-dess, -cess, -sess, -tess, etc., should be pronounced without accent, of course, and with the vowel slightly modified toward the neutral vowel. Many speakers and readers, and their number seems to be growing, pronounce these syllables with the distinct ě sound, and with more or less accentual force and quantity; producing an effect extremely distasteful to a sensitive ear. Daily we hear several of the following

words maltreated in this way:

Evidence, evident, movement, innocent, innocence, accident, convent, residence, silent, silence, goodness, development, lifeless, nearness, loveliness, raiment, judgment, experiment, experience, goddess, prophetess, burgess, largess,

moment.

Unaccented -or, final, is often mispronounced in the same crude fashion, in such words as actor, factor, creator, educator, curator, legislator, etc. The terminal syllable in all such words should be the ĕr-glide, unaccented, as heard in master, ever, maker, painter, visitor, honor, favor, color, dollar, deeper, dinner, martyr, nadir, etc.

SMART'S CODE FOR UNACCENTED SYLLABLES.

The following code, adapted from B. H. Smart, the English elocutionist and lexicographer, with the accompanying groups of words for practice, will greatly aid the observing and ambitious student in this important department of pronunciation. Grace and refinement, or clumsiness and coarseness, nowhere more clearly display themselves than in the touch given the unaccented syllables and the less important words.

As to the following sounds, observe that by ah, obscure, is meant the neutral vowel; that e, i, o, u, distinct, are in no respect different from the corresponding alphabetic vowels (name sounds) under the accent, but in having less force and prolongation; that at, et, it, ot, ut,

distinct, are precisely the same, except the want of equal force, with the corresponding syllables when accented; but that at, et, it, ot, obscure, have a corruption of their vowels, as if, in each instance, it was the neutral vowel, essentially short.

Since 'ah, obscure,' and 'at, obscure,' are essentially the same sound in the utterance, I have thought it useless to observe any distinction between them in theory; and, accordingly, have brought into a single group such words as belong to either class.

E, Distinct.

Because, elate, antedate, acme, parenthesis, destroy, propriety, begin, refuse (verb), benefit, remit, catechism, society, telegraph, before, event, apprehend, deceive, despair, deliver, denial, enough, impetus, catastrophe, avenue, supererogatory, periphery, epitome.

In initial syllables, the vowel is often indistinguishable from I; as in enough, despair, because, begin, remit, destroy,

If too much pains is taken to shape e, distinct, clearly, the result is some degree of accent, and the pronunciation of the word as a whole is spoiled.

I. Distinct.

Iota, titanic, primeval, diurnal, ironical, tyrannical, primordial, bacilli, priority, iconoclast, quietus, idea, diameter, biography, licentious, ideality.

O, Distinct.

Fellow, potation, motto, mellow, original, hero, window, propriety, opinion, widow, elocution, philanthropist, opposite, omit, morality, romantic, Romola, intonation, absolute, omission, rococo, oblige, impost, stiletto, Orinoco, quotation, evolution, monastic, tobacco, imposition, Aleppo, copartner, resolution, donation, potato, monotonous.

The italicized o in the above group of words is the midback wide, instead of the mid-back narrow, vowel. There is no glide toward oo or oo.

U, Distinct.

Humane, statue, utility, cupidity, impudent, lucubration, virtue, emulate, curiosity, manumit, incubation, unanimous, usurp, monument, literature, intuition, stupendous, cellular, ague, avenue, animalcule, fluidity, lugubrious, accusation.

At, Distinct.

Abjure, addition, appertain, appeal, advantage, accrue, programme, allay, allude, baptize, ascertain, annex (verb), activities, ascension, climax, acclivity, attempt, accept, affection-ate, acceptable, alternately, antipathy, Muscat, aspersion, admit, attention, affect, approximate, astonishing, avuncular, arrange, antagonism.

Et, Distinct.

Goodness, parallel, enlightenment, extend, specimen, excellence, innocent, solemn, silent, ennoble, technology, convent, accident, prudent, anthem, honest, entire-ly, erroneous, perfect, movement, endeavor, requiem, providence, except, environment, abject, evident, enticement.

In final syllables, not too distinct; there should be a judicious, delicate shading off toward the neutral vowel,not toward i. A 'Miss Nancy' nicety is as bad as the virtual elision of the vowel, or the frank, unmitigated slovenliness of the neutral vowel. The utterance of et, distinct, in unaccented final syllables, may be regarded as almost the final test of a refined pronunciation. (See 'The Vowels in Unaccented Syllables', p. 39.)

It, Distinct.

Pencil, Monday, Druid, busy, impious, axis, futile, mercantile, village, Missouri, financial, Erie, council, Tues

day, emptied, divide, unity, exit, juvenile, direct-ly, villain, Mississippi, finesse, intensification, Latin, lettuce, hurriedly, novice, deity, surfeit, genuine, digest (verb), captain, Cincinnati, pictorial, Illinois, satin, bodice, busied, novelties, trinity, servile, heroine, dilate, mountain, fidelity, intelligibility, civilization.

Ot, Distinct.

Offend, occur, opportune, whatever, frontier, cosmos, organic, offensive, official, Ontonagon, nonentity, occult, pathos, oppressive-ly, Murdoch, oppress, ingot, Longinus, ostensible, incorrectly, ontology, Ottumwa, mascot, complot (noun), nonsensical, chaos, oblivious, occasional.

Ut, Distinct.

Cherub, skeleton, pious, animus, momentous, surplus, decision, impetus, gracious, anxious, sermon, ambitious, quietus, serious, Brutus, decorum, unison, gratuitous, portentous, consensus.

At, Obscure; Ah, Obscure.

Abase, Iowa, Canada, available, Edward, particular, Carolina, eternal, abound, Florida, era, receptacle, Cæsar, tartar, formula, parallel, villa, Vesta, vista, spectacle, forward, mortar, aright, trial, sofa, Asia, roundabout, Edgar, a (the article), collar, indispensable, several, Samaritan, pleasant, verbal, truant, partisan, personal, real, partial, casualty, puritan, kinsman, husband, African, artisan, fatal, important, nuptial, syllable, temperance, human, final, American, elegant, malady, penalty, Iliad, excavation, nobleman, gentleman, abundance, republican, elegance, analogous, criminal, festival, tractable.

Et, Obscure.

Level, towel, even, oxen, pullet, boxes, model, shovel, apple, oaken, counsel, horses, sudden, vowel, able, hatchet,

marvelous, divided, linen, hyphen, colonel, ratchet, roses, beloved.

Final -ble, cle, -dle, -fle, -gle, etc., unaccented, as in able, apple, above, do not end with the vowel sound, as the spelling should imply, but a slight, obscure vowel sound is heard between the articulates.

It, Obscure.

Devil, cousin, evil, nadir, basin, elixir, raisin, tapir.

Ot, Obscure.

Command, continue, commencement, collegiate, Lincoln, person, colonial, compel, conduce, community, recollect, iron (i'-ŭrn), gracious, potato, content (adj.), Columbus, consideration, disconnect, Marmion, tobacco, possess, control, contemporary, inconvenient, communication, wisdom, tomato, possession.

Er-Glide.

Grammar, satyr, splendor, endeavor, exemplar, Grosvenor, robber, actor, clangor, glamour, terror, demeanor, martyr, creator, captor, curator, murmur, error, tartar, traitor, Cæsar, educator, horror, manor, operate, moderator, operation, reverence, venerate, reverential, tolerate, referential.

There is a kind of speaker who gives to the last eight words of the ĕr-glide group above, an affectedly precise syllabication, op'-e-rāte', op'-e-rā'-tion, věn'-ê-rāte', tŏl'-ē-rāte', mod'-ê-ra'-tor, rev'-ē-rěnce', rěv'-ê-rĕn'-tial, rěf'-ê-rèn'-tial, -which is an outrage, not only upon the sensibilities, but upon the proprieties of speech. Pray you, avoid it.

'Accept,' 'except'; 'affect,' 'effect'; 'eruption,' 'irruption'; 'emerge,' 'immerge,' etc., contrasting words of which the accents are identical in sound, depend for their individual spoken value upon the clear enunciation of the unaccented vowel. All through Mark Twain's works, 'Author's National Edition,' that gifted writer uniformly writes 'irruption',