ei, ê, è, the constant assertion in books, that it always represents a long deep sound (très ouvert), does much to force the pronunciation, in spite of position. But nature resists; the sound é is constantly heard in atonic syllables in ordinary conversation, in spite of dictionaries and grammars.

4. a and á; o and ô; au.

The sound of a in tache, etc., is sufficiently different from that of â in tâche, to be called a distinct vowel.

A still greater difference exists between o in mode, etc., and ô in hôte. In all we have four distinct sounds, symbolised usually by a, â, o, ô. Each vowel is long, common, or short, by its modern position.' In each of the words, mode, hôte, tache, tâche, the penultimate vowel is long, for it is closed and tonic. But if the syllable is atonic, the vowel becomes sensibly shortened, without regard to the graphic accent.

The same is true of événement, avénement, répéterais, etc., where there is a secondary accent. But as in French even the primary accent is weak, this secondary accent is necessarily difficult to detect (§ 52, 6).

Still the general tendency in these days of universal reading, to submit the pronunciation to the writing, has here, as in ê, è, ai, ei, often proved stronger than the natural pronunciation: ô or á is seen, and the attempt follows to give the word the long sound. And ô, â, are often long in spite of position. Some words have resisted. Although hôtel, rôti, are now supposed to be more correct than roti, hotel, the world goes on saying roti, hotel, side by side with rôti, hôtel.

Mauvais, again, the dictionaries tell us, equals môvais, but certainly movais is usually heard. Contrast mauve, where au is tonic.

In hôpital, ô even descends to o in modéré. This, no one disputes.

§ 80. Diphthongs.-1. The union in one syllable of any two vowel sounds forms a double vowel sound, or diphthong: ui in lui; oui in Louis; ouan in louange.

For practical purposes this definition is sufficiently accurate. The following is given by Professor Max Müller:-"The diphthongs arise when, instead of producing one vowel immediately after another with two efforts of the voice, we produce a sound during the change from one position to the other that would be required for each vowel."

2. It is perhaps necessary to caution the student against the (till lately) common English explanation of a diphthong, viz., that it is the written combination of the letters a, e, i, o, u, without regard to the double or single sound. Certainly, in English it is objectionable to be obliged to speak of a in fate, i in fine, pike, etc., and the u in amuse, mute, etc., as diphthongs. But this is preferable to destroying the meaning attached to the term in all works of philology. Max Müller, Morris, Latham, etc., use the term diphthong as it is employed in French.

66

3. Only a few of the numerous modern French diphthongs are strong," i.e., with tonic accent on first vowel, a'i (aille); eu'i (feuille); oui (houille). The others are weak.

4. With some exceptions, the exact pronunciation of a French diphthong may be ascertained by dividing it into its component vowels. But the sounds must be compressed together. Compare oui, yes, and out, heard; ouais and où est, where the sense seems to require a distinction to be made.*

*Is this distinction really made in rapid speaking, and are not all such combinations practically diphthongs?

cotiyon

cotilyon' or

All the above are practically diphthongs; some are caused merely by the accidental concurrence of two syllables, and would not for many purposes of etymology be acknowledged as true diphthongs.

§ 81. e mute (e muet or e sourd.)-1. If any one compares the English of Chaucer with modern English, perhaps the first thing that strikes him is the prevalence of e as a suffix.* This final e is the remnant of various Saxon grammatical endings. In Chaucer's time it was distinctly sounded in most cases. Even so late as Shakespeare many instances can be found in which the sound of the e is necessary to the rhythm.‡

e mute is also present as a medial letter.

+ See Chaucer (Clarendon Series), p. xlvi. passim, and Ellis's Early English Pronunciation, pp. 318, 400, for details. See also § 434, note. See Abbot's Shakesp. Grammar, pp. 386, etc.